It’s been 46 years since Frank Drake aimed an antenna at the stars in the first modern SETI experiment. His hope was to hear a deliberate signal – guided into space by intelligent beings – rather than the natural, noisy dance of hot electrons.

Since then, SETI has expanded its search space, bettered its equipment, and refined its strategies. But the bottom line hasn’t budged: still no confirmed chitter from the cosmos.

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Is SETI Barking up the Wrong Tree?

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When I saw the author's name, I was somewhat surprised. I believe his is mostly a figurehead position. Seth Shostak once said, "Tell me they are here, and I will tell you how they got here", regarding ET visitors. If only someone could venture a sound guess, as to how they "might" get here!

Anyway, Jill Tarter is now the figurehead-in-charge (no disrespect intended), and I believe she has ideas on examining interplanetary space for signals. What would that imply? At least, I thought I saw an article a few months ago, to that extent.

But, then another aspect is fairly impressive- the Optical SETI endeavor.

I found something that is interesting, and it was on the SETI site. It is not SETI's problem per se, I imagine. But, this reflects on that field, in general. A field that now includes going to the Moon, and robbing Peter to pay Paul, I bet!

Science Budget Issues

maybe if there is a alien civilization its either not well advanced like us to retrieve or send, or maybe their just ignoring us? (which wouldnt mean a good thing for us lol) or maybe their to far away that the signals havnt reached em yet.

If hi-tech societies or thinking machines were out there, they’d have colonized the Galaxy by now. Clearly, we’re alone… lone… lone.

Well, we may not actually be *alone* in the universe. There could be ETs who are a bit less advanced than we are. Or, there could be ETs so far in advance of us that we simply can't recognize them. Personally, I have a feeling that whatever ET may be, he's likely to be very, very, very far away. In way, we are *lonely* but not technically *alone*. I know, I know, it's just semantics. But, I think there's still a possibility that someday, just maybe, we will find other intelligent life.

As far as "barking up the wrong tree" goes...it's not like we have a whole lot of trees to choose from here! I say, bark way. It certainly can't hurt, and if you don't don't look.. well, you see my point.

Do you really think an advanced civilization would be listening for radio waves? Seti should be using lasers to piggyback thier messages not radio waves.

It is important to note that our first contact with an extraterrestrial society probably wont be their first contact.

Why?

Because anyone we hear is going to be far beyond our technological level. After all, alien Neanderthals won’t build microwave transmitters (or if they do, they hobble their usefulness by building them out of stone). We’ll only receive a solid signal from technically accomplished societies at our level or beyond. So it is quite possible they have been engaged in planet-to-planet communication for centuries or millennia.

Consequently, these societies could be using an established, galactic protocol for information interchange, an orderly way of doing things that it behooves us to imitate. Since this seems inevitable (think of the protocols for exchanging information on the Internet), it would clearly be better for us to eschew transmitting. Listen first and learn the protocol. After all, we will be new members in the galactic club.

Since SETI works on radio it will never find signals from something more advanced then us. First of ET will not use radio if they are furthur ahead they will use something like quantum non-locality which is for all intentional purposes subspace radio. It gives you the ability to communicate in realtime over the distance of the universe instantly.

Even if we detected a radiowave from 1000 light years it will take a thousand years for it to reach earth which means that they have had a thousand years to advance putting them way ahead of earth.