RE: Aliens - Are they out there? Have they visited us? And related questions
November 2, 2010 at 10:51 pm
(This post was last modified: November 3, 2010 at 1:30 pm by Anomalocaris.)
(November 2, 2010 at 8:35 pm)-KT Wrote: Just wondering what peoples opinions are on these closely related subjects. Here are some questions for you to consider and think about:
- Is there intelligent life outside Earth?
- Have we been visited by beings from other planets?
- Would aliens look like us or carry basic similarities?
- Is the money wasted on looking for life outside of Earth?
- Could or would aliens have a similar society to our own?
- Could or would aliens believe in a 'God' figure or have a religious society?
1. Without applying any limit on the distance outside the earth, the answer is almost certainly yes.
2. Unknown, do you include panspermia? we do not have enough samples to make a reasonably educated guess.
3. Depends on how basic is the similarity. Composed of amino acids like us? Probably yes for at a very substantial percentage of life. Motile? Very likely, Vision? Very likely though not necessarily to a similar EM range as us. Bilaterally symmetrical? Probably at least some. Looks like Mr. Spock or little gray or green men? very unlikely
4. Depends on much money is spent. 10 cents? No. $100 billion a year? yes.
5. The chance of that would likely be low. Our social structure is governed by fundamental biological traits developed throughout histroy of our evolution all the way back to development of meosis. If any of those developements over 3+ billion years turned out differently, our social structure would be very different, assuming we as complex motile organisms could evolve at all.
6. No, see 5 as starting point.
