Re: starship-design: Re: Aliens, why haven't they contact us?

[KellySt@aol.com]

In a message dated 7/11/97 10:52:29 AM, TLG.van.der.Linden@tip.nl (Timothy
van der Linden) wrote:

>Kelly,
>
>>>If a few bacteria leak out, they may very well be killed before they can
>>>replicate and mutate.
>>>And if indeed aliens are in abundance, they may have infected Earth long
>>>ago.
>>>Furthermore, there is speculation that microbes come to Earth by
meteorites
>>>and dirty snowballs every day.
>>
>>Why?  If they were alien, the local life form would have no adaptations
tuned
>>for them.  Usually that sort of thing leads to major pagues.
>
>Immune systems usually see almost every non-self organism as dangerous. I
>wouldn't think that it doesn't matter much whether the non-self organism
>comes from space or Earth.
>In some cases the body even starts killing something of itself, this is
>called an auto-immune disease.

Immune systems arn't that good at detecting, much less combating, 'any'
non-self organism.  They are best at detecting and defeating things that the
organism routinly is attacked by.  Alien micro life would not be something
were 'tuned' to fight or look for.


>>As to the microbes from space, thats a very thinly defined theory.  Besides
>>it still gets back to no signs of alien organisms alive here now.
>
>The latter is exactly the point I wanted to make. No apparent signs, so
>whatever comes down, doesn't seem to spread.

Or never came here, or whiped out an area to quickly to sustain itself.

>>>You may have a point about older cultures. But I believe that for many
today
>>>the world view would change more than they could cope with. My best guess
>>>is, that old civilisations believed in miracles, so a strange species
wasn't
>>>much of a shock. (I believe that several European explorers where seen as
>>>gods)
>>>A reason to believe that mentality has changed too is that not so many
>>>centuries ago, the fear for the unknown was really bad (witchhunt).
>>
>>I doubt aliens would change anything for people.  Oh it would be an
>>interesting spike in conversation (like the microbes from Mars) but it
>>doesn't change anything fundamental.  The bulk of folks expect their is
life
>>out their.  Haviong it show up would be a shock, but not one that effects
>>anything fundamental to us.
>
>Expecting it, has shown to be completely different from knowing it.
>Everyone knows that it is quite likely that something terrible can be
>expected to happen to them during their lifetime. Yet many get badly hurt
>psychologically when it actually happens.
>Primordial microbes from Mars hardly compare to beings that have technology
>that looks like magic.

Still its unlikely to make us all run home and hide under the bed.  It never
did before when we encountered alien (foreign) cultures with magical
technologies and alien forms.  I can't see we'ld be that much less able to
handel the same thing now or in the future?


>>Sort of like the moon landings.  People thought that would change
everything.
>>It changed nearly nothing.
>
>Hmm, I think in this case the reverse would have been true. If it had
>failed, it would have changed a lot. It might have been a real big
>disappointment with bad results for the space-programme.

If it failed the real significant impact would have been international
relations and soviet vs U.S. world power.  But to people involved or
interested in the space program, it was a basic assumption that once the door
was opened we'ld stream out onto the new frounteir.  Didn't happen.


>>>Also for quite some time, sudden balance shifts in economical and military
>>>power would have been rather critical.
>>>This can't be bogus, otherwise I'd see little reason for certain programs
to
>>>be secret (stealth planes).
>>
>>They keep them secret so the other side doesn't have a chance to prepare to
>>defend against them, or copy them.  Niether a big concern for aliens.
>
>I didn't mean we were a threath to the aliens. If they start spreading
>technology, some nations may use it in a different way than intended, which
>may change world power in sudden ways. (Eg. Give Saddam Hoessein a ZPE bomb,
>which he nicely puts somewhere in New York.)

My point was the aliens wouldn't care about those effects.  If we can't play
nice with the new toys, thats our problem.


>>Also abos confrounted with culture vastly beyond theirs don't fold up and
>>die.  They just want in!
>
>Luckely they were only with few. Imagine 5 billion people knocking on your
>door for the latest technology and information. Scary!

Send them the info via E-mail.  ;)  Besides to a galactic civilization, 5
billion is a few.


>>>>Besides.  We never worry much about droping in on aborigional cultures.
>>>
>>>The reason for us dropping in on aborigional cultures is usually for
>>>resources. What happened to the aboriginals seemed to be less important
with
>>>the result that it disappeared rather fast.
>>>
>>>Aliens are likely to have little interest in resources on Earth, so
>>>contacting us would likely only create problems.
>>
>>We destroy or push aside abos for their land, but we drop in as
>>anthropologists.  Not to trash them.
>>
>>If Aliens came all this way, we'ld be the major area of interest on this
>>rock.
>
>True, but dropping in as anthropologists would certainly destroy what they
>where looking for. Only if they are psychologists, they would enjoy playing
>games with us.
>
>Timothy

Anthropologists would tend to disagree.

Kelly