Do you believe in aliens?

[Terra_Ascension]

Do you believe in aliens?

I do 🙂

TA

 

[kered]

If we can be found out here in the boondocks of the Milky Way, sure. Makes me wonder what goes on towards the center of the galaxy.

And what might be found in Andromeda?

 

[The Last Laugh]

Do you believe in aliens?

I absolutely believe that there's life somewhere out there, possibly even intelligent life. But I don't believe one second that we're being visited by UFOs.

 

[BigJim]

I absolutely believe that there's life somewhere out there, possibly even intelligent life. But I don't believe one second that we're being visited by UFOs.

Just out of interest, why don't you?

 

[Strider]

I'd like to. Honestly, very few things would make me happier than confirmation of intelligent life elsewhere in the universe, but I don't see it as being likely.

 

[Dr. Vollin]

I'd like to. Honestly, very few things would make me happier than confirmation of intelligent life elsewhere in the universe, but I don't see it as being likely.

Do you believe intelligent life has only arisen in this one spot and nowhere else, or have I misunderstood what you're saying? If that's what you're saying, what makes you see it (intelligent life elsewhere) as unlikely?

 

[cloudgazer2k]

it would be hard to imagine that there isn't other forms of intelligent life in this galaxy or the next. if space is truly as infinite as scientists and sci-fi writers believe, one can only imagine the numbers of life-forms out there. whether or not they have the tech to come visit us is another story all together.

 

[The Last Laugh]

Just out of interest, why don't you?

That's a tough question that I'm not sure I can answer. It's a combination of my personal beliefs and some very convincing arguments I've heard from scientists. You'd have to watch a scientific documentary about it to have a good idea of my reasons. It's a mix of distance, limitations of technology, differences in levels of development between civilizations, probable lifetimes of species (I mean the time a species exists before becoming extinct), the short period of time a civilization is liklely to emit signals that can be detected (like radio waves) and the time it takes for them to reach other civilizations, etc. I'm sorry I can't be any more specific. Maybe someone else has a better grasp of this issue and can explain some more. In any case, I seriously doubt that aliens are aware of us, and I doubt even more that they've visited us. It's simply too improbable.

 

[Strider]

Do you believe intelligent life has only arisen in this one spot and nowhere else, or have I misunderstood what you're saying? If that's what you're saying, what makes you see it (intelligent life elsewhere) as unlikely?

There was nothing inevtiable about humans taking over the earth, in fact, things were really a rather chancy affair that could have gone either way for about the first 50,000 years of our existence. I just think that if you look at every single obstacle intelligent life had to overcome just to evolve on this planet, then the odds of it happening elsewhere are tiny, at best.

 

[BigJim]

I'd like to. Honestly, very few things would make me happier than confirmation of intelligent life elsewhere in the universe,...

Not necessarily a comforting thing. During the middle of last century, no-one was as intelligent or as far advanced as the Nazis. That's why we nicked all their scientists at the end of the war.

 

[BigJim]

That's a tough question that I'm not sure I can answer. It's a combination of my personal beliefs and some very convincing arguments I've heard from scientists. You'd have to watch a scientific documentary about it to have a good idea of my reasons. It's a mix of distance, limitations of technology, differences in levels of development between civilizations, probable lifetimes of species (I mean the time a species exists before becoming extinct), the short period of time a civilization is liklely to emit signals that can be detected (like radio waves) and the time it takes for them to reach other civilizations, etc. I'm sorry I can't be any more specific. Maybe someone else has a better grasp of this issue and can explain some more. In any case, I seriously doubt that aliens are aware of us, and I doubt even more that they've visited us. It's simply too improbable.

All the technological questions are more or less moot though (the greatest scientific brains of any age are usually eclipsed by the high school students of a hundred years later when it comes to base knowledge), as another two thousand years of evolution with our own race (assuming we don't destroy ourselves) would cause an unimaginable jump in capability. In a bare two centuries we've gone from circling the globe and its land with steam, to theoretic and lengthy interplanetary missions. I grant you inter-stellar is an almighty big, fuck off jump from there, but I don't think it's a permanently undoable one.


Talking of probabilities, does anyone here discount Drake’s Equation?

 

[BigJim]

There was nothing inevtiable about humans taking over the earth, in fact, things were really a rather chancy affair that could have gone either way for about the first 50,000 years of our existence. I just think that if you look at every single obstacle intelligent life had to overcome just to evolve on this planet, then the odds of it happening elsewhere are tiny, at best.

But once humankind took root, it took over the earth and didn't slow down in its evolutionary gallop. Same with life existing at all. Nothing short of a Death Star style destruction could eliminate life on earth, and even then the microbes would exist buried in bits of asteroid that would crash land on some other planet and "infect" it with life. A lot of scientists believe that's what happened to Earth. Comets alone carry a lot of organic molecules that serve as the main building blocks of organisms: things like formaldehyde.

 

[BigJim]

it would be hard to imagine that there isn't other forms of intelligent life in this galaxy or the next. if space is truly as infinite as scientists and sci-fi writers believe, one can only imagine the numbers of life-forms out there. whether or not they have the tech to come visit us is another story all together.

Aye, a thought that brings up Drake's Equation again.

 

[The Last Laugh]

I grant you inter-stellar is an almighty big, fuck off jump from there

Indeed. Reaching space is nothing compared to finding aliens on distant worlds and actually getting there. I still don't believe it's possible, and it's not just because of technological limitations. Even if we could detect intelligent signals and reach distant worlds fairly quickly, would we actually be able to meet the aliens responsible for the signals? Considering the eons it takes even for light to reach us from far away worlds, it's very likely that whatever civilization sent the signals is long gone by the time we get there, either having gone extinct or having moved on. Just one of the various arguments against the chances of encountering aliens. Not to mention that we might not be able to recognize alien life even if we encountered it, as it might be totally different from life and intelligence as we know.

 

[tickmankyle1]

yes cause i'm lol there is too much space out there for there not too. later kyle

 

[BigJim]

Indeed. Reaching space is nothing compared to finding aliens on distant worlds and actually getting there. I still don't believe it's possible, and it's not just because of technological limitations. Even if we could detect intelligent signals and reach distant worlds fairly quickly, would we actually be able to meet the aliens responsible for the signals? Considering the eons it takes even for light to reach us from far away worlds, it's very likely that whatever civilization sent the signals is long gone by the time we get there, either having gone extinct or having moved on. Just one of the various arguments against the chances of encountering aliens. Not to mention that we might not be able to recognize alien life even if we encountered it, as it might be totally different from life and intelligence as we know.

I grant you signals sent from anything but the nearest neighbourhood (say, 25 light years?) would be worthless, unless there was some way scientifically possible to make them go hyper or E-R-B'y.

That last one especially though, makes the prospect of traveling three hundred light years seem positively wimpy once it's controllable.

 

[Mastertank1]

The last bunch of aliens I spoke to......

told me that THEY don't believe in ME!

So I don't believe in them either.

SO THERE!