So what will happen when intelligent life is discovered?

It may well be that we get to interstellar travel first, or more likely, that SETI starts to ping the rocky planets we've discovered in other solar systems and we get replies back we species of similar advancement. The assumption that they will stumble upon us and say hello, or study us, or otherwise make first contact by physical presence seems unlikely given our current knowledge of physics.

I would also suggest that they would be no more cooperative than we are, no more peaceful than us, and no less hostile. The human race has demonstrated a wide range of societal arrangements and can cooperate at the level of billions or millions of people. Any race consisting of social individuals (e.g. us, dolphins, elephants) rather than social slaves (e.g. ants, bees, termites etc.) would have the ability to both cooperate and disagree, to accomplish great things, to devolve into a bickering mass of flesh. Its unreasonable to think that to get to interstellar travel and first contact you would need more cooperation and less hostility than we have.

 

To say that we may well get to interstellar travel first makes the assumption that any intelligent species which may exist out there is of similar or less age in terms of their existence and advancement. Considering the age of the universe, it's just as likely that we are late comers to the party. Unless of course, high intelligence capable of technology always takes as long as it took us and that all planets capable of fostering life came into creation at the same time ours did - I find both of these prospects unlikely and regard this sort of thinking as being a bit egocentric.

Quantum physics is already revealing that our current knowledge of physics is outdated. It can't be assumed that potential forms of energy and space travel are limited to our current knowledge.

It's also likely that, unless we show much greater cooperation amongst ourselves in this new millenium, if we haven't destroyed ourselves, we will never step beyond here to get there. Greater cooperation does not mean that no one has disagreements - only that they find ways around them towards a common goal. Now that common goal may be nefarious from our perspective, but there is really no way of knowing unless and until they show up at our door.

 

It would be awful to become their pet. Looking at our cats and daughter... what if they think us as cute, when we do all these human things... them being several times more intelligent. They wouldn't even need to be bigger than us to control us, if they have other means.

 

If they feed me and put me out to stud, I'd cope.

 

What if we do find life that is far more advanced but still highly religious? I agree with you in this that they do not have to be mutually exclusive of each other.

Prepare for the worst, expect the best.

 

I wonder if we'll be able to recognize intelligence.

 

I wonder what alien porn is like? Or if it even exists.

So many questions.

 

Are they vegetable, animal, or mineral? Do they wear jewelry and have their hair styled? Do they have hair? Maybe they are highly intelligent slugs or roaches. Yeah, I bet they're roaches. Maybe the roaches here now are aliens. Little bastards.

 

You saw Men in Black, didn't you?

 

Didnt Cartman have an Alien probe and something shoved up his arse?

 

I've seen enough hentai to know where this is going....

 

Would alien anal probing come under 'dont ask dont tell'?

 

I don't think the shoving was the problem. Cartman fails appreciation. If alien intelligence doesn't automatically disrespect us because we aren't up to snuff, it will all work out. Humans slaving for overlords; nothing will change for the masses.

 

I've seen movies about aliens. They could be holograms.

This boggles my mind again, when I think, how impossible it is for us to exist at all.

 

Just did the wiki for anal probe to find out it's origin.

It goes on to list references in popular culture.

pliers? Aliens have pliers?

 

Aliens can travel here, yet they have not developped any scanning methods like magnetic resonance imaging, which was first known in 1950's among humans, says wiki.

Sounds suspicious...

All these experiences of anal probes by aliens must be fantasies...

 

I don't think there's intelligent life ANYWHERE including on earth...

 

I think intelligence, good heart and a clear conscience must be a very rare combination in a person of power, as rare as rocking horse dung even. I have been talking to some poor people like this today, thank goodness they exist. Shit couple of days with animal welfare fight - wont go off thread, its just the way I am feeling about people and valuing the good ones right now. Rare as prescious jewels - so many do not see their value, these kind gentle people who battle like warriors until their hearts break - but they just tend to be shallow people heartless people are my thoughts today.
Night night luvies, especialy to those hidden jewels one sometimes catches flashes of on here.
May the drugs bless me with no dreams of the bastards I have been fighting. Sleep tight all, when its time to snuggle down yourselves
CC

 

http://news.yahoo.com/space-ball-drops-namibia-133326985.html

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