I saw a UFO!

[Restless]

the same way you turn other threads into drugs... just by mentioning them

[Guinness]

Originally Posted by Boeing Guy

While I have no doubts there is life out there in the vastness of space, I feel I have to point out following.....

Pale Blue Dot: Distant Spacecraft Photograph Earth - NASA Science

This was a famous photograph taken in 1990 by the Voyager 1 Space Probe, at the time it was only 3.7 billion miles from Earth (approx). Earth is the lPale Blue Dot, low down on the righthand side.

I'm a big fan of that Pale Blue Dot thing that Sagan wrote and it still brings a tear to my eye from time to time when I feel particularly maudlin. Anyone with half a brain has to agree with him about extra terrestrial life though in my opinion.

Playing the odds, there has to be life out there, only a fool would think otherwise. We sit in a solar system, tucked away in the corner of a galaxy of 300 billion solar systems, on the outskirts of a universe with 200 billion galaxies that we can currently see (god alone knows how many are yet to be discovered). Attempting to put that into some kind of perspective, if the Earth was the size of a shirt button, each one of of us is a single bacteria on the back of on an ant in the middle of the Brazilian Rain forest.

But....

Lets just suppose that a vastly superior intelligence has the technology to see across interstellar space, and they can see so clearly that they know that Earth is inhabited. Lets then suppose that they also have ships that can cheaply travel across the vast expanse of space at vast multiples of light speed so that they could still be alive when they got here.

Lets ignore the film version warfaring aliens that want our water/gold/resources, because all that stuff can be mined much more easily from your average asteroid or comet, without having to deal with Will Smith and Bill Pulman flying F16's or worrying about getting the flu and crashing into Horsell Common.

I agree with you. Why would they come all this way to make crop circles, cut up cows and stick objects into the rectums of American farmers? Why would these super intelligent beings travel all this way just to leave their landing lights on as they fly north over the coppice?

They are definitely out there, but why would they even bother coming to this little backwater planet of ours?

[DaveinGermany]

Originally Posted by Guinness

Why would they come all this way to make crop circles, cut up cows and stick objects into the rectums of American farmers?

Stag night high jinx?

[dotti34]

One thing about it, I don't think there's any fear of an invasion from another planet. If those little green men in their flying machines survey the place and see the way the Earth is today they'll keep well clear of it.

[jaysay]

Originally Posted by dotti34

One thing about it, I don't think there's any fear of an invasion from another planet. If those little green men in their flying machines survey the place and see the way the Earth is today they'll keep well clear of it.

Stay well clear dotti, they'd run away screaming

[kestrelx]

Originally Posted by Restless

the same way you turn other threads into drugs... just by mentioning them

Rubbish your on another planet mate!

[kestrelx]

Originally Posted by Guinness

I agree with you. Why would they come all this way to make crop circles, cut up cows and stick objects into the rectums of American farmers? Why would these super intelligent beings travel all this way just to leave their landing lights on as they fly north over the coppice?

They are definitely out there, but why would they even bother coming to this little backwater planet of ours?

We go in to the countryside with guns and blast the hell out of pheasants and other animals- but do we explain to the pheasant why we shoot them? We go into the rain forest and chop down trees and kill the wildlife but we don't explain to the monkey's "Oh excuse us we are just going to wreck your home and kill your friends!" And we don't do this because we believe we are superior beings and those animals aren't even capable of understanding!

Likewise then; there could be ALiens who come here to Earth and do things and don't feel the need to explain to us - what and why they are doing something - because they may see us as dumb animals.

[DaveinGermany]

Originally Posted by kestrelx

but do we explain to the pheasant why we shoot them?

I say old Chap, the shooting of peasants is jolly good fun don't you know! One needn't explain ones self to the Oikery! Of course, it's bad form to wing one, so jolly well make sure one has sufficient shot for the job in hand.

[jaysay]

Originally Posted by DaveinGermany

I say old Chap, the shooting of peasants is jolly good fun don't you know! One needn't explain ones self to the Oikery! Of course, it's bad form to wing one, so jolly well make sure one has sufficient shot for the job in hand.

I'm surely glad I'm not a PEASANT Dave

[Boeing Guy]

There is one small problem with that idea.......
We inhabit the same planet as pheasant, wildlife etc.
Our solar system is not inhabited by aliens.

Having said that, the universe will have planets with other creatures on, whether or not they are capable of interstellar travel and are able to spot our tiny planet, let alone visit it, depends on your outlook

[Less]

Originally Posted by jaysay

I'm surely glad I'm not a PEASANT Dave

But, wouldn't it be nice if every now and then you were PLEASANT?

Only joking Jay, I know you can't be blamed for your parents attempt at breeding !

[jaysay]

Originally Posted by Less

But, wouldn't it be nice if every now and then you were PLEASANT?

Only joking Jay, I know you can't be blamed for your parents attempt at breeding !

Well I have heard that they took on look at me and said never again we can 't improve on perfection

[westendlass]

If visitors from another universe landed in this country they'd probably be tasered, roughed up and slapped with a council tax bill with the threat of the bailiffs being unleashed when they found that anal probes were not legal tender.

[Boeing Guy]

You mean somthing like this?

[kestrelx]

Originally Posted by Boeing Guy

There is one small problem with that idea.......
We inhabit the same planet as pheasant, wildlife etc.
Our solar system is not inhabited by aliens.

Having said that, the universe will have planets with other creatures on, whether or not they are capable of interstellar travel and are able to spot our tiny planet, let alone visit it, depends on your outlook

Yeh but they may exist on other planets and also perhaps on this planet on other dimensions - in the sea and there are other theories.

The comparisson is I wonder how other life forms like animals/birds percieve us, when we enroach on their habitats perhaps for the first time!

Anyone interested? Tonight 8pm on ITV 1 a new 2 pt program called Mystery Map about unexplained incidents like UFO sightings etc