Pretend you're an extraterrestrial for a moment.

I can think of two: math and porn. We're likely to have some of both that they never would have thought of on their own.

 

Hence, why I put this question on this political opinion forum. I realized that the answer to this question is political, whether the alien contact would see it that way or not. The political consequences are just too huge.

That does make sense. It's fair on a national level. But is that likely to be fair on an economic level? You put a bunch of world leaders together, or even just a bunch of people appointed by the leaders of nations, and chances are you're looking at the room full of rich folks trying to represent, and make decisions for, the whole of humanity (as usual I suppose).

What about grabbing a random, say, 4400 people from around the world? Wait, I think that was a TV show.

 

Also with religions, the religous groups would want to butt in. Believing the alien visit is a gift from their god.

That would be just as frightening with the true believers fighting tooth and nail.

 

Are you suggesting that maybe we just aren't ready for extraterrestrial contact?

What would make us ready?

 

I dont think humanity ever be ready. As said with the political postering. The worlds nations fighting amongst themselves in who is the "most special" to greet the visiters.

The religons dooms day prophecies or lost in the belief a sign from their god. Proberly mass suicides around the world with the end of days religious nonsense.

Maybe in a few thousand years when humanity has matured past this point of wanting to deatroy each other or ourselves over the slightest excuse.

Just look at this forum with the amount of meaningless nationalistic fighting. Now upscale it to the importance of the first intelligent life visiting our humble planet. Only this time there wont be cloack and dagger games, it wll be out in the open. US shouting we are morally superior to greet them, the chinese/russians Eu collectivly screaming back. "no we are"

The perm 5 UN members now ignoring the stalemates that have keep the world falling into chaos to thrreaten each other to be the first. While the main religious groups have similar battles. The major religious leaders all shouting their god has chosen them to be the greeters. It would be less stress for the aliens to wave and go home.

 

The question was specifically about contacting humans. I assumed that meant some sort of public meeting. The reason I'd choose Oxford uni is not that I'd give a lecture, but because I could talk physics with the smartest humans on the planet. With going to the Vatican, again, my intent is not to make new policy or change the culture, but understanding what humans are and how they think. As to finding the Vatican -- they broadcast the world over. Merely a matter of following the TV singals that we picked up. I don't think it would be hard for us to do so on another planet, so I don't see a big issue.

I'm definately NOT selling tech. As I said, it wouldn't work anyway -- I can't take my TV from the US and plug it into the British grid, how much harder is it to take the same TV and plug it in on Gleidi Prime? Besides which, even if I COULD hand out some gizmos, you don't necessarily have the physics to understand how it works, so once it broke, you'd be unable to fix it or build another one. And even if you understood the physics, you probably don't have the materials technology to refine the materials to make the chips, you don't have the ability to manufacture chips from my devices. From what I understand, we wouldn't have had the ability to manufacture the computer chips for an iPad in 1970. We didn't have the manufacturing ability to make such complex chips, and thus making such a device is beyond the ability of someone in 1970, even if he understood exactly how it worked. Physics isn't hard to explain so long as you can explain the math, and math is usually far ahead of our physics. We actually had the math to launch the space shuttle missions in the days of Newton (basicly calculus) yet our physics and technology hadn't caught up yet. So if I can explain the math behind the warp drive, our physicists will understand the physics behind it.

 

They could teach us things, I just doubt they would. They would probably be more interested in learning from us and preserving our civilization.

Also, they'd be far more interested in religion and culture than science.

 

If I were an extraterrestrial, I would report back that the search for intelligent life must continue to new planets.

 

It already happened to me and I have no desire to study the book map anymore, they become the decoration of my bookshelf--in the history section.

Do you still REALLY look at the book map?

When was the last time you look at it? Do not lie!!!

 

What if they are not looking for intelligent life?

 

Easy. Just show up and perform miracles. Or better, tell us how to fix the economy and show us a better way of life when we lost hope of our leaders to do that.

But why do you assume that the aliens have good intentions?

 

That will be the days of confusion and deception. A lot of people will be deceived. Another prophecy will be fulfilled.

 

Country size would not matter to them, they would not know how our nations are divided. Most likely they would find study our languages for years before hand and build some sort of translation device. They could then send messages via radio waves, assuring the people of earth that they come in peice and announceing landing spots. Landing would most likely take place in areas like Central park, and other open areas that are near populated areas.

 

Well, it very much depends on why they're here. You have to remember that aliens are people too, and they'll have their own interests and objectives. Obviously, we can only guess about the motives of hypothetical aliens, and it's entirely possible that they'll have motives that we won't be able to understand unless the decide to explain them to us. But I think we can figure out some reasonable scenarios where the aliens have motives we're familiar with.

If the aliens are looking for some sort of natural resource, I would imagine they'll only make contact with those humans who would be relevant to them obtaining it. So, for example, if it turns out that there are large deposits of unobtainium in Paraguay that the aliens want, I would imagine they'll only bother talking to the Paraguayans.

If the aliens are simply interested in scientific research, I kind of doubt they'd want to make contact at all, but would prefer to observe us from a distance. And if they did want to talk directly to any humans, they could probably do so using the internet without revealing themselves. I mean, if they have the technology to travel interstellar distances, how hard could it be to connect remotely? And once they have access, they could easily use free services like Yahoo, Google, or MSN to establish online identities. For that matter, there could be aliens on this forum right now for all we know.

If the aliens want to engage humanity generally on an economic, political, or cultural level, I would imagine at least the initial contact would be through the UN, simply because contacting any one government before any others is immediately going to antagonize all the others. After initial contact they'll probably then go on to deal directly with whatever groups they're interested in.

 

Would solving our problems for us be a good intention?

That reminds me of one of my favorite short stories "The Evitable Conflict" by Isaac Asimov. Basically, we create super intelligent machines to run the world economy. However there begin to be a number of glitches and things just don't run perfectly. It turns out the machines have determined it's in our best interest if their handling of our lives is imperfect and they create enough flaws to create the illusion of incompetency.

 

You go to animals. Any earthling -they are all the same.
NOW, I will quit pretending that I am an extra-terrestrial being although I'm debating now whether humans are amphibious???
I will take down my little avatar I made in Word that looks like some sort of flag, but it was fun to imagine for a bit.
Apparently no one else wanted to play ET though, thanks for the post.

Imagination is innovation and politicians can say we need innovation for 5 years but they are waiting for the science to prove the creativity we need now and it will be a hundred years before anyone will officially listen to any creative mind.

Thinking outside the box is something certain people do only. You cannot teach it to anyone or you just have a person with some other gift or purpose thinking of the craziest idea they can pull out of their arse and actually trying it, crashing and burning and taking everyone else down with them. Along with totally missing their real gift.

Think small, simple. Occupy your living room first. Occupy your office chair, then occupy your lawn and make it around to Wall Street. Then the efforts will not be wasted, they will have an impact.

PS: You people are no fun and I like my little flag with the primary colors in it. Keep stressing maybe you will have an aneurysm or an orgasm. I hope for the latter for your sake.

 

Thinking outside of the box is also tied to mental illness. Such is the evolutionary drawback of non-linear thought.

 

Define Mental Illness.

 

I would classify mania as a mental illness for one.

 

Thinking outside the box is responsible for many great inventions.

Sheep don't think outside the box.

 

In my experience, the people to call others sheep are often sheep. It's funny how the people who think they think outside the box, all tend to think the same things.

#$^#ing hipsters. Let's all be different, but in exactly the same way!

 

a) Do you know what that is?
*note your avatar is a rifle toting woman in a mini-skirt.

 

a) yes.
*indeed

 

The Dalai Lama would be probably the most reasonable earthling to make contact with first.

USA would be the LAST country, because the Extraterrestrials understand the nature of the Military Industrial Complex and the lust for ever greater power over the rest of the world which the Wealth and War mongering Oligarchy of USA desires.

In fact, to save the world, the Extraterrestrials may have to destroy the American nuclear arsenal first, then neutralize Russian and Chinese nukes also. A difficult mission, but perhaps they have a plan, and the Mayan prophecy meant a new world living in peace.

 

Avatars are representations of oneself. (Thus the title of the James Cameron film)
And we are in the thread started by another poster that is titled "pretend you're an extra-terrestrial for a moment".
You define Mental Illness as mania and have achieved enough posts to merit guru status on a political board.
Insinuation is manipulation- yet another symptom of mental illness - but completely part of the culture of the United States.
One more and we both go down in this thread as a wee bit off.