Would the human race be ready to come in contact with an intelligent alien race?

[The Sum of Awe]

Let's say an intelligent race of aliens started sending messages to us, a date and a time they request to land and they're asking us to send a Yes or No, and where they should land if Yes.

They send this message to the UN, so don't worry it won't be American-centric in this decision making. I say this just to increase the chances of first world leaders agreeing on some terms for best course of action.

Would humanity be ready? If not, when will we be?

 

[Sgt. Pepper]

Do you know something that we don't?!

Asking for a friend.

 

[The Sum of Awe]

Do you know something that we don't?!

Asking for a friend.

I may or may not have been getting weird text messages on my phone, from self proclaimed extraterrestrials, asking me to take them to my leader and send them $120 in eBay cards.

 

[Stevicus]

Let's say an intelligent race of aliens started sending messages to us, a date and a time they request to land and they're asking us to send a Yes or No, and where they should land if Yes.

They send this message to the UN, so don't worry it won't be American-centric in this decision making. I say this just to increase the chances of first world leaders agreeing on some terms for best course of action.

Would humanity be ready? If not, when will we be?

I think some humans might be ready. I think it's those who govern and rule the world who would stand to lose the most, so they may not ever be ready.

 

[amorphous_constellation]

I have to go to work, so I don't have time to dwell on this beyond a few sentences, but hypothetically, I don't think they'd be likely to send it to the UN. They'd decide ahead of time regarding what select leaders they want to contact, and probably do it in private. The aliens themselves probably wouldn't want to cause panic in the main public, which is probably what would happen if everyone learned of them simultaneously, right?

 

[The Sum of Awe]

I have to go to work, so I don't have time to dwell on this beyond a few sentences, but hypothetically, I don't think they'd be likely to send it to the UN. They'd decide ahead of time regarding what select leaders they want to contact, and probably do it in private. The aliens themselves probably wouldn't want to cause panic in the main public, which is probably what would happen if everyone learned of them simultaneously, right?

That's probably the more realistic way it would play out. Who do you think they'd contact?
Hey, if it happened that way, someone could be in contact now and we wouldn't even know.

 

[Jimmy]

They’d have to be ready, wouldn’t they? Having said that, I don’t think intelligent aliens exist at all. In fact, I don’t think any life exist anywhere but on earth.

 

[We Never Know]

They’d have to be ready, wouldn’t they? Having said that, I don’t think intelligent aliens exist at all. In fact, I don’t think any life exist anywhere but on earth.

Life on earth is all we know about. Yet everything needed for life to exist exists throughout the universe.
Btw, science either...
1. -Thinks there is other life possibly existing or that did exist.
2. -Are wasting a whole crap ton of money looking for something that doesn't exist.

 

[Jimmy]

Life on earth is all we know about. Yet everything needed for life to exist exists throughout the universe.
Btw, science either...
1. -Thinks there is other life possibly existing or that did exist.
2. -Are wasting a whole crap ton of money looking for something that doesn't exist.

They should stop wasting all that money and use it to cut taxes in peoples paychecks.

 

[The Sum of Awe]

They’d have to be ready, wouldn’t they? Having said that, I don’t think intelligent aliens exist at all. In fact, I don’t think any life exist anywhere but on earth.

Considering the size of the universe that's a pretty big statement.

 

[The Sum of Awe]

Not really. God only made one world with one chosen one imo. If he would’ve decided to make more than one he would’ve made an infinite amount and probably really close to each other where travel between them would’ve been possible but he didn’t imo.

To each their own view

 

[Heyo]

I have to go to work, so I don't have time to dwell on this beyond a few sentences, but hypothetically, I don't think they'd be likely to send it to the UN. They'd decide ahead of time regarding what select leaders they want to contact, and probably do it in private. The aliens themselves probably wouldn't want to cause panic in the main public, which is probably what would happen if everyone learned of them simultaneously, right?

The influence for your opinion?

 

[Heyo]

Let's say an intelligent race of aliens started sending messages to us, a date and a time they request to land and they're asking us to send a Yes or No, and where they should land if Yes.

They send this message to the UN, so don't worry it won't be American-centric in this decision making. I say this just to increase the chances of first world leaders agreeing on some terms for best course of action.

Would humanity be ready? If not, when will we be?

I suggest they'd land in my hometown. People here are so dense, they wouldn't bat an eye if they saw an alien.

 

[Mock Turtle]

If any aliens are out there, and waiting to contact us, perhaps it will come about when our best AI is sufficiently reliable to be able to translate their language(s) into ours without making any disastrous mistakes. Or, they might just be waiting until we show less violence towards others on Earth rather than risking such on themselves (might be watching our TV and film output ) - and a long wait involved methinks. Or they just might not exist locally enough for any of this to even be a consideration.

 

[an anarchist]

Let's say an intelligent race of aliens started sending messages to us, a date and a time they request to land and they're asking us to send a Yes or No, and where they should land if Yes.

They send this message to the UN, so don't worry it won't be American-centric in this decision making. I say this just to increase the chances of first world leaders agreeing on some terms for best course of action.

Would humanity be ready? If not, when will we be?

Ready for what?

We can’t even peacefully coexist with other humans or animals. I don’t see how throwing in another species would be any different. The difference is they would be more advanced than us, so more the reason for conflict (either to take their technology or to defend ourselves from becoming cattle)

 

[ChristineM]

Would humanity be ready?

No.

If not, when will we be?

1/ when we stop killing each other
2/ when we are confident in ourselves that half the population won't go into panic mode.
So probably never.

 

[amorphous_constellation]

That's probably the more realistic way it would play out. Who do you think they'd contact?
Hey, if it happened that way, someone could be in contact now and we wouldn't even know.

This isn't something I spend a lot of time thinking about, as I don't like to tax my mental hard-drive with it. However , I'll run through a couple possibilities. Don't take them seriously, this is just 'hypothetical.'

Basically I think they would contact the leaders of the superpowers, though it could be for a number of reasons. There could be a couple rare resources that they want, and I guess one can imagine contracts that exchange knowledge and tech for that, or something else. Or, they could consider the earth a vassal state in an empire, that they made us join. So then, we just give them what they want annually, or else.

Another possibility exists that different alien tribes are in touch with different superpowers on earth, and seem to be in competition. Perhaps some could be egging on earth leaders to conduct world conquest, with promises deterrence from outer space. This obviously wouldn't be a very benevolent type alien scenario

Perhaps they told the superpower leaders a bunch of clues as to what would happen in the future, and instruction on how they should mold societies to aim for the best possible future, and so now, the superpower leaders are in the process of either disregarding that advice, or following it

The thing with ufos that people see, now and then: I think maybe if those are real, they represent things that aliens would know they can get away with doing. Even a mothership with drone swarms would technically be forgettable, if everyday people couldn't bind enough meaning to it. A beach ball could roll next to a bunch of sheep, and they'd forget the next day as well. But I think we mainly concern ourselves with anthropic-type news. Political personalities fill the headlines, whereas what happens in greater nature for example does not, even if it might warrant more attention

 

[amorphous_constellation]

If any aliens are out there, and waiting to contact us, perhaps it will come about when our best AI is sufficiently reliable to be able to translate their language(s) into ours without making any disastrous mistakes. Or, they might just be waiting until we show less violence towards others on Earth rather than risking such on themselves (might be watching our TV and film output ) - and a long wait involved methinks. Or they just might not exist locally enough for any of this to even be a consideration.

Or, in a more cynical variation, perhaps they waiting for everything to fail a lot more, so that they might present themselves as saviors

 

[amorphous_constellation]

The influence for your opinion?

well I mean.. it's logical as well, I thought. If it doesn't cause fear, maybe it might discourage everybody from being productive on earth, if everyone knew what was possible (since it would feel like we'd never get there). Maybe that would be the real reaction, instead of fear.

 

[Heyo]

They’d have to be ready, wouldn’t they? Having said that, I don’t think intelligent aliens exist at all. In fact, I don’t think any life exist anywhere but on earth.

I'm pretty sure intelligent aliens exist. How do I know? They haven't contacted us.