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Man's First Contact With an Alien Race; What will it be like?
Topic Started: May 11 2009, 07:38 PM (1,155 Views)
Xenophile
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The discovery of an intelligent alien civilization is likely to be one of the most important discoveries humans will ever make. This discovery will likely cause a great amount of fear and confusion asuming the government does not cover it up. Many religous groups could be completly outraged and could refuse to accept that we share the universe or even resort to suicide. Great panic is likely to erupt in the public from people fearing for their safety. Worldwide, governments will likely debate about who or if we will respond. What do you guys think of this?
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Genesis
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I have never heard of a religion that specifically states that life exists nowhere else in the Galaxy. I am christian and I would be shocked if anyone could find convincing evidence that in trillions of light years we were alone.

Most scientific authorities will be celebrating, but would not be shocked. Misled children, who grew up being taught that 'little green men' (which is an absolute absurdity) are as real as the thing under their beds might start crying.

Our reaction, as a species, would depend on the situation, however. If they come here while space travel is still in its infancy (by sci-fi standards), nations will probably be fighting for the support of a highly-advanced species like insects over a mate, perhaps proving to them that we are no more intelligent.

If it is on equal terms, any scientists in their right minds would do everything possible to shove the governments away- especially the US, which would probably start semi-worshipping them. (I can't speak for other countries- I am American.) Scientists should look at every possible angle to try to develop peaceful interactions- but they are more likely to be careless in their approach, I hate to say.
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Xenophile
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When I said the discovery would cause fear and confusion I meant that it would cause fear and confusion in the general public, not with scientists! Any one else have any opinions on what it would be like?
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Temporary
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It would be difficult, to say the least. I doubt, at first contact, much could actually be communicated. Assuming they use something similar to speech:

"Hello, greetings, from the Earth."
"GLOBBA-GLOBBA-SPSSSLST"
"...what?"
"...Keh?"

Beyond that, I doubt it would even consider us worth communicating with. Any species that meets us, in true First-Contact (not second-hand random transmission overheard, but a true timely conversation) would consider us as much as we consider ants. We don't go out of the way to look at ants, or even to help them, but we do destroy ant hills all the time, we kill them if they are in our house, and so on. Other wise, they simply ignore us.

But if we do simply overhear them, it would be for the better... I would hope.
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Genesis
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We have no possible way of comprehending the way aliens might think, of course- they may try to enslave us, share technology with us, destroy us, use us as a food source, or any number of things. How the general public reacts will range from panic to joy, though, if you ask me.
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Giant Blue Anteater
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If humans encounter another intelligence, it would highly vary. But depending on how the two species communicate, it would be done so with much caution. The species would likely try their best to provide information about their planet and their culture, and humans do the same. Of course, incase of any planned hostility, humans would be preparing defensive strategies against any possible invasions. If it was a god-like species, like the Qu from All Tomorrows, things could get ugly if they had interest in manipulating worlds.

I do not think a higher intelligence would use humans as food, because alien life forms may have different biochemistries, and eating life from another world will be like eating dirt.

I'm pretty sure that an advanced species will have robots that do a lot better job than living slaves, who would likely be doing work that dosen't even fit their anatomy, so I don't think slavery would be practical enough to be useful.
Edited by Giant Blue Anteater, May 14 2009, 07:26 PM.
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I believe the first thing will be only discovering each others existance and watching for a long time for establishing contact between two incredibly different lifeforms would be near-impossible unless one is extremely advance in technology.

There would be some fear and some excitement among the public. I think the main thing would be if they are less advance than us or more advance. If less than a little more excitement but still a great amount of fear, if more then generally just fear.
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Quote:
 
I'm pretty sure that an advanced species will have robots that do a lot better job than living slaves, who would likely be doing work that dosen't even fit their anatomy, so I don't think slavery would be practical enough to be useful.


You know, it really sucks for me, a big movie fanatic, hangs out with all these wannabe scientists who ruins great films with logical arguments like these.
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lamna
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I don't think that their will be all that much excitement. People will talk about it for a bit, then forget and get on with their lives.

It always amuses me when people talk about how finding a bacterial fossil on Mars would throw mankind into an existential shock from which we may never recover. Back in the 30's the most pessimistic scientist would have said their was probably moss and lichens on the red planet and it was perfectly respectable to think there might be civilization.

I don't know why you think intelligent aliens would not be interested in a vastly inferior species communicating with them. I would be interested if ants started spelling words in formation.
We probably won't have to worry about a invasion. It would not be very profitable, so unless they are terribly xenophobic, space commies/crusaders or the like then they would have very little interest in us.
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Empyreon
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Are you plausible?

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I don't know why you think intelligent aliens would not be interested in a vastly inferior species communicating with them. I would be interested if ants started spelling words in formation.


And what if humans just don't do anything interesting for the aliens? I'd love to see an ant win a spelling bee myself (or even compete), but unless I was an entomologist (or had a magnifying glass on a sunny day) I wouldn't be interested in watching an ant be an ant. Perhaps an alien species views attempted communication from an 'inferior species' as little more than a puppy begging for scraps, and don't suffer from any 'humanocentric' sense of pity.
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food for thought
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lamna
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Perhaps the majority of them won't care, just like the majority of humans won't care either. After the Emperor of Earth and the leader of the aliens have said hello and made a speech of some kind only scientists will really be interested in each other.
Edited by lamna, Jun 3 2009, 05:08 PM.
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Empyreon
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Are you plausible?

Unless mankind can do something truly noteworthy in the aliens' eyes, you're right.
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Ànraich
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Our first contact will probably be detecting some clearly non-random sequence of prime numbers in radio waves. We would find their origin and return a similar message, eventually using it to establish a common language and by the time we even thought about meeting each other face to...whatever our discovery of other intelligent beings would be old news by a couple decades/centuries.
We should all aspire to die surrounded by our dearest friends. Just like Julius Caesar.

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Ànraich
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lamna
Jun 3 2009, 02:52 AM
We probably won't have to worry about a invasion. It would not be very profitable, so unless they are terribly xenophobic, space commies/crusaders or the like then they would have very little interest in us.
What if they've come to spread the word of Spode? WHAT DO WE DO THEN? WE'RE ONLY IN THE CIVILIZATION STAGE, WE CAN'T COMPETE WITH THEIR RIDICULOUS LOOKING SPACECRAFT!
We should all aspire to die surrounded by our dearest friends. Just like Julius Caesar.

"The Lord Universe said: 'The same fate I have given to all things from stones to stars, that one day they shall become naught but memories aloft upon the winds of time. From dust all was born, and to dust all shall return.' He then looked upon His greatest creation, life, and pitied them, for unlike stars and stones they would soon learn of this fate and despair in the futility of their own existence. And so the Lord Universe decided to give life two gifts to save them from this despair. The first of these gifts was the soul, that life might more readily accept their fate, and the second was fear, that they might in time learn to avoid it altogether." - Excerpt from a Chanagwan creation myth, Legends and Folklore of the Planet Ghar, collected and published by Yieju Bai'an, explorer from the Celestial Commonwealth of Qonming

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OH NO, THE METALLIC CUTE BUNNY OF DOOM IS ATOM BOMBING US! AUUUUGRH!!!

Okay, all Spore-ing aside, we have to consider the fact that the other races ALLREADY know about us, and just... don't want to bother with us. Not unless we make ourselves a big enough nuisance. As sci-fi-cliqhe'd as it is, it's just as viable a possibility.
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