Re: Odds on E.T. shorten : Fri Jan 13, 2012 4:09 pm  

Chief Stinkwort wrote:

but you could equally argue...would they like to meet us?

This is to me as interesting a point as has been made.

If mankind did get a communication from a distant civilisation, who would speak for us?

What would they say?

The odds are pretty reasonable that the aliens might be the space equivalent of Attila the Hun, or Islamic fundamentalists, or Crusader-style nutjobs. They may be sailing the wastes of space to find new worlds to conquer, like the British, Spanish, Portuguese et al did centuries ago around the world's oceans.

We are beaming signals out there with no idea of the attitude of any intelligent life who might receive it, and if we did attract the attention of some not very nice aliens who had advanced enough technology to be able to answer back, the odds are very high that they would possess weapons against which we would have absolutely no defence.

Put it this way: if there are billions of civilisations out there, what are the odds that the lot of them are just benevolent alien philanthropists? Not great.

To look at it from the other side, let's say that in 2000 years time the human race is still here, and we've cracked the space travel thing, and there is a thriving used-spacecraft market, like there is now in aircraft.

If a planet were discovered that was filled with untold mineral wealth, who would guarantee (whatever the World Space Police did to discourage it) there wouldn't be a few craft from Holme Wood sneaking in there at night and filling their boots?

Re: Odds on E.T. shorten : Fri Jan 13, 2012 4:26 pm  

Well if anybody has seen Ancient Aliens on the History channel there's already some pretty interesting evidence that we've already been visited by ETs over 1000s of years.

Re: Odds on E.T. shorten : Fri Jan 13, 2012 4:51 pm  

Ferocious Aardvark wrote:

This is to me as interesting a point as has been made.

If mankind did get a communication from a distant civilisation, who would speak for us?

What would they say?

The odds are pretty reasonable that the aliens might be the space equivalent of Attila the Hun, or Islamic fundamentalists, or Crusader-style nutjobs. They may be sailing the wastes of space to find new worlds to conquer, like the British, Spanish, Portuguese et al did centuries ago around the world's oceans.

We are beaming signals out there with no idea of the attitude of any intelligent life who might receive it, and if we did attract the attention of some not very nice aliens who had advanced enough technology to be able to answer back, the odds are very high that they would possess weapons against which we would have absolutely no defence.

Put it this way: if there are billions of civilisations out there, what are the odds that the lot of them are just benevolent alien philanthropists? Not great.

To look at it from the other side, let's say that in 2000 years time the human race is still here, and we've cracked the space travel thing, and there is a thriving used-spacecraft market, like there is now in aircraft.

If a planet were discovered that was filled with untold mineral wealth, who would guarantee (whatever the World Space Police did to discourage it) there wouldn't be a few craft from Holme Wood sneaking in there at night and filling their boots?

You're asking the wrong people...The Doctor would know.

Re: Odds on E.T. shorten : Fri Jan 13, 2012 7:41 pm  

Charlie Sheen wrote:

Well if anybody has seen Ancient Aliens on the History channel there's already some pretty interesting evidence that we've already been visited by ETs over 1000s of years.

Evidence? Or unsubstantiated speculation?

Re: Odds on E.T. shorten : Fri Jan 13, 2012 7:53 pm  

Ferocious Aardvark wrote:

This is to me as interesting a point as has been made.

If mankind did get a communication from a distant civilisation, who would speak for us?

What would they say?

The odds are pretty reasonable that the aliens might be the space equivalent of Attila the Hun, or Islamic fundamentalists, or Crusader-style nutjobs. They may be sailing the wastes of space to find new worlds to conquer, like the British, Spanish, Portuguese et al did centuries ago around the world's oceans.

We are beaming signals out there with no idea of the attitude of any intelligent life who might receive it, and if we did attract the attention of some not very nice aliens who had advanced enough technology to be able to answer back, the odds are very high that they would possess weapons against which we would have absolutely no defence.

Put it this way: if there are billions of civilisations out there, what are the odds that the lot of them are just benevolent alien philanthropists? Not great.

To look at it from the other side, let's say that in 2000 years time the human race is still here, and we've cracked the space travel thing, and there is a thriving used-spacecraft market, like there is now in aircraft.

If a planet were discovered that was filled with untold mineral wealth, who would guarantee (whatever the World Space Police did to discourage it) there wouldn't be a few craft from Holme Wood sneaking in there at night and filling their boots?

Very negative, have you not seen Cocoon, the all look like Brian Denehey (or Tahnee Welsh if we are lucky )

Re: Odds on E.T. shorten : Fri Jan 13, 2012 8:21 pm  

Rock God X wrote:

Evidence? Or unsubstantiated speculation?

It was god

Re: Odds on E.T. shorten : Sat Jan 14, 2012 1:00 am  

I too am of the opinion (what do I know though?) that it's a rather risky game to be trying to contact other (sophisticated? ) lifeforms. I suppose if they were at arms length and they just tried to just indicate their existence then that would be OK.
But if there was any chance they could reach here, we'd be toast.
Just lie low would be my advice.
By all means develop means of space travel if need be as well.

Re: Odds on E.T. shorten : Sat Jan 14, 2012 2:07 am  

Imagine if, in time, we managed to send exploratory visits to each and every planet in the known universe, and turned up a complete blank for life.


The bloody god botherers would be insufferable.

Re: Odds on E.T. shorten : Sat Jan 14, 2012 9:03 am  

Scooter Nik wrote:

Imagine if, in time, we managed to send exploratory visits to each and every planet in the known universe, and turned up a complete blank for life.


The bloody god botherers would be insufferable.

If you follow their logic though, and their god did create just this earth and just us in his image then there is only the conclusion that if life does exist on another planet and it doesn't look like us then there must be another god, at least one more but maybe lots more gods, maybe every one of those trillion planets has its own god, protecting its own little planet like kids do marbles in a school playground.

On the other hand if its all true and there is but one god and he made all of this for us then let us nail his son to a tree just for effect, then why did he bother with such a complicated universe when clearly he has no more use for it than to provide us with something nice to look at on clear nights - he could just as easily have hung all of those twinkling lights in the sky and not bother with orbits and other solar systems, just hang fairy lights above the atmosphere like decorating a christmas tree.

Re: Odds on E.T. shorten : Sat Jan 14, 2012 12:43 pm  

McLaren_Field wrote:

If you follow their logic though, and their god did create just this earth and just us in his image then there is only the conclusion that if life does exist on another planet and it doesn't look like us then there must be another god, at least one more but maybe lots more gods, maybe every one of those trillion planets has its own god, protecting its own little planet like kids do marbles in a school playground.

On the other hand if its all true and there is but one god and he made all of this for us then let us nail his son to a tree just for effect, then why did he bother with such a complicated universe when clearly he has no more use for it than to provide us with something nice to look at on clear nights - he could just as easily have hung all of those twinkling lights in the sky and not bother with orbits and other solar systems, just hang fairy lights above the atmosphere like decorating a christmas tree.

God created everything in the Universe, there is only one God.
The reason you don't understand yet about other worlds is that God has not revealed it to you yet.
Have faith my son, all will be revealed in the fullness of time.
God is using 'scientists' as a vehicle for your enlightenment, but they don't realise (or at least some of them don't) they are being used by God for this purpose.
They somehow foolishly think they are acting independently, but they are not.
You see God has nothing to fear from Science. God made Science.

I have spoken.