Harvard Professor believes Earth (in 2017) was visited by alien artifact

[Staff Weenie]

I would generally agree that there may be extraterrestrial life, but I think that once you examine the proposition by way of the Fermi paradox, the likelihood becomes astonishingly small. Additionally, for any civilization to have visited us in any practical sense, would require travel at superluminal speeds, which according to our understanding of science, breaks Einstein's theory of special relativity, which establishes the speed of light as the maximum. That is not to say that I don't consider the prospect of non-relitavistic physics that allow for increased speed without increased passage of time (external to the traveller), just that I consider it unlikely.

Fermi paradox - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I would think that the number of planets with life is actually quite large. With intelligent life, less so, but probably still significant. One of my favourite sci-fi authors, Ian Douglas (yes, I know it's cheesy writing, but still fun), actually does his research with physicists and exo-biologists. His suggestions are interesting - for any aquatic species, they may never be able to refine and smelt metals, they may not even clearly see stars and understand there is a wider galaxy out there. For planets with larger mass/gravity - the energy it takes to achieve escape velocity becomes extremely prohibitive. There's no need to go conquering other systems for resources - they're actually fairly abundant in an Oort cloud. They may have 'religious' or cultural reasons to avoid travel, or to promote it. Want to colonize another world? If the atmospheric gases ratios are off by just a slight amount, it's toxic for us (and probable for other species as well). Would +/- variances in heat and gravity prove lethal as well?

So..... all that to say that there may well be life out there, they may just be incapable or uninterested in travelling. Add to that the vast distances involved, energy required to move a mass over those distances, and it becomes much less probable we will see anything.

 

[ModlrMike]

Yes. I do think that there is other life out there, and recent finds on Mars might even support that hypothesis. My sense though is that intelligent life capable and willing to cross the vastness of space at the necessary velocities, without suffering the attendant time distortion, are quit rare indeed.

 

[Colin Parkinson]

Even for those of a religious bent, it's very presumptuous of us to think that we, humans, as the best and most advanced lifeform that any "God" could come up with.

Roman Catholic Church has already reviewed the concept and says that if God created another planet and made life there in another image, then that is God's business and not theirs to question.

Aliens and the Catholic Church

When it comes to rational beings, we have God, humans, angels . . . and something else? Some great thinkers in Church history allow for the possibility.

www.catholic.com