http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/science/space/article7107207.ece

Its a good article, i tend to agree with Prof. Hawking. Intelligent life, if its anything like us, will want to propagate its own species and we would just be a "curiosity" to them.

The article says:
Stephen Hawking's Universe begins on the Discovery Channel on Sunday May 9 at 9pm

I will be watching that on TV, looking forward to it with great interest. Thanks Callum,

John.

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I'm not agree, we can't compare

Christopher Columbus first landed in America

to aliens visit.
At the time of Christopher Columbus (1492) the civilizations were at war among themselves, fighting for everything: they contesting a new land.
To be able to travel the universe through galaxies (to have evolved), they must live in harmony with each other.
It is not possible that they are ancient civilizations that are still struggling among themselves or with other to get anything

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I'm not agree, we can't compare

Christopher Columbus first landed in America

to aliens visit.
At the time of Christopher Columbus (1492) the civilizations were at war among themselves, fighting for everything: they contesting a new land.
To be able to travel the universe through galaxies (to have evolved), they must live in harmony with each other.
It is not possible that they are ancient civilizations that are still struggling among themselves or with other to get anything

It makes for an interesting debate Antonio,

My view would be to wait until we have detected at least 10 other intelligent species and we know for sure that the "Universal way" is to not kill or eat all the other species.

Think about it. Us humans eat the vast majority of other species on our own planet Earth. We kill and control all the other species, we think we have the right to dominate all the other animals. We have also been killing each other for thousands or millions of years. If Darwin style "natural selection" proves to be common in other species in the universe, then we best keep radio silence until we are sure.

John.

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Think about it. Us humans eat the vast majority of other species on our own planet Earth. We kill and control all the other species, we think we have the right to dominate all the other animals. We have also been killing each other for thousands or millions of years. If Darwin style "natural selection" proves to be common in other species in the universe, then we best keep radio silence until we are sure.

John.

Many of the species here on earth prey on each other, or can actually practice war with weapons, such as chimps. Natural Selection doesn't seem to have many morals, more of a who ever comes out on top ajenda. There are vast possibilities as Hawking pointed out, and one can never fully know until we meet.

We do have one huge layer of protection. Unless someone has figured out if life sized workholes can work, the distance between us means that if another civilization wants to put a great deal of resources toward visiting us, when our radio signature is very recent, and not near the bandwidth we ourselves are searching, and the target is at most uncertain, and through time dilation, what could be a few years ship time, is massivly longer for who ever was on the alien planet.

They may leave their planet only to return thousands of years in their own futere. For an uncertain target?

Steve

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Warning, addicted to SETI crunching!
Crunching as a member of GPU Users Group.
GPUUG Website

Hawking's must have sensed similar danger in To Serve Man, my favorite Twilight Zone episode!

Many of the species here on earth prey on each other, or can actually practice war with weapons, such as chimps. Natural Selection doesn't seem to have many morals, more of a who ever comes out on top ajenda. There are vast possibilities as Hawking pointed out, and one can never fully know until we meet.

We do have one huge layer of protection. Unless someone has figured out if life sized workholes can work, the distance between us means that if another civilization wants to put a great deal of resources toward visiting us, when our radio signature is very recent, and not near the bandwidth we ourselves are searching, and the target is at most uncertain, and through time dilation, what could be a few years ship time, is massivly longer for who ever was on the alien planet.

They may leave their planet only to return thousands of years in their own futere. For an uncertain target?

Steve

Steve,
You sum it up very nicely, Natural Selection has no Moral's. The best and strongest species win's, and usually dominates. And as we clearly see from archaeology records, many weaker species of animals completely die away.

If we were to discover another species of animal identical to ourselves on another planet, we would end up going to war with them. The battle would be identical to the wars we watch on our TV news channels every evening. I bet we would call them "terrorists" and "insurgents" and "illegal alien's", then bomb them into submission. We humans are really the bad guys in this vast universe. We should be frightened of our own instinct to kill.

Steve, your right. Time and distance in space protects us from the aliens. But it also protects the aliens from us killing them!

John.

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It makes for an interesting debate Antonio,

My view would be to wait until we have detected at least 10 other intelligent species and we know for sure that the "Universal way" is to not kill or eat all the other species.

Think about it. Us humans eat the vast majority of other species on our own planet Earth. We kill and control all the other species, we think we have the right to dominate all the other animals. We have also been killing each other for thousands or millions of years. If Darwin style "natural selection" proves to be common in other species in the universe, then we best keep radio silence until we are sure.

John.

Are you vegetarian?
Do you think that killing animals is wrong?

It isn't wrong because plants and animals are both living beings, the only difference is that plants do not move, and because they aren't intelligent living beings.
So also if the aliens had the "natural selection" with their unintelligent living beings, when we meet we will not fight because we are both intelligent beings.

The battle would be identical to the wars we watch on our TV news channels every evening. I bet we would call them "terrorists" and "insurgents" and "illegal alien's", then bomb them into submission.

For this you are right, because as we also in the alien peoples there might be some "terrorist", crazy or delayed that does not respect the laws (agreements between people who do not fight more), so there may be some minor problems.


In any civilization if there were no crazy or delayed, the people would live in "heaven"

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Are you vegetarian?
Do you think that killing animals is wrong?

No, i eat meat every day, and i enjoy it. The point i was making was that mankind goes way beyond simple natural selection. I'm all for farming and controlling the animals we need for food.... this is nature! But we say we are clever and intelligent but we have driven many of the other animals to the edge of extingtion..... not for food, not because we want to eat them.... But killing them for sport, and killing them because they bigger than us and more fierce.

We drive other animals to the brink of extinction because we want ALL the land on the planet, we think all the land should be for us to develope. So we keep building more and more roads into the jungles of south America and into central Africa, further into the territory the other animals need. This land belongs to all the animals, they don't understand borders and fences that mankind draws on our maps. So we kill the animals and take their land.

This is what we would do to any other planet we find, and any species that lives there, even if they are clever and intelligent.

John.

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In the previous message I said only if it is right to eat animals,
but really I was referring to all: kill to eat, to sport, etc.

For me it isn't wrong because they aren't intelligent beings so we can make them what we want,
to you (and others) it may also be wrong,
it depends on your religion and your ideas.

For anyone to kill intelligent creatures must be wrong, because we have the same importance,
who doesn't think this he is racist or delayed.

In fact for aliens, to kill unintelligent beings or it is right or it is wrong,
for them to kill intelligent beings (hunams) must be wrong,
otherwise they would be racist or delayed and they would not have evolved.

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If any alien race came across us, they'd be that technologically advanced it's not funny. I've seen a few quotes as to us being "intelligent beings" or similar. For an advanced race to meet us would be like us studying a tribe of chimpanzees. That's how 'intelligent', 'evolved' 'clever' we'd seem to them.
We seem to believe we have an enormous knowledge of the universe. Well, compared to 20 years ago, we have. Compare that to 500 years ago, and we are 'godlike'. Imagine how much we'll know in 100 years. Imagine the technology, and the length of time to develop it to get to earth from elsewhere. We'd look damn well like cavemen, or still just apes, in technological comparison. Let alone knowledge of the universe.

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If any alien race came across us, they'd be that technologically advanced it's not funny. I've seen a few quotes as to us being "intelligent beings" or similar. For an advanced race to meet us would be like us studying a tribe of chimpanzees. That's how 'intelligent', 'evolved' 'clever' we'd seem to them.
We seem to believe we have an enormous knowledge of the universe. Well, compared to 20 years ago, we have. Compare that to 500 years ago, and we are 'godlike'. Imagine how much we'll know in 100 years. Imagine the technology, and the length of time to develop it to get to earth from elsewhere. We'd look damn well like cavemen, or still just apes, in technological comparison. Let alone knowledge of the universe.

One thing to think about... The more advanced an alien civilization might be, the less chance of them being so close we wouldn't have noticed. But who knows, there may even be some form of life on Europa, as well as countless other planets or moons. As far as our knowledge goes, we are constrained by our present knowledge of physics, which as you point out is ever increasing. I wish I could live for thousands if not millions of years, to witness all the new knowledge that will certainly come. I hope that humans aren't extinct before signs of intelligent life reach earth. I can say one thing, this certainly makes one think.

Steve

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Warning, addicted to SETI crunching!
Crunching as a member of GPU Users Group.
GPUUG Website

I wish I could live for thousands if not millions of years, to witness all the new knowledge that will certainly come.
Steve

LOL..... Yes, it reminds me of the movie "Back to the Future III" when the bad guy causes havoc when he brings the sports almanac back into the past and starts betting on future results.

I wish i could read an Almanac to tell me what happens in the future of science, and the future of mankind. I bet we contact lots of other intelligent species on other planets.

John.

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--[Snip]--

Time and distance in space protects us from the aliens. But it also protects the aliens from us killing them!

--[Snip]--

One thing to think about... The more advanced an alien civilization might be, the less chance of them being so close we wouldn't have noticed.

--[Snip]--

I would think the other way around, if they are that advanced, they could be invisible to us (4th dimension), or stealth, different wavelenght of 'light' they would use.
Communicate not by voice, but by RF, etc., etc.

It probably will be the other way around! If 'they' found a way to 'travel', such distances, in a relatively short time.

And why would 'they' leave their habitat? Their SUN (star) Super-nova-ed?
If 'they' live on a planet, (a bit) similar to ours?
Waisted and used all resources. Then they surely can or would be dangerous, cause they'll be only interrested in our resources and our-selves.

Stephen Hawking does have a point, 'we' tend to see things, from 'our' point of view, same chance, 'they' do too.

Maybe 'they' found way's to communicate, we haven't even thought of.
Well, too many maybe's.......and I hope 'they' don't like meat or human-flesh......, aren't 20 feet tall, made out of stainless-steel or worse (wolfram, irridium, diamant)

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If aliens arrive on Earth, they will not fight against us for

interrested in our resources and our-selves.

In fact,

To be able to travel the universe through galaxies (to have evolved), they must live in harmony with each other.
It is not possible that they are ancient civilizations that are still struggling among themselves or with other to get anything

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And exactly what do you base that pearl of wisdom upon? Your HUMAN intuition?

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Seth Shostak (Sr. Astronomer, SETI Institute) participates in Larry King´s show---->Larry King Live: Are Aliens a threat? pt 1/3 (30/4/2010)

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Guests in the show are: Dr. Michio Kaku (Physicist), Dan Aykroyd (Actor), David Brin (Astronomer and Sci-Fi author)

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Seth Shostak (Sr. Astronomer, SETI Institute) participates in Larry King´s show---->Larry King Live: Are Aliens a threat? pt 1/3 (30/4/2010)

• 2/3
  
• 3/3
  

Guests in the show are: Dr. Michio Kaku (Physicist), Dan Aykroyd (Actor), David Brin (Astronomer and Sci-Fi author)

Just watched those Larry King videos. Really interesting chat, interesting panel of guests for the show! Enjoyed the debate.

John.

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http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/science/space/article7107207.ece

Its a good article, i tend to agree with Prof. Hawking. Intelligent life, if its anything like us, will want to propagate its own species and we would just be a "curiosity" to them.

The article says:
Stephen Hawking's Universe begins on the Discovery Channel on Sunday May 9 at 9pm

I will be watching that on TV, looking forward to it with great interest. Thanks Callum,

John.

My local programming schedule on Discovery Channel is showing a 'Deadliest Catch' marathon running well passed 9pm, and the channel's website is showing the same with no mention of Hawking's show on their schedule. Does anyone know if Hawking's show is still going to be aired tonight?

If you want to see Hawking's Universe, all episodes are on Youtube already. Just need to download the 10 minute increments, and i used Moviemaker to stick them all together.
That way, you won't miss any of the 6 episodes.

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