What do you think would be humanity’s reaction to the discovery of extraterrestrial life?
How do you feel this would affect you? What action would you take?
If, as is mentioned in a couple of Sci-Fi books/movies, they rock up offering to serve humans they're probably going to eat us!
Wasn't there a movie where Jesus returns in a space ship to take Christians to Heaven? They get on the ship and are hung like meat carcasses on hooks in a refrigerated larder.
I'm reasonably confident that we'll find microbes elsewhere in our solar system within the next thirty-or-so years. The million dollar question is: will they share our DNA ancestry? If so, it's no biggie — apart from the cool implication that life started somewhere else and may even be from a different start system... If not then wow! Life gets started easily and the rest of the galaxy could be teeming with it.
Either way — I'd be seriously excited. Plus we'd have a nice new thing for the hoaxer conspiracists to get uptight about... That's always good for a giggle.
I always wonder how the Bible thumpers will react.
I think Stephen Hawking was on to something. Aliens may want to kill us....maybe even eat us....and take over our wonderful planet.
I personally whole heartedly believe they exist. My holier than thou father thinks they are the fallen angels and that aliens don't exist. This is mind boggling to me. Through the theories I've seen. It just makes sense to me that they do.
With all the trillions of stars and trillions of planets it mathematically is logical that somewhere in the universe the right conditions for life existed and there is alien life.
If they don't exist then they just don't exist.
If they do exist, but don't know we exist, then oh well.
If they do exist, know we exist, but don't have the technology to reach us, then oh well.
If they know we exist and can reach our planet with far superior technology than us and are friendly and want to help us, then why haven't they yet?
If they know we exist and can reach our planet with far superior technology than us and are hostile and want to harm us, then why haven't they yet?
If they do exist, know we exist, and can reach us with far superior technology, then we better hope they are friendly, because if they're not friendly then we're fucked.
It doesn't matter one way or the other unless they make themselves known to us, and if they did, we HAVE to treat them like they are hostile. I'm not saying we have to initiate first strike or be violent, but we have to be extremely cautious. If they can reach us and they have far superior technology then it would probably be easy to do whatever they want to us.
So they either exist or they don't exist, and either don't have the technology to reach us and/or don't know we exist.
Or maybe they exist, know we exist, and have the technology to reach us, but they just don't give a shit one way or the other. We probably have nothing to offer in any way. Maybe they have rules to not interfere with other civilizations. Maybe they aren't allowed to interact with us or else it wouldn't be a valid experiment. Or a hundred other reasons.
So to answer your question.......I would be extremely cautious lol. How it would affect me depends on if they are friendly or not. Humanity would probably be scared shitless.
Good idea...be cautious. If they are technologically advanced they know we are here because we have been broadcasting into space for decades. Maybe they are busy raping and pillaging other worlds and they will get to us after they finish with other worlds.
@nicknotes Lol hope not
@Piece2YourPuzzle I hope not also. I'd hate to be roasted with an apple in my mouth.
It would depend upon the level of intellect the ET organism possessed.
If Aliens can reach out planet then they are most certainly technologically more advanced than we are. We have only traveled as far as our moon for only a short visit.
Perhaps we can administer IQ tests..
The Aliens would have to be smart and technologically advanced to reach earth from another planet.
I would be worried that Trump might try and nuke them.
Not if they vote Republican....but surely if they are liberal Democrats.
Humanities first reaction would be to shoot it, if not that cut it open to discover its secrets (D'oh!), if it's microbial a lot won't believe it and they'll be the usual conspiracy bullshit (Boy do I have faith in the human race) or maybe, just maybe, we might learn something
As for my reaction, I wouldn't do anything except be really excited and if they arrived by trans-galactic transport hope to fuck they're friendly
Yes...in most of the Science Fiction movies we try and kill all the Aliens. We may not take the time to discover if they are friendly....we always shoot first.
In the majority of likely scenarios, my response would be "Oh right; I was expecting that sooner or later", followed by no action other than my standard daily routine.
Immediately join the Space Force.
Good point....maybe Trump knows something he is not telling us yet.