Firmage has generated so much controversy because of his belief that aliens have visited the Earth. But he insists his message has been distorted by the media. "For people who've taken the time to read my book, only about two pages out of 700 had anything to do with Roswell," Firmage told space.com in a recent interview. "It was about biology, physics, where we stand and what's around the corner."

Firmage hopes the announcements he plans to make Wednesday about ISSO will help skeptics see his vision from a different angle. Rather than focusing on UFOlogy or other "fringe" subjects, ISSO will spend several million dollars on research into breakthrough propulsion systems, including electromagnetic propulsion systems and methods for "manipulating" the speed of light; energy generation systems, such as fuel cells and "zero point energy systems"; and what Firmage calls "the physical dynamics of consciousness," or the idea that physics and human consciousness are based on a single set of underlying processes.

ISSO will spend several million dollars on internal research projects and grants to scientists at other organizations, Firmage said, adding that all the research will be scientifically accurate. "People will be satisfied with the intellectual rigor of what we do," he said. "The reality is the press has treated this so trivially. We're really doing some very important work."

In fact, Firmage said, some people are already becoming more receptive to his efforts. "I've noticed a very positive swing in receptivity amongst scientists, government and Silicon Valley. I think people are mature enough to remember that we've been seriously advancing engineering technologies for only about 40,000 days now, or 100 years. I'm sure the grand march of science does not stop at 2000 A.D."