Humanity meets ET - what would it mean?

Zippidy

Serious questions, even if it is entirely hypothetical!

Humanity exists today on one planet, but is divided by nations, tribes, language groups, ideologies, religions.

Imagine three scenarios.

1) Tomorrow, NASA and the ESA announce that they have found jellyfish-like creatures in the ocean of Europa, a Saturnian moon. The implication is clear: life exists on other planets.
What would the reaction from politicians, citizens and religious leaders be? Would the story make the central pages of most newspapers, and the mid-way story on RTE's Six One for instance, and then be quickly forgotten about as people go about their lives OR would the story have massive political, social, theological ramifications. Would it spur humanity to unite in a way like never before?

2) Tomorrow, using radio signals, scientists discover proof positive that an intelligent, advanced alien civilisation exists. The news is made public. It is not clear if the aliens are aware of our existence, but we are aware of theirs. What effect would this news have on humanity?

3) Tomorrow, an advanced spacefaring civilisation places a ship in orbit of the earth. The beings within make no contact, but the ship remains in orbit. The news becomes public knowledge. How would nations, politicians and the general populous react?

nozzferrahhtoo

Recently there was implications that there might be life on Mars. This was inferred from certain reactions being detected that are often associated with life.

At the time Atheist Ireland were starting up and we decided to launch the blog around this story and so we asked James Randi and Kenneth Miller and Micheal Nugent to comment on what they think such news would mean to people here.

The results of these interviews were as follows:

http://www.atheist.ie/2009/02/atheist-ireland/
http://www.atheist.ie/2009/02/james-randi-speaks-mars/
http://www.atheist.ie/2009/02/science-superstition-religion-and-life-on-mars/

Amtmann

I don't know about scenarios 1 and 2, but nothing good could come from scenario 3 in my opinion. A civilisation would need to be desperate to embark on interstellar exploration (and inevitably colonisation), given the amount of materiel it would require. I think any such aliens would be rapacious and covetous of our planet's resources. I believe Stephen Hawking said something similar some months ago. As to how humanity would respond, you'd have your hawks and your doves, but a united response would be required. And frankly, suppose the alien ship were to leave suddenly, then I could not see the point of going about our business as a society divided into 190+ states.

Dades

I can see scenarios (1) and (2) having little or no lasting effects. People get used to things very easy so they can get on with life as before.

There's no direct threat to the politicians' powerbase, and the churches - as always - will scramble show how (what should be their death knell) is not inconsistent with their earth-centric teachings.

(3) is a different kettle of fish. Definitely more likely to bring out the loonies, though the longer the ship remained without contact the more people will get bored with it.

[Arthur C Clarkes "Childhood's End" is a cracking read about how ships arrive to end humanity's old ways.]

krudler

Ideally, the world would realise we're not alone in this infinite universe, and abandon the idea that a space wizard made everything just for us and we're so special.

OP watch the movie Contact, it deals with exactly what you're asking, the political, religious and other effects contact with an alien intelligence has on this silly little rock we live on

Furet

Furet wrote: »

I don't know about scenarios 1 and 2, but nothing good could come from scenario 3 in my opinion. A civilisation would need to be desperate to embark on interstellar exploration (and inevitably colonisation), given the amount of materiel it would require. I think any such aliens would be rapacious and covetous of our planet's resources. I believe Stephen Hawking said something similar some months ago.

Regarding resources just over a hundred years ago Oil wasn't considered to be particularly valuable, and yet now its of particular value. I think for us it depends on technology and what becomes required for its use. It is likely that any alien species capable of traveling the stars will require resources which either we haven't identified, or ones we have no real desire as yet to use.

Secondly, its just as likely that any alien species will operate under different laws than we do. Just as we are built this way biologically, and our technology tends to revolve around that limitation. Its perfectly possible for an alien species to be incorporeal or more energy based. Then their requirements might very well be represented in this planet.

Lastly, I think "V" hit it on the head for another possibility. We are a damn good food resource.

As to how humanity would respond, you'd have your hawks and your doves, but a united response would be required. And frankly, suppose the alien ship were to leave suddenly, then I could not see the point of going about our business as a society divided into 190+ states.

Honestly it would depend on the Aliens actions. I think any advanced species (if they're capable of understanding us) would be able to manipulate our divisions for their own agenda's. TBH I seriously hope we're left alone for a few more centuries. Despite being a sci-fi nut, I get a definite fearful shiver at the thought of what would happen if Earth had to face an advanced species capable of spaceflight. We're not advanced enough in either our society nor technology.

Pace2008

Deleted User wrote: »

Honestly it would depend on the Aliens actions. I think any advanced species (if they're capable of understanding us) would be able to manipulate our divisions for their own agenda's. TBH I seriously hope we're left alone for a few more centuries. Despite being a sci-fi nut, I get a definite fearful shiver at the thought of what would happen if Earth had to face an advanced species capable of spaceflight. We're not advanced enough in either our society nor technology.

It’d be game over for us if a species capable of traversing the incomprehensible vastness of space were hostile. And it would be arrogant to assume that this race would treat us as intellectual equals.

When people who are vegan or vegetarian for moral reasons are chastising others who mistreat animals for their own ends, they will often pose the question: would we like it if an advanced alien race breached our atmosphere and proceeded to use humans as we treat other life forms that share our planet?

Those of a more carnivorous bent will counter that humans are entirely different to other animals. Only we on earth understand our place in the order of things. We can trace our origins back to the inception of life, even if we haven’t yet grasped the spark that started it all. We have created life in a laboratory. We know how old the earth is and how it was formed; we have a decent idea as to the age of the universe and the processes that led it to be as it is at the present. We are sentient conscious and self-aware in a way that makes us instantly distinguishable from the dumb beasts.

This is, of course, an entirely anthropocentric way of looking at it. A species of intelligence several orders of magnitude greater than our own would surely be at a level of consciousness and self-awareness that would, in comparison, surely relegate our own to the level of animals - who themselves display some degree of sentience and morality, albeit less defined and more instinct-driven than ours – that we perceive as lesser beings. They could well view us as a higher consciousness as we’d consider a flea more conscious than a bacterium. And this is assuming we’re talking about a life form in any way comparable to our own, and not some entity (like the hypothetical energy-based life mentioned) that is utterly unfathomable within the limits of the human mind, something that truly defines “alien.”

And if we’re willing to place our closest relatives in captivity for our amusement, or even subject them to experimentation for the benefit of our own species, I don’t see why we’d be afforded any special treatment from the new top dog.

Sleepy

It's a fascinating idea and one I've spent many a daydream pondering. As others have said on the thread, it's highly likely that we can't fathom what such aliens might be like. Taking the Theory of Evolution into account, it seems unlikely that any intelligent life form from another planet would have evolved to look much like us...

Amtmann

Well, assuming they arrived in a spacecraft, they would have to be similar to us in many ways. In order to build a spacecraft they would have to have limbs for instance. Also, I wouldn't automatically assume that aliens would be more intelligent than humans - just perhaps more advanced technologically.

Jimmy444

Zippidy wrote: »

1) Tomorrow, NASA and the ESA announce that they have found jellyfish-like creatures in the ocean of Europa, a Saturnian moon.

I have to say I'd be seriously impressed by an alien civilisation that could move Europa all the way from Jupiter to Saturn

Wibbs

Furet wrote: »

Well, assuming they arrived in a spacecraft, they would have to be similar to us in many ways. In order to build a spacecraft they would have to have limbs for instance.

Precisely. Evolution on earth has repeated "designs" across radically different phyla or families of animals for similar environments. So a trout has the same basic design as a shark that looks like an ichthyosaur that looks like a dolphin. All different families(bony fish/sharks/reptiles/mammals respectively) the best compromise for hunting and moving in a marine environment.

So we can suppose for a technological species (that is still biological in nature) a pretty similar design as us. Social animal, bipedal, or at least one set of limbs has become free to make tools, binocular vision, opposing digits etc. The notion of energy creatures I strongly suspect is just science fiction. I could imagine a collective intelligent species. Like social insects. A hive mind. That may be more likely to drive resources into such travel, than a disparate group. IMHO the most likely would be machine life. Life that has been evolved from the original intelligent life on the origin planet. If the speed of light is an ultimate barrier, then aeons of time would be needed to cross the distances. To a machine essentially immortal, this would not be such an issue. It could aim at a star and switch off for the journey.

Also, I wouldn't automatically assume that aliens would be more intelligent than humans - just perhaps more advanced technologically.

Maybe. I've read studies that show tribal types have lower IQ's(though are psychologically "happier") than those who live in cities, even if genetically the same. Technology seems to increase intelligence to some degree.

We could probably defend ourselves even if they were very advanced. I mean a modern soldier in a jungle can stlll be killed by poison arrows and the like. A H bomb will still likely fcuk you up no matter what your tech