There are no space aliens

[Father Heathen]

okay, but that's just one side of the equation

There are 8 billion people in the world, does that mean there must be someone else like you?

No, but you'll find many that are a lot like you. Other planets don't have to be exact copies of the earth to support life.

 

[Guy Threepwood]

No, but you'll find many that are a lot like you. Other planets don't have to be exact copies of the earth to support life.

Not only is there nobody else exactly like you, but you only need a fairly short list of mundane idiosyncrasies about yourself- to identify as utterly unique. Because each modest improbability compounds the others

The list of idiosyncrasies that make complex life possible on Earth, far less a technological civilization, is neither short nor mundane. The universe has a finite number of stars, not nearly enough I don't think, when you start crunching the numbers.

 

[McBell]

The universe has a finite number of stars, not nearly enough I don't think, when you start crunching the numbers.

really?
When did you crunch the numbers?
Please show your work.

 

[Geoff-Allen]

For a variety of viewpoints ... try youtube -

extraterrestrial life - YouTube

Enjoy your day!

 

[Neo Deist]

Anyone that says "there are no space aliens" (to mean sentient life on another planet) is just asinine.

Earth is one planet among several in our solar system.
Our solar system is one among billions in our galaxy.
Our galaxy is one among hundreds of billions in the known universe.

The furthest that mankind has traveled is to our moon.
The furthest that any of our probes have traveled is just beyond the edge of our solar system. Voyager I is now in interstellar space. It is still in our galaxy.

The closest star with a known planet is only 4.2 light years away. That would be Alpha Centauri. Unfortunately our space shuttles don't have warp speed, so the best they can muster is an agonizingly slow 17,500 mph. At that speed it would take around 165,000 years to get there.

Light travels at 671,000,000 mph and some stars/galaxies are so far away that light has been traveling for billions of years and is just now visible to us. Looking at light from stars is to look at ancient history, not what is currently going on in space.

And some people think that we can make definitive answers about what all is out there?

We are mere infants when it comes to exploring the cosmos.

Here:

 

[Milton Platt]

there aren't any space aliens. If anyone want's to prove there, proceed.



.syncretic

If you mean visiting earth, I would agree. But if you mean there cannot possibly be any other forms of life anywhere in the entire universe, I would say you are making an unfounded assertion. But convince me......

 

[Guy Threepwood]

Anyone that says "there are no space aliens" (to mean sentient life on another planet) is just asinine.

Earth is one planet among several in our solar system.
Our solar system is one among billions in our galaxy.
Our galaxy is one among hundreds of billions in the known universe.

The furthest that mankind has traveled is to our moon.
The furthest that any of our probes have traveled is just beyond the edge of our solar system. Voyager I is now in interstellar space. It is still in our galaxy.

The closest star with a known planet is only 4.2 light years away. That would be Alpha Centauri. Unfortunately our space shuttles don't have warp speed, so the best they can muster is an agonizingly slow 17,500 mph. At that speed it would take around 165,000 years to get there.

Light travels at 671,000,000 mph and some stars/galaxies are so far away that light has been traveling for billions of years and is just now visible to us. Looking at light from stars is to look at ancient history, not what is currently going on in space.

And some people think that we can make definitive answers about what all is out there?

We are mere infants when it comes to exploring the cosmos.

Here:

So the universe is not all that big then, which supports the observation, or lack thereof; we have an ear on an entire galaxy and we hear nothing but the 'great silence'.

This is a particularly nice hospitable solar system and galaxy, if we are alone here, it does not bode well for ET still hiding out somewhere in the others

 

[Brian Schuh]

Anyone that says "there are no space aliens" (to mean sentient life on another planet) is just asinine.

Earth is one planet among several in our solar system.
Our solar system is one among billions in our galaxy.
Our galaxy is one among hundreds of billions in the known universe.

The furthest that mankind has traveled is to our moon.
The furthest that any of our probes have traveled is just beyond the edge of our solar system. Voyager I is now in interstellar space. It is still in our galaxy.

The closest star with a known planet is only 4.2 light years away. That would be Alpha Centauri. Unfortunately our space shuttles don't have warp speed, so the best they can muster is an agonizingly slow 17,500 mph. At that speed it would take around 165,000 years to get there.

Light travels at 671,000,000 mph and some stars/galaxies are so far away that light has been traveling for billions of years and is just now visible to us. Looking at light from stars is to look at ancient history, not what is currently going on in space.

And some people think that we can make definitive answers about what all is out there?

We are mere infants when it comes to exploring the cosmos.

Here:

Yeah, I agree. When the talmudic scholars said there are one hundred thousand inhabited worlds out there, that is a conservative estimate.

We would be egomaniacs to claim that we are the only game in town.

 

[Father Heathen]

I think most people reject the possibility of life forming on other planets for the same reason they reject evolution; .simply because it threatens their religious narrative.
Guys, you have to come to terms with the possibility that maybe, just maybe, bronze age goat herders might've been wrong about a few things.

 

[Papoon]

there aren't any space aliens. If anyone want's to prove there, proceed.



.syncretic

There is no such thing as space, except in maths.
Prove otherwise.

God, these kind of challenges are stoopid.

 

[Desert Snake]

I think most people reject the possibility of life forming on other planets for the same reason they reject evolution; .simply because it threatens their religious narrative.
Guys, you have to come to terms with the possibility that maybe, just maybe, bronze age goat herders might've been wrong about a few things.

Are you sure about this? Seems like you're contradicting the reasoning from your own side.

There is no such thing as space, except in maths.
Prove otherwise.

God, these kind of challenges are stoopid.

^

 

[Brian Schuh]

I think most people reject the possibility of life forming on other planets for the same reason they reject evolution; .simply because it threatens their religious narrative.
Guys, you have to come to terms with the possibility that maybe, just maybe, bronze age goat herders might've been wrong about a few things.

You make no sense; God could have easily created other inhabited worlds. No rational creationist would deny this. So even if evolution is false, there could exist the possibility of other creations besides ourselves. The Talmud claimed that there are 100,000 inhabited worlds besides ours and they were creationists.

 

[Kilgore Trout]

really?
When did you crunch the numbers?
Please show your work.

I'm waiting for that as well.

 

[Guy Threepwood]

I think most people reject the possibility of life forming on other planets for the same reason they reject evolution; .simply because it threatens their religious narrative.
Guys, you have to come to terms with the possibility that maybe, just maybe, bronze age goat herders might've been wrong about a few things.

A little projectionism perhaps, most of us want to know the truth either way

If the universe had turned out to be teaming with ETs I'd be willing to accept the implication, that we are not the primary intended beneficiaries of creation

But I'm also willing to accept the opposite implication, that of observed reality, math.

 

[Father Heathen]

A little projectionism perhaps, most of us want to know the truth either way

If the universe had turned out to be teaming with ETs I'd be willing to accept the implication, that we are not the primary intended beneficiaries of creation

But I'm also willing to accept the opposite implication, that of observed reality, math.

If the universe was created just for us, why would we be but a mere speck among the cosmos? Why create a universe where 99+% would never been seen or experienced by humans? Why not a universe with single sun/star, with a single, inhabitable planet and its moon, where god can let his script play out?

 

[Papoon]

If the universe had turned out to be teaming with ETs I'd be willing to accept the implication, that we are not the primary intended beneficiaries of creation

Of course we aren't the primary beneficiaries of creation. By any measure, bacteria and microbes clearly are God's favourites. They outnumber humans trillions to one. In fact four billion or so live in your body, which is basically their planet.

I've never heard a scriptural explanation for why humans are hosts to billions of entities, who effectively own us.

Probably because the writers of scripture were utterly ignorant of their existence.

 

[Guy Threepwood]

If the universe was created just for us, why would we be but a mere speck among the cosmos? Why create a universe where 99+% would never been seen or experienced by humans? Why not a universe with single sun/star, with a single, inhabitable planet and its moon, where god can let his script play out?

Good question

For starters remember that the size of the universe was determined by the math in the primeval atom, not the credit limit on God's Home Depot card!

So if 'for the same price' you can have the minimalist space-saver Truman show universe- or a vast awe inspiring cosmos that draws us out and beyond ourselves-- I know which I'd rather make.

So I think the former model would be more consistent with a cosmic fluke than intentional creation.. ever heard of Minecraft? each world is practically infinite, the player can only ever explore a minute fraction. By your rationale, this is evidence that the game must have accidentally written itself for no particular reason


Also- how do you know about this vast cosmos? Many scientists inc. atheists have remarked on how curious it is, that the universe so lends itself to our understanding, observation, learning- what better way to appreciate anything?

 

[Guy Threepwood]

Of course we aren't the primary beneficiaries of creation. By any measure, bacteria and microbes clearly are God's favourites. They outnumber humans trillions to one. In fact four billion or so live in your body, which is basically their planet.

I've never heard a scriptural explanation for why humans are hosts to billions of entities, who effectively own us.

Probably because the writers of scripture were utterly ignorant of their existence.

I would assume that a book written in French, was written for the primary benefit of a Frenchman, even if many more bacteria inhabit it's pages- and knowing the French, I'm sure they do!

i.e. we are the only means by which the universe can contemplate it's own existence, experience itself from within. bacteria cannot do this. But bacteria are an essential part of our own bodies- integral to the the design of life.

 

[Father Heathen]

ever heard of Minecraft? each world is practically infinite, the player can only ever explore a minute fraction. By your rationale, this is evidence that the game must have accidentally written itself for no particular reason

Ah, but even though Minecraft was programmed by a creator, those infinite worlds are randomly generated.

 

[Guy Threepwood]

Ah, but even though Minecraft was programmed by a creator, these infinite worlds are randomly generated.

So in other words, the observation of apparent randomness in a process, does not denote that the process itself was also randomly generated right? And neither does a vast or infinite world suggest that it was not intended to be experienced

I think you should consider switching teams here!

'Randomness' plays a vital role yes, in the universe, our lives and computer games, within very specific design parameters, without which you wouldn't have a functional universe at all.


It gets more interesting when you consider that the computer has no way of generating random numbers, it uses a predetermined list of numbers that simulate randomness..