Contact with alien civilizations : our hopes and fears about encountering extraterrestrials

This book describes a wide variety of speculations by many authors about the consequences for humanity of coming into contact with extraterrestrial intelligence. The assumptions underlying those speculations are examined, and some conclusions are drawn. The book emphasizes the consequences of contact rather than the search, and takes account of popular views. As necessary background, the book also includes brief summaries of the history of thinking about extraterrestrial intelligence, searches for life and for signals, contrasting paradigms of how contact might take place, and the paradox that those paradigms allegedly create. The proper study of mankind is not merely Man, but Intelligence. 1 —Arthur C. Clarke, 1951 In the long-running television series “The X-Files,” the original Deep Throat said to FBI Special Agent Mulder that “there are those like yourself who believe in the existence of extraterrestrial life.” Ah, but that’s not the question. If extraterrestrial life exists, most of it may be in simpler forms comparable to the one-celled organisms of Earth biology. Finding such life would be fascinating for scientists, but may be of only passing interest to the general public. What intrigues the average citizen is the possibility of contact with extraterrestrial intelligence. We want to communicate with other sentient beings, learning what they know and telling them about ourselves. We want to ? nd out how they are like us and how they are different. Microorganisms don’t have a lot to say. There is another implication of contact that underlies this book: Intel- gent extraterrestrials might have an impact on our future. The information they send us—if any—might change our cultures. They could have c- scious intentions toward us, and possibly the technologies to reach us directly. Their intentions may be benign—or not. Our interest in alien minds is not new. The idea that intelligent beings exist beyond the Earth has been part of the Western intellectual tradition for more than 2000 years. Sometimes this belief was widespread; at other times, it was out of fashion. Front Matter....Pages i-xiii Introduction....Pages 1-8 A Belief in Other Minds....Pages 9-24 A New Era....Pages 25-32 Searching for Intelligence....Pages 33-48 Sending Our Own Signals....Pages 49-53 Probabilities....Pages 54-57 Probabilities: The Astronomical Factors....Pages 58-67 Probabilities: Life....Pages 68-76 Probabilities: Intelligence....Pages 77-88 Probabilities: Civilization, Technology, and Science....Pages 89-93 Probabilities: Longevity....Pages 94-100 The Drake Equation, Take Two....Pages 111-112 Should We Continue the Search?....Pages 113-121 Direct Contact....Pages 122-142 The UFO Controversy....Pages 143-161 The Drake Equation, Take Three....Pages 162-163 Why Don’t We See Them?....Pages 164-179 Reformulating the Problem....Pages 180-189 Thinking Outside the Box....Pages 190-201 SETI and Religion....Pages 202-207 The Consequences of Contact....Pages 208-218 Hopes....Pages 219-231 Fears....Pages 232-240 Dangers....Pages 241-247 Mixed Emotions....Pages 248-258 Some Assumptions Examined....Pages 259-259 Before Contact....Pages 260-278 Assumptions: After Contact....Pages 279-323 The Drake Equation, Take Four....Pages 324-324 What Is Missing....Pages 325-332 Some Conclusions Drawn....Pages 333-342 Paradigm Shifts....Pages 343-346 The Human Role....Pages 347-357 Annex: Preparing....Pages 358-376 Back Matter....Pages 377-460 M.a. Michaud. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 378-449) And Index.