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Originally Posted by Jakez
Back to the aliens and planets discussion.. what about the amount of time it takes light to reach Earth? If we are looking at planets and galaxies that are thousands of lightyears away, doesn't that mean what we see today is something that happened thousands of years ago? We don't really know the current state of these places. Not only would they be different before we even attempted to reach them, but by the time we did reach them they would be even that much more different.
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That's right.
It's also possible that whatever was once there that may have had intelligent life, may now be long gone. Or not.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheSquealer
The idea of "other life" within the context of the mathematical probability of its existence, means "any form of life"
When you use incomplete math to estimate the total number of planets in the known universe which might be capable of sustaining life, that does not mean "life" as in "they are capable of intergalactic space travel". It means "any form of life" - i.e. most likely microbial at best.
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How can you write that with a straight face? That sort of comment sounds like something that would be said by someone who believes earth is the center of the universe.
Us humans, even the most brilliant of us all, can only see a tiny fraction of what we believe to be the universe. Odds are there are many planets out there capable of sustaining life of all kinds. Odds are there are lots of planets full of intelligent beings. In relation to the universe, we are a piece of micro dust on a piece of dust.
Truth is, what we
think is the universe, may be nothing more than our entire existence and perception of the universe floating in a fart bubble in another world so huge our simple minds could never fathom its enormity. To suggest that only microbial life is all that could be out there is arrogant in every form of the world.
Lets assume dust mites are intelligent beings. Primitive, but intelligent. How do you think your house appears to them? It is so incredibly huge there could not possibly be anything beyond your front door. Everything is so large around them that they may not even notice humans roaming about. They certainly would not notice space, stars, the moon, or the universe. My point is, we don't have any real reference as to what our size is. We know our size in comparison to what we think is the all mighty universe that contains all there could ever be, but what if we are so small that we can't see what is directly above us? Do you think a piss ant would notice the Sears Tower if it stood at its front door?
There is life out there. Intelligent life. There is no doubt about it. Statistically there has to be. But have they been here? Who knows. Unless they come back in our lifetime, none of us will ever know.