- #1
Space Drifter
- 12
- 0
Do I believe there is life elsewhere in the cosmos?
Absolutely.
Do I think they have radio, nuclear fission, space-faring vessels and maybe even technology far beyond our comprehension? Yes, but they are likely so rare, it's inconceivable that we will ever cross paths.
Why?
For starters, I disagree with the notion that evolution is always a forward progression, favoring intelligence and complexity, as if life progresses linearly from simple organism to conscious awareness, and given enough time, any species would 'evolve' toward that. Without specific conditions that favor a mutation, there is no mechanism that moves things forward in complexity, automatically.
It seems the vast majority of life in the cosmos must be simple bacteria or microbial organisms.
It took our planet 4 billion years to produce just one technological species. And we've only been technological for about 100 years of our 50,000 year history since our transition from Cro-magnon to Homo-sapien. And in the context of the 4 billion years since Earth's formation, this recent "technological age" is an almost imperceptible, blip in time.
And how long will humanity survive? We are still in our technological infancy, and we may not survive more than a few hundred years more. If we don't destroy ourselves with weapons, we most probably will destroy our habitat, starting with our ozone layer and our oceans. So unless we change our paradigm, Earth's resources will be unable to sustain us for very many generations more. Add to that, population forecasts of 9 billion by 2050, and 20 billion by 2100, and our survival on mother Earth is very finite. We will have been a "technological" civilization that lasted roughly from 1900 AD to 2100 AD. Earth will out live us by another 4 billion years, when our sun becomes a red giant and swallows most of our solar system's planets. In Earth's total life of 8 billion years, there will have been just one technological civilization, and a very rudimentary one at that, who existed for merely 200 years. The blink of an eye.
Put that into the context of the 13 billion year-old universe and 200 Earth years is all but imperceptible.
Take a step back and pretend you can see the entire universe in your field of view. And that you have been observing everything since the beginning of time, 13 billion years ago... at the big bang. You would probably see a technological civilization pop up for just a "blip" over here. A nano-second over there. And another, a split second over there. Sort of like watching fireflies on a dark summer night. A blip here, a blip there.
What are the odds that even one of those "blips" would send a spaceship to rendezvous with one of the other "blips" before it extinguished? You see what I'm getting at? The odds of existing simultaneously are astronomical, let alone visiting one another.
Okay then, let's assume that one of these "blips" survives longer than a mere "blip". Let's say they learned to put away their weapons of mass destruction, they were able to conserve resources, control population and therefore survive long enough to develop not merely 100 Earth years of technology, but say 10,000 years, or even a million years of technological advancement. Such a species could in theory, learn to travel the stars. With their unfathomably advanced know-how, they could very well come visit us.
But there's a problem. If they are so advanced as to harness time and cosmic distances to their desire, would they really be interested in us, or even stopping in for a look at us on their way past? Could they even talk to us? When you walk past an ant hill, do you stop and talk to the ants? And if you did, would the ants understand you? In other words, such advanced aliens would be uninterested in us. And we'd be unable to comprehend them, even if they were interested.
Even on our own planet, we cannot communicate with other species. A few, perhaps, such as primates, dolphins and our pet dogs and cats. But is it deep communication? Not really. And again, these are species of our own planet. Species with which we have almost identical DNA. Imagine how different the DNA would be of any alien species who visits us? Communication would be impossible. In fact, even comprehending that they are here would be impossible for us... in the same way that the ants don't know you are standing near them. They may have a sense of your presence, but no comprehension of you whatsoever.
Just as we would have no comprehension of a species advanced enough to travel here.
So let's review. Evolution does not mean advancement toward technology. Hence, technological species are extremely rare. And of those which have developed, most don't last long. So their odds of existing during our existence is minuscule. Finally, assuming there was even one civilization out there who somehow managed to survive long enough to achieve interstellar travel, they would have to be so much more advanced than us, that they'd either be disinterested in visiting us – or that if they did, we would almost certainly be unable to comprehend their presence.
That's why I think we'll never make contact with anyone other than simple microbial life.
But you know what?
I actually hope I'm wrong.
EPILOGUE:
I am not holding my breath, but I certainly long for and fantasize about making contact, however unlikely that may be. But if it happens, I sense that our visitors would not harm us. If they are advanced enough to survive without destroying themselves, then they have obviously learned that peace is essential to survival. Any malicious species would destroy itself before becoming advanced enough to travel the universe.
And if it is to be 'us,' who travels to visit 'them,' then it is we who must learn to co-exist with our own fellow earthlings... if we are to survive the centuries necessary to achieve the technology required for interstellar travel. We are at a crossroads. Will we choose to follow our peaceful instincts toward one another? Or will we continue with our malicious instincts?
It's much more than just laying down our weapons. It's that the conservative mindset of "me before you" or "us vs. them" or "my money is my money and I will not share it with you" or "U.S.A. first" – these mindsets MUST give way to the mindset that "everyone, no matter what color your skin, your socioeconomic background or what passport you hold, deserves prosperity" - "that mankind is all one family." The conservative mind MUST for once, operate consistently with their so-beloved Bible's teachings: to help your fellow man, to love your brother, etc.
The TV series Star Trek is beautifully prophetic in its notion of a "World Federation." No borders. No walls. All races and nationalities blended into one, all under one world government. Federation Earth.
Yes, we humans are at a crossroads. Will we continue to put our own countries first? Or will we harness the strength that comes with joining forces? And hence, travel the cosmos...
And then maybe, just maybe... meet a few peaceful interstellar neighbors, who've chosen the same path. And together with them, with mutual cooperation, live forever.
-Space Drifter
Absolutely.
Do I think they have radio, nuclear fission, space-faring vessels and maybe even technology far beyond our comprehension? Yes, but they are likely so rare, it's inconceivable that we will ever cross paths.
Why?
For starters, I disagree with the notion that evolution is always a forward progression, favoring intelligence and complexity, as if life progresses linearly from simple organism to conscious awareness, and given enough time, any species would 'evolve' toward that. Without specific conditions that favor a mutation, there is no mechanism that moves things forward in complexity, automatically.
It seems the vast majority of life in the cosmos must be simple bacteria or microbial organisms.
It took our planet 4 billion years to produce just one technological species. And we've only been technological for about 100 years of our 50,000 year history since our transition from Cro-magnon to Homo-sapien. And in the context of the 4 billion years since Earth's formation, this recent "technological age" is an almost imperceptible, blip in time.
And how long will humanity survive? We are still in our technological infancy, and we may not survive more than a few hundred years more. If we don't destroy ourselves with weapons, we most probably will destroy our habitat, starting with our ozone layer and our oceans. So unless we change our paradigm, Earth's resources will be unable to sustain us for very many generations more. Add to that, population forecasts of 9 billion by 2050, and 20 billion by 2100, and our survival on mother Earth is very finite. We will have been a "technological" civilization that lasted roughly from 1900 AD to 2100 AD. Earth will out live us by another 4 billion years, when our sun becomes a red giant and swallows most of our solar system's planets. In Earth's total life of 8 billion years, there will have been just one technological civilization, and a very rudimentary one at that, who existed for merely 200 years. The blink of an eye.
Put that into the context of the 13 billion year-old universe and 200 Earth years is all but imperceptible.
Take a step back and pretend you can see the entire universe in your field of view. And that you have been observing everything since the beginning of time, 13 billion years ago... at the big bang. You would probably see a technological civilization pop up for just a "blip" over here. A nano-second over there. And another, a split second over there. Sort of like watching fireflies on a dark summer night. A blip here, a blip there.
What are the odds that even one of those "blips" would send a spaceship to rendezvous with one of the other "blips" before it extinguished? You see what I'm getting at? The odds of existing simultaneously are astronomical, let alone visiting one another.
Okay then, let's assume that one of these "blips" survives longer than a mere "blip". Let's say they learned to put away their weapons of mass destruction, they were able to conserve resources, control population and therefore survive long enough to develop not merely 100 Earth years of technology, but say 10,000 years, or even a million years of technological advancement. Such a species could in theory, learn to travel the stars. With their unfathomably advanced know-how, they could very well come visit us.
But there's a problem. If they are so advanced as to harness time and cosmic distances to their desire, would they really be interested in us, or even stopping in for a look at us on their way past? Could they even talk to us? When you walk past an ant hill, do you stop and talk to the ants? And if you did, would the ants understand you? In other words, such advanced aliens would be uninterested in us. And we'd be unable to comprehend them, even if they were interested.
Even on our own planet, we cannot communicate with other species. A few, perhaps, such as primates, dolphins and our pet dogs and cats. But is it deep communication? Not really. And again, these are species of our own planet. Species with which we have almost identical DNA. Imagine how different the DNA would be of any alien species who visits us? Communication would be impossible. In fact, even comprehending that they are here would be impossible for us... in the same way that the ants don't know you are standing near them. They may have a sense of your presence, but no comprehension of you whatsoever.
Just as we would have no comprehension of a species advanced enough to travel here.
So let's review. Evolution does not mean advancement toward technology. Hence, technological species are extremely rare. And of those which have developed, most don't last long. So their odds of existing during our existence is minuscule. Finally, assuming there was even one civilization out there who somehow managed to survive long enough to achieve interstellar travel, they would have to be so much more advanced than us, that they'd either be disinterested in visiting us – or that if they did, we would almost certainly be unable to comprehend their presence.
That's why I think we'll never make contact with anyone other than simple microbial life.
But you know what?
I actually hope I'm wrong.
EPILOGUE:
I am not holding my breath, but I certainly long for and fantasize about making contact, however unlikely that may be. But if it happens, I sense that our visitors would not harm us. If they are advanced enough to survive without destroying themselves, then they have obviously learned that peace is essential to survival. Any malicious species would destroy itself before becoming advanced enough to travel the universe.
And if it is to be 'us,' who travels to visit 'them,' then it is we who must learn to co-exist with our own fellow earthlings... if we are to survive the centuries necessary to achieve the technology required for interstellar travel. We are at a crossroads. Will we choose to follow our peaceful instincts toward one another? Or will we continue with our malicious instincts?
It's much more than just laying down our weapons. It's that the conservative mindset of "me before you" or "us vs. them" or "my money is my money and I will not share it with you" or "U.S.A. first" – these mindsets MUST give way to the mindset that "everyone, no matter what color your skin, your socioeconomic background or what passport you hold, deserves prosperity" - "that mankind is all one family." The conservative mind MUST for once, operate consistently with their so-beloved Bible's teachings: to help your fellow man, to love your brother, etc.
The TV series Star Trek is beautifully prophetic in its notion of a "World Federation." No borders. No walls. All races and nationalities blended into one, all under one world government. Federation Earth.
Yes, we humans are at a crossroads. Will we continue to put our own countries first? Or will we harness the strength that comes with joining forces? And hence, travel the cosmos...
And then maybe, just maybe... meet a few peaceful interstellar neighbors, who've chosen the same path. And together with them, with mutual cooperation, live forever.
-Space Drifter