The Grand Scale Of Things...

originally posted by: taoistguy
It hit me the other day that given in the grand scale of things, and that even in the tiny amount of time this planet has been around, and that within that humans have been around for such a tiny blip, 'modern' humans even less, that we have a narrow and tiny understanding of things. Along with that feeling came some sort of realisation that, "Of course aliens have been visiting and probably still are." Anyone else get this?

I have to agree with AdmireTheDistance it actually does the opposite the time a distances make it LESS likely than more.

originally posted by: AdmireTheDistance
a reply to: taoistguy

No. That seems like a rather illogical conclusion, to me....

You use far kinder words for what it seems than I would have...

originally posted by: taoistguy

originally posted by: EnPassant
a reply to: taoistguy

I don't make much difference in the ultimate reality between 'physical' and 'spiritual', but just by thinking in terms of physical, there is a lot has happened we don't know cos we weren't around, and at present our understanding of the greater reality is so very small and incomplete.

How astute.

a reply to: taoistguy

I always am surprised by those who are so offended by skeptics of terrestrial visitation.

Perhaps I am mistaken but, I would presume that nearly everybody believes that alien life exists.

The obstacle to visitation seems apparent in the Drake equation. Specifically, the temporal variable which more or less precludes the local coincidence of any advanced civilizations.

That said, we are zygotes in the grand scheme so there are possible ways to circumvent other variables such as distance if the holographic principal ultimately provides a mechanism to artificially manipulate spacial location.

originally posted by: taoistguy
It hit me the other day that given in the grand scale of things, and that even in the tiny amount of time this planet has been around, and that within that humans have been around for such a tiny blip, 'modern' humans even less, that we have a narrow and tiny understanding of things. Along with that feeling came some sort of realisation that, "Of course aliens have been visiting and probably still are." Anyone else get this?

No.

But I have entertained the idea that, given the same amount of time, we are possibly not the first terrestrials to achieve our current level of advancement... or last.

Given the grand scale of the universe I am more inclined to conclude that if advanced intelligence exists elsewhere we will likely be unable to detect it, or even if we could, recognize it as such.