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| Personal background |
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| Hi! I'm "stripes", and I've been interested in helping with the SETI project since I frist heard of it back in the 80's. Let's see, I'm 30, I'm a college student (Read as "Unemployed Graphic Designer"). I've been fairly influential in a number of Star Trek and Science Fiction fan organizations, and have always run the SETI@home screensaver on any of my computers capable of running it. I guess that's about it for now, more later. |
| Thoughts about SETI and SETI@home |
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Let's see... Do I think ET life exists? I certainly hope so. I'm not a religious person, but it would frighten me to think that "God" would create such a huge and wonderous universe, with enough secrets and frontiers to keep our minds busy exploring and learning, for thousands and millions of years, but only create one small point of life. It seems almost like an insult to suggest that there can only be the Xbillion types of life found on this rock.
How will humans discover other life? I think the radio/optical searching is a good thing to do in the meantime, but I really think the only way to find new things, is to go look for them. Miniaturized remote control robots and reflected light are fine, and cool and all that, but until we're willing, as a species, to get our feet wet, and our hands dirty.. we'll never truly begin to understand the universe. Armchair Exploration doesn't work.
When will humans discover other life? I hope soon. Frankly, if the science fiction writers are right, we'd better find it soon, to unify our own species.. because right now, it seems, we're slipping back into feudalism.
The dangers and benifits? Well the dangers are obvious, they could be hostile, they could be corrosive, or worse, hungry... for resources, or bipedal monkey meat. Who knows. The Benefits? Well we always seem to assume that the "Aliens" will be beneficial and hyper intelligent, detached and demi-god-like... but what if they're just annoying, like houseflies? or worse, what if they SEEM intelligent, but we just can't manage to get any kind of conversation going?
"So... you're life from another planet?"
"Yeap."
"That's very interesting. How are you?"
"Fine, I guess. It's been hot here."
"Really, that's nice.. I'm going to find some other life to talk to, bye."
Or worse yet, what if the alien life we run into is just bored and depressed all the time? |
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