Has ET already dismissed us as unintelligent?

[Rlyeh]

No doubt they figured were too stupid to be of any worth to them.I blame the Kardashians and Honey boo boo.And Justin Bieber.Lady gaga.Obamacare.SNL.V.Stiviano.Modern family. U.S. policy for American's.Alex Jones.NASA.The U.N.Monsanto. The pope.etc..

Yeah, NASA is stupid. Anyone can launch humans and probes into space.

[Arkitecht]

Yeah, NASA is stupid. Anyone can launch humans and probes into space.

....Yeah cause building a reusable spacecraft that can be destroyed with a piece of Styrofoam is smart.I booked you a seat on their next launch...oh,wait...

[Mr Supertypo]

All evidence suggests that Humans are nowhere near a peaceful and accepting enough of a species to accept that a race who has the capacity to travel light years at warp speed could possibly be more intelligent than they are. An earthling can't even force itself to have a nonjudgmental exchange of information with a fellow earthling unless it comes for the same social and ethnic background as itself:

I think we are becoming quite peacefull. Do you remember the date of WW3?...no? well that funny neither do I. What happen to us?, we should be so war like and yet we didnt had any major global war since the 40's? weird.

Beside that I think what you talk about us, is more a description of your own character. We actually exchange infos, merchandize and even mate with people from other cultures and ethnicity's, so I dont know what you are talking about? are maybe a member of KKK?

how could a peaceful species of highly intelligent beings ever feel they could safely make their presence known here at this time. Eventually every star must supernova, and at the rate people are evolving they just may never get to know their intergalactic neighbors...

How do you know they are peaceful? reading UFO literature to me they seem quite the opposite than peaceful. Abductions, cattle mutilations, airplane crashes etc to me these aliens seems quite close to Josef Mengele than Ghandi. Beside a super advanced species already have protocols and procedure to contact less advanced species. Because the one to be in danger, are not them, but us.

Edited June 6, 2014 by Mr Supertypo

[Mr Supertypo]

....Yeah cause building a reusable spacecraft that can be destroyed with a piece of Styrofoam is smart.I booked you a seat on their next launch...oh,wait...

A tank can be destroyed, a car can be destroyed, a airplane can be destroyed a ship, a building etc so whats your point? Everything can be destroyed my friend, so yes the shuttle was quite advanced, even if it was unpractical and costly. So I dont understand your point.

[Mr Supertypo]

No doubt they figured were too stupid to be of any worth to them.I blame the Kardashians and Honey boo boo.And Justin Bieber.Lady gaga.Obamacare.SNL.V.Stiviano.Modern family. U.S. policy for American's.Alex Jones.NASA.The U.N.Monsanto. The pope.etc..

Lol you people are strange, you attribute god like qualities to these aliens but then you give them ethical attributes like a five y old child. MLAO

[Rlyeh]

....Yeah cause building a reusable spacecraft that can be destroyed with a piece of Styrofoam is smart.I booked you a seat on their next launch...oh,wait...

They should be like you and do nothing.

[sinewave]

....Yeah cause building a reusable spacecraft that can be destroyed with a piece of Styrofoam is smart.I booked you a seat on their next launch...oh,wait...

So the true measure of our intellect depends on whether or not things we build are indestructible?

[Calibeliever]

Haha.

I think you have to distinguish between humility and arrogant confidence. Most of the PhDs I know and work with have both. within their field they are arrogantly confident (as one of my employees sent me the other day, remembering when he was hired):

Yeah that, and there is definitely a difference between a workplace setting and a backyard BBQ with beers. In the workplace a conversation like this probably wouldn't happen.

I don't poo poo education, I've been subjected to quite a bit of it myself. But in keeping with the theme of this thread, I don't think any amount of education can make you an expert on what ET thinks of us ... and that's my real point. In the backyard, the more degrees (dad) someone has, the more likely that their feelings are going to get hurt at some point because no one is deferring to their ridiculous theory about global warming, ETs, government conspiracy, etc. None of which anyone is really qualified to speak about with any authority, but put "Doctor" in front of your name and watch the ego take over the show! Now, put 3 of them together! Can you tell I had a fun childhood?

[Arkitecht]

They should be like you and do nothing.

...says the guy with over eight thousand Post's and been on here less time then me...

[Rlyeh]

...says the guy with over eight thousand Post's and been on here less time then me...

Apparently you are doing nothing then.

[Arkitecht]

Apparently you are doing nothing then.

...So then by you're logic,the more time i spend posting on here,the more i am doing something with my life?So i guess i should quit my job,dump my girlfriend, so i can spend more time on here?..hmmm..i can only respond to that with...

http://youtu.be/C3JzbWVDzac

[Ralaman]

Humans kill each other over religion. We experiment on creatures we feel are under us. In some societies they still burn women for being witches. Humans are not only unintelligent in the eyes of extra-terrestrials, we are also comically morbid.

[sinewave]

Humans kill each other over religion. We experiment on creatures we feel are under us. In some societies they still burn women for being witches. Humans are not only unintelligent in the eyes of extra-terrestrials, we are also comically morbid.

Can we really assume true intelligence means there will never be conflict?

[Leonardo]

Going back to the OP topic...

Perhaps to a sufficiently intelligent alien species a human being appears no more intelligent than an insect - a primitive life form barely capable of comprehension.

"The audacity of us to even claim we can define intelligence," said Tyson

So, Tyson sneers at "the human race" attempting to define intelligence - while just prior to that he has effectively "defined intelligence"?

There's no story here, just a media-luvin' scientist trying to make some cash by being "controversial".

[Calibeliever]

Can we really assume true intelligence means there will never be conflict?

Good point. Much of our "intelligence" is born of problem solving for situations like hunting food and protecting our young. Nature is violent and our learned behaviors have had to be violent in response.

I guess it can be argued that at some point we could evolve to a state where violence isn't necessary but I can't see where the pressure is to do that. The more of us we crowd into smaller spaces with shrinking resources, the more violence will be required to survive. Those who are violent more "intelligently" will win and get clean water and food and have the ability to protect their territory from those who are less "intelligent".

Maybe we need a new word ... enlightened?

[DONTEATUS]

Going back to the OP topic...

So, Tyson sneers at "the human race" attempting to define intelligence - while just prior to that he has effectively "defined intelligence"?

There's no story here, just a media-luvin' scientist trying to make some cash by being "controversial".

Man Your going to Get Beamed up and Fried in E.T`s deep Frier ! Call out Dr. DeGrassee T is like Saying theres no Aliens anywhere.

Without Proof your just in a very long line of people that dont actually Have a Possible Dream of Someday Knowing were not Alone !

[sinewave]

Good point. Much of our "intelligence" is born of problem solving for situations like hunting food and protecting our young. Nature is violent and our learned behaviors have had to be violent in response.

I guess it can be argued that at some point we could evolve to a state where violence isn't necessary but I can't see where the pressure is to do that. The more of us we crowd into smaller spaces with shrinking resources, the more violence will be required to survive. Those who are violent more "intelligently" will win and get clean water and food and have the ability to protect their territory from those who are less "intelligent".

Maybe we need a new word ... enlightened?

That is true. Resources will always be finite and not equal to the demand. Survival instincts drive aggression. But even if all of the basic needs are met there will still be some points of contention. Look at all the fuss over gold and diamonds. Apart from industrial abrasives there is not much NEED for diamonds. Likewise, apart from some industrial uses there is no real human need for gold but many have killed and died for it over the centuries.

Edited June 6, 2014 by sinewave

[SaraT]

My more serious take on the matter of human intelligence, and just my opinion: It wouldn't be very intelligent of anyone to see humans as not very intelligent. So far as we know, "ET" is simply a figment of human imagination because we have no real evidence yet that there are such beings, other than a very human hunch. Even our standards for comparing human intelligence to the imaginary ET intelligence comes entirely from the human mind. So my point is that I think we humans need to give ourselves more credit. The real ET, if there are any such beings, might not be as clever as we imagine them to be.

[sinewave]

My more serious take on the matter of human intelligence, and just my opinion: It wouldn't be very intelligent of anyone to see humans as not very intelligent. So far as we know, "ET" is simply a figment of human imagination because we have no real evidence yet that there are such beings, other than a very human hunch. Even our standards for comparing human intelligence to the imaginary ET intelligence comes entirely from the human mind. So my point is that I think we humans need to give ourselves more credit. The real ET, if there are any such beings, might not be as clever as we imagine them to be.

That's true. ET exist only in statistics for the moment. The numbers suggest very strongly they are out there.

Some people like to believe benevolent aliens are watching over us and see us a unintelligent animals or at best petulant children. A mindset not unlike a religion. Believers often are quick to credit achievements of man to aliens and find convoluted ways to weave aliens into human history from the start. I find that insulting to those who have advanced us by achieving.

[Asadora]

Regarding the OP, I think that it is possible that aliens would maybe consider our level of altruism rather than our intelligence or lack thereof. If the aliens possess a higher grade of technology than we do, (as they must do if they were in fact aware of us), then to come across our species it would be important to know what our intentions are. Are we inherently good or not? Would we deceive the aliens in order to steal their technology and then use it against them? Or would we take the opportunity and turn it into a mutual benefit?

If I was of an alien culture, and came across Human culture, I would be more concerned if they had the potential to be trusted.

'So, even if I do not share my technology with you, will you still be my friend?'

[Hawken]

I wonder how ET would determine human intelligence if he saw this?

[ShadowWhisperer]

Someone who is actually speaking truth. Aliens have undoubtedly made contact with us. This is my hypothesis, I believe the main difference between humans and aliens is we as humans have conceptualized being only able to exist in one dimension. Whereas I believe aliens can travel from one dimension to another because they are intelligent enough manifest almost any desire through their knowledge.

[Saitung]

Ok, so let me get this straight.

First he as like there is no alien intelligences visiting the earth, 2005

Then he was like, there is such thing as Intelligent Design, 2011

Now he is like Ok, if there is intelligent alien life, they have visited earth long ago and are now gone? 2014

I feel deja vu coming on, again, and it reminds me of another late Cosmologist.

Now, let's watch as he does like Carl Sagan and S L O W L Y moves over to the "Yes they could be still visiting us" section as time goes by.

I guess it’s hard to side with folks you have been calling nuts who turn out to have been right all along huh?

These guys are so freakin’ funny, but ya’ gotta’ luv em’!!!

Only a species as backwardly-vain as mankind would think we could detect, out maneuver and extrapolate physical proof from; beings who were here FIRST in a universe over 4 Billion years old!

Edited June 7, 2014 by Saitung

[Hawken]

I don't know about ET advancing human evolution and assisting in building large stone structures like AA theorist claim

But another theory is that humankind was once advanced more so then science gives credit. It's just that some cataclysmic

event happened that depopulated the planet and reduce humans to hunter/gatherers. All history was lost.

Reminds me of a book called Motel Of The Mysteries by David Macaulay.

[Rlyeh]

...So then by you're logic,the more time i spend posting on here,the more i am doing something with my life?So i guess i should quit my job,dump my girlfriend, so i can spend more time on here?..hmmm..i can only respond to that with...

No, by my logic you are talking complete ****. According to you NASA contains some of the world's dumbest people, because their space crafts can be destroyed. Good reasoning skills.

Don't quit your job, it's a miracle that you even have one.