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Are we alone?

Started by Unbeliever, August 31, 2016, 05:45:51 PM

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Unbeliever

QuoteAre we alone in the universe?

An international group of astronomers has detected an interesting radio signal spike, one that could possibly be of alien origin, from a star system located 95 light-years away.

Scientists who search for extraterrestrial intelligence in the universe, a field known as SETI, find the powerful signal unique enough to warrant permanent monitoring of the signal’s source.
https://techcrunch.com/2016/08/29/et-is-that-you-astronomers-detect-intriguing-signal-95-light-years-away/


95 light years is way too close for this to be of any real interest. If ET was only that little distance away, then the likelihood is that there are many ETs in the galaxy, so many that we should be able to easily detect them. 95 light years is right next door!

If they were that close, though, they'd be just about on the leading edge of our radio bubble, since it was about that long ago when we began openly broadcasting our presence.




God Not Found
"There is a sucker born-again every minute." - C. Spellman

SGOS

It's always an interesting question, but I think that for all practical purposes that during the duration of our species here on Earth, humans will always be alone.  And then we will go the way of all species that have preceded us.  Maybe aliens will one day find some of our artifacts, but I'm guessing that won't happen either.

Baruch

The problem with aliens catching our signals, if they have to be listening, and pointing the antenna in just the right direction, when they are not sitting on the crapper during station breaks during I Love Zafod.
Ha’át’íísh baa naniná?
Azee’ Å,a’ish nanídį́į́h?
Táadoo ánít’iní.
What are you doing?
Are you taking any medications?
Don't do that.

Mr.Obvious

Quote from: Baruch on August 31, 2016, 06:23:03 PM
The problem with aliens catching our signals, if they have to be listening, and pointing the antenna in just the right direction

Given that radio-signals is a technology they not only develloped as well, but also that it's still in use.
"If we have to go down, we go down together!"
- Your mum, last night, requesting 69.

Atheist Mantis does not pray.

TomFoolery

Naw, it's a blip. Space noise happens. It's like the equivalent of searching for a needle in a field of haystacks and getting excited over something that's going to turn out to be a piece of a gum wrapper instead.
How can you be sure my refusal to agree with your claim a symptom of my ignorance and not yours?

Hydra009

Yeah.  I'm expecting a blip as well.  The extremely Sol-like star is the real story here.  There might be a few interesting rocky planets there.

Unbeliever

#6
I think planets that are sufficiently Earth-like are very rare. It's unlikely that any such are within several thousand light years of us, if there are any at all. Even if there are planets enough like ours, the likelihood is very small, I think, that evolution would've generated something remotely like us.

Of course, there could be life very much unlike us, not needing our type of planet at all.


This is the rare Earth equation:

God Not Found
"There is a sucker born-again every minute." - C. Spellman

Gawdzilla Sama

We 'new atheists' have a reputation for being militant, but make no mistake  we didn't start this war. If you want to place blame put it on the the religious zealots who have been poisoning the minds of the  young for a long long time."
PZ Myers

SGOS

Quote from: Gawdzilla Sama on September 01, 2016, 07:19:29 PM
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/aug/31/ratan-600-telescope-russia-extratrerrestrial-aliens-space

Totally unexpected, the signal is human-, not alien-made.

Not surprising.  Radio signals tend to jumble and interfere with other signals quite often.

trdsf

Quote from: Unbeliever on September 01, 2016, 05:57:12 PM
I think planets that are sufficiently Earth-like are very rare. It's unlikely that any such are within several thousand light years of us, if there are any at all. Even if there are planets enough like ours, the likelihood is very small, I think, that evolution would've generated something remotely like us.

Of course, there could be life very much unlike us, not needing our type of planet at all.
'Remotely like us' is a meaningless qualifier when talking about the possibility of intelligent life elsewhere in this galaxy, or in the universe.  We only have the one data point -- ourselves -- so we really have no idea what's possible biologically in other long-term stable ecosystems.

That said, I don't think it's unreasonable to think that intelligent life requires a planet not too dissimilar from ours -- warm enough to permit liquid water, which is a profoundly useful solvent for deep-time evolutionary chemical "experiments".  Simple life of course need not be so picky.
"My faith in the Constitution is whole, it is complete, it is total, and I am not going to sit here and be an idle spectator to the diminution, the subversion, the destruction of the Constitution." -- Barbara Jordan

Gawdzilla Sama

"The government has successfully covered up the detection of an alien invasion fleet that was predicted TWICE in the 'Independence Day' movies."

I translated eHillBilly into English so you folks could understand it.

I has lots of cousins, ya'll can have some iff'n ya want.
We 'new atheists' have a reputation for being militant, but make no mistake  we didn't start this war. If you want to place blame put it on the the religious zealots who have been poisoning the minds of the  young for a long long time."
PZ Myers

Baruch

Unless you believe that sentient life forms able to develop civilizations are inevitable ... but that is a statement of faith ;-)  If there are a million species at any given time on a planet, and if any species like we have can be the peak predator like we are ... I see it a million to one that there are human like aliens on any Earth-like planet as opposed to dolphins or mice.  So we might be the only human-like sentients in this galaxy at this time.
Ha’át’íísh baa naniná?
Azee’ Å,a’ish nanídį́į́h?
Táadoo ánít’iní.
What are you doing?
Are you taking any medications?
Don't do that.

Gawdzilla Sama

Suppose there is ONE other intelligent species somewhere in the Universe right now. If it's more than one hundred light years away it has never heard of us. What if it's in a galaxy 5 billion light years away? It WILL never hear of us.
We 'new atheists' have a reputation for being militant, but make no mistake  we didn't start this war. If you want to place blame put it on the the religious zealots who have been poisoning the minds of the  young for a long long time."
PZ Myers

SGOS

While the number of planets in the universe is absurdly large, the possibility for any particular evolutionary outcome is equally large.  It took 5 billion years for intelligence to accidently happen on Earth, and when it did, it resulted in highly imperfect life forms, one of which has a propensity for self destruction of its own species. 

Hydra009

Quote from: SGOS on October 03, 2016, 08:22:58 AMWhile the number of planets in the universe is absurdly large, the possibility for any particular evolutionary outcome is equally large.  It took 5 billion years for intelligence to accidently happen on Earth, and when it did, it resulted in highly imperfect life forms, one of which has a propensity for self destruction of its own species.
Yeah.  And consider that the world's most intelligent animals are a mixture of terrestrial mammal, aquatic mammal, and some bird species (with cephalopods as an honorable mention).

The species that came to dominate the planet is an odd-looing ape species with the incredibly good fortunate to develop intelligence, bipedalism (freeing up hands for tool use), and language.  That combination is not typical.  Intelligence itself might not be too difficult to evolve - increasingly cunning predators as an evolutionary response to increasingly elusive prey - but an intelligent, social, tool-using species - the kind that builds cities and machines - might be frustratingly rare in the universe.