Stephen Hawking warns over making contact with aliens

[SirJosephPorter]

I watched Hawking's Discovery Channel show on aliens, and I have to compliment him on being the first person I've heard seriously suggest that whatever aliens there may be may be a kind of life that is completely beyond our concept of life.

Even the image of a little green man is based upon our own earthly evolution.

Like Hawking said, since there are so many gas planets, why can't there be lifeforms made out of gas? Is life really dependent on oxygen or water? What is life anyway?

All good questions. Some pretty deep philosophical questions.

Hawking is a physicist , he is not a chemist. Chemistry tells us that there cannot be any life forming out of gas. The prerequisite to form life is the ability to form long chain molecules, like carbon atom is capable of. Proteins, carbohydrates, fats etc, are long chain molecules, which contain chains of carbon atoms, anywhere from 10 or 20 carbons to several thousand carbons.

No other element is capable of forming such long chains, with the exception of silicon. There may possibly be silicon based life, though silicon does not form long chain molecules to the same extent as carbon.

So there is no way that life form can be made out of gas. Carbon cannot form long chain molecules at high temperatures, in gaseous state. It will have to be really weird, totally incomprehensible life form, something we cannot even imagine. The world famous astronomer, Fred Hoyle postulated just such a life form in his classic story ‘The Black Cloud’.

 

[Kreskin]

How have all the other species done with us around? Think the chickens are glad we're here?

 

[L Gilbert]

WTF? Who says Hawkings is the greatest mind today? Get a grip. Half the teens I know can figure out a dozen things about aliens that might make humans, go "hmmmm".

I think the media have been taking liberties with shyte, as usual.

 

[Praxius]

..... But he warned that any aliens we may come into contact with may not be friendly. He warned that aliens may simply raid Earth for resources and then move on, and likened it to when Europeans first discovered North America.

..... "If aliens visit us, the outcome would be much as when Columbus landed in America, which didn't turn out well for the Native Americans," he said.

Prof Hawking thinks that, rather than actively trying to communicate with extra-terrestrials, humans should do everything possible to avoid contact.

He explained: "We only have to look at ourselves to see how intelligent life might develop into something we wouldn't want to meet."

In the past probes have been sent into space with engravings of human on board and diagrams showing the location of our planet.

Radio beams have been fired into space in the hope of reaching alien civilisations.

Prof Hawking said: "To my mathematical brain, the numbers alone make thinking about aliens perfectly rational.

"The real challenge is to work out what aliens might actually be like."......

Well thanks for stating the obvious genius.... it doesn't take a friggin rocket scientists to figure any of this out.

There's a very strong chance aliens exist, in fact it's almost ridiculous to think they don't..... but just because our own history shows we were ignorant, greedy, selfish, prejudice/racist monsters in the past, doesn't automatically mean other aliens would be like us, especially after achieving the ability to travel space.

If you want to compare anything, compare how we are today and what we'd be like if we could travel space tomorrow. Would we seek out other alien life and conquer the living snot out of them and strip their lands of resources?

Chances are we'd be a hell of a lot more diplomatic then we were back when we were sailing ships and using slaves.

His argument on aliens acting like us way back in the old days of slavery, extreme racism and greed and his suggestion of avoiding alien contact at all costs sure seems out of character of him..... and I would have thought he'd be smarter then that.

If I had the ability to explore space and visit other planets, and my people needed resources.... I'm sure I'd have more then enough planets to choose from to get resources, that I wouldn't have to take over and oppress some alien species who's inferior...... plus the fact that I'd expect me to not be the only alien species in space who can travel great distances..... chances are there's aliens out there who are even more powerful then I and see my actions as being a threat.... thus take me out with little effort.

I'm surprised at his view on this topic.... I would have thought he'd put a bit more thought into things, rather then taking the passive and paranoid approach in that "We were like this at one time, therefore aliens will be the same" without applying all the relevant factors.

There's a chance aliens might be as he says, but that chance is pretty slim in my opinion..... very very slim.

 

[Praxius]

But what if the aliens would be so ahead of us that we wouldn't even be worthy of their moral consideration? What moral consideration do we have for the cows and pigs that we eat? What moral consideration do we have for lab animals?

Well maybe they're all vegan and would like to be introduced to our tofu.

The fact of the matter is that one can speculate and worry about all the worst case scenarios that may or may not happen, but it is fear and paranoia that usually start conflicts in the first place. It's always nice to be prepared for the worst, but chances are, when it comes to meeting an advanced alien species, there'd be no preparation on our behalf that would probably have any effect in the first place.

All that crap we see on movies like Independence Day, War of the Worlds, etc.... we only survived because of some freak accident like they're allergic to our environment, or they're too damn stupid to notice one of their ships that hasn't been seen in like 50 years and captured by humans is suddenly now wanting to dock into the mother ship to plant a friggin A-Bomb.

Aliens can be anything.... we have no idea.... for all we know, aliens will look almost identical to us humans and could have been walking amongst us for quite some time now without us knowing.

Aliens could be friendly and passive or they can be brutal baby snatchers who want to wear our skins as underwear..... the point is to not be in fear of the unknown.

If humanity just remained afraid and paranoid about everything around us that we didn't know much about, then we wouldn't be where we are today in our development/technology, and chances are, we'd still be hiding in trees, poking sticks at tigers and bears who want to eat us.

Oh my.

We're inquisitive, we seek out knowledge and understanding, it is how we grow.... hide from the unknown and we'll never grow.

If we seek out alien life to communicate with and they wipe us out or turn us into slaves.... at least we went out being humans and not afraid in seeking out the unknown.

 

[darkbeaver]

Hawking is an idiot who believes in the Big Bang and Black Hole's and constant G, dark matter and energy, he has set back science and education by at least four hundred years. When the aliens get here he should be offered as their first meal.

 

[#juan]

Hawking is an idiot who believes in the Big Bang and Black Hole's and constant G, dark matter and energy, he has set back science and education by at least four hundred years. When the aliens get here he should be offered as their first meal.

There are all kinds of things we could call Stephen Hawking but "idiot" is not one of them. Hawking doesn't subscribe to your "electric universe" but nor do a majority of serious scientists. Figuratively speaking, there are few universities in the world that wouldn't kill to have Hawking on their faculty

 

[AnnaG]

Hawking is an idiot who believes in the Big Bang and Black Hole's and constant G, dark matter and energy, he has set back science and education by at least four hundred years. When the aliens get here he should be offered as their first meal.

You're just jealous because that idiot has more brains in his shoelaces than you have between your ears.

 

[#juan]

It is possible that there are aliens out there who were at out current level of technology a million years ago. If we don't kill ourselves, where might we be in a million years? Could we have found the secret of imortality or faster than light travel? How about telepathy? After a million years of advancement, I rather doubt we would be out there looking for weaker species to subjugate because we wouldn't need to.

 

[darkbeaver]

There are all kinds of things we could call Stephen Hawking but "idiot" is not one of them. Hawking doesn't subscribe to your "electric universe" but nor do a majority of serious scientists. Figuratively speaking, there are few universities in the world that wouldn't kill to have Hawking on their faculty

He's nothing but a poster boy for commercial science fiction. Now if you can demonstrate just one of the items that I mentioned to be actual confirmed physics, I will retract . He's valuable to universities for one reason only, they think he will draw money to their programes like dung draws flies. The nuclear sun model and the black hole nonsence both defy conventionally proven physics, both have been demonstrated to be wrong, repeatedly. Popular fantastic stories do not serve science. Like I said, I can't think of anyone who has retarded science more in the last two centuries unless it was Einstein.

 

[darkbeaver]

You're just jealous because that idiot has more brains in his shoelaces than you have between your ears.

And just how in hell would you know anything about his shoelaces?

 

[EagleSmack]

Honestly though, if we ever came into contact with an imperialist alien power that would clearly be technologically far superior to us, what would our options be, really?

Well to quote the alien from the movie "Independence Day"

"Diiiiiiiiiie"

I guess if we try to learn from our own experiences, we could only stipulate. Let's suppose that at first contact, the Frist Nations immediately recognized our superior military capabilities, and so tried to learn our language, religion, etc. and then tried to turn it against us (for example, showing us in our own language how our own literature and religion opposes our actions), how would that have affected us? Certainly it would then have been difficult for us to look upon them as savages once they'd proven themselves capable of mastering our own culture and then turning it against us. This would likely have also have allowed them to develop allies among our own people much earlier, thus potentially thwarting if not all the damage, at least much of it, before it even happened.

I think in the end it would have ended up as it did.

I doubt logic would have fed into early European explorers. They were savages and that was that. Mastering European cuture would have been impossible for them. On the other hand that is exactly what the Europeans wanted, them to give up their old ways for the European ways. As well as not mind too much about being expolited and pushed aside when neccessary.

I guess if facing an imperialist alien species that would be far superior to us, this could potentially be the only option we'd have: to develop allies among them and then try to turn them to our side.

I would bet that if they come here someday and the intentions are hostile then the decision has been made already.

Tough to negotiate when they are vaporizing us with lasers.

 

[EagleSmack]

It is possible that there are aliens out there who were at out current level of technology a million years ago. If we don't kill ourselves, where might we be in a million years? Could we have found the secret of imortality or faster than light travel? How about telepathy? After a million years of advancement, I rather doubt we would be out there looking for weaker species to subjugate because we wouldn't need to.

Perhaps you're right. But all this technology we have and we still have nasty wars with just a higher body count. I don't think we've learned much.

 

[EagleSmack]

Well thanks for stating the obvious genius.... it doesn't take a friggin rocket scientists to figure any of this out.

Damn dude...have a little respect.

 

[AnnaG]

And just how in hell would you know anything about his shoelaces?

I have spies that follow him around.

 

[eh1eh]

Don't forget everyone. Blackleaf is a copy pasta dude from a British tabloid. And by tabloid I mean any British news publication. They all have sunken to the level of Foxnews.

 

[darkbeaver]

I have spies that follow him around.

They are wasting your time, they'll learn nothing from him.;-)

 

[AnnaG]

They are wasting your time, they'll learn nothing from him.;-)

It seems people learn even less from you.
My spies are there to learn ABOUT him, not from him.

 

[Praxius]

Damn dude...have a little respect.

Have a little respect? For what?

He hasn't said anything new or profound in this aspect..... it's like telling everybody "Warning! Ice can be Cold."

Plenty of people in the past have told us, or otherwise suggested to us that any aliens we meet might not be friendly and may enslave us and take our resources.

Now he's come along and said the exact same thing, and suggests we try and make sure nobody finds us, and that we should forever avoid any contact with any alien species because he thinks because we we're barbaric in our past.... somehow this alien species we meet, who's far more advanced then we are today, will retain the same barbaric mentality as what we had 300-500 odd years ago.

He's a smart guy in many aspects, and is quite intelligent overall... but the above is just stupid.... nor do I agree with his view.

 

[#juan]

He's nothing but a poster boy for commercial science fiction. Now if you can demonstrate just one of the items that I mentioned to be actual confirmed physics, I will retract . He's valuable to universities for one reason only, they think he will draw money to their programes like dung draws flies. The nuclear sun model and the black hole nonsence both defy conventionally proven physics, both have been demonstrated to be wrong, repeatedly. Popular fantastic stories do not serve science. Like I said, I can't think of anyone who has retarded science more in the last two centuries unless it was Einstein.

DB how are you even qualified to criticize Stephen Hawking? My qualifications are B sc Mechanical engineering, P. Eng(when I was working) Which qualifies me to draw my pension and buy beer at the regular price. It doesn't qualify me to insult eminent scientists.