Assumptions about aliens we shouldn’t make

I think its very unfortunate that everything used to describe intelligence are all made relative to mans advances or physiological limitations. It's a big assumption that alien societies and their cultures would operate and advance in the same way as mans do.

I'll note that many of mans advances were put forward by creative or even industrious individuals. Sure some of our advances may have been inevitable, but at key points individuals played a large part. I'll also note that there are technologies today that exists largely because of mans ability to mimic, engineer, harness natural occurrences in nature. That can not go understated.

It's too easy to presume that other beings on other worlds would be given the same environments and natural phenomenon as our own. If we think that those limitations are universal, then why explore other worlds. It's not just about better understanding our own.

Is it possible other beings could have natural occurrences that progressed their scientific capacities well ahead of their social or philosophical advances. Isn't it equally short sighted to presume they would have the same intolerance to effects that are harmful to man. Their physiological make up does not have to mimic our own. There are species that exist today on Earth that live in inhospitable environments.

Interplanetary travel in theory and concept is something man may never come to terms with for any number of reasons. Maybe our own course or technological advances have unfortunately painted us into a corner. If a species were able to perform interplanetary travel, I am not entirely convinced they would have to be of higher intelligence or intellect to man.

After shows like Star Trek, etc., I think the general public is well aware that aliens could come in all shapes and sizes for all we know. (unless they're just fans of the Next Generation, then they'll just believe aliens have different noses only...sorry, pet peave with the show, hehe...)

It's a good point, but remember that all we have to go on are eyewitness accounts, and so far, there are two front-runners, the Grays and the Nordic-like aliens. While there are reports of everything from boxy robots to Bigfoot and Chupacabra aliens, the vast majority are of the first two mentioned types...so that's the common conception people have.

I have to take a little stand for Humanity here...

I measure intelligence by language, knowledge of concepts, experience, and the ability to accomplish things. By any reasonable human-sized yardstick we have accomplished a great deal in our collective lifetimes.

There is always 'better', more to do, things to learn and unlearn, but we really have accomplished quite a bit.

In terms of levels of violence, overall freedom of people to be who they wish to be, and any other measure that people looking at us might judge, we are getting better all the time. This is a long view, easy to miss when one is caught up in the rush of Today, but a valid one I think.


A.T
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Originally posted by Alexander Tau
I have to take a little stand for Humanity here...

I measure intelligence by language, knowledge of concepts, experience, and the ability to accomplish things. By any reasonable human-sized yardstick we have accomplished a great deal in our collective lifetimes.

There is always 'better', more to do, things to learn and unlearn, but we really have accomplished quite a bit.

In terms of levels of violence, overall freedom of people to be who they wish to be, and any other measure that people looking at us might judge, we are getting better all the time. This is a long view, easy to miss when one is caught up in the rush of Today, but a valid one I think.


A.T
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We're obviously getting better, but life on earth is young... Very young. Earth itself is young compared to so many things in the universe, and as a matter of fact (with our curent knowledge, which can evolve, obviously!) we know of nearly nothing that is "about the same" as earth, older or younger.

A few months (years already?) scientists have detected a 13 billion years old planet (a giant gaseous one), which put back on the shelf most of the theories about planet formations so far. We can see now that planets (and stars obviously) have been forming continuously until today, and that from 13.8 billions of years, the estimated age of the universe today.

So what now? There are we with (the universe is supposedly infinite) an infinite number of galaxies, hosting hundreds of billions of stars, being born and dying every day everywhere, for nearly 14 billions of years... It took earth about 4 billions of years to develop life, 500 millions more to make that life intelligent, 5000 more to make that life "technical", 500 more to make it technological, now what? 5 years to make it what?

People on earth have been scientists, doctors, astronomers, mathematicians, philosophers, ..., for only a few centuries... People have been developing "high" technologies for about what? 70, 50 or 30 years... That's it.

My conclusion: we are very young. We don't know. We are facing a universe filled with living creatures that we don't know, even if maybe some of them know us. We are in our process of learning those things that others know for millions of years already. We are in a very bad position to make assumptions. Our first assumptioon being, so far, in this matter: do they exist btw?

General Assumptions that I've seen.

1.) Aliens made all of their own technology? Why can't they be bumbling idiots that were given or stole the technology to run around in space. Just a what if....

2.) Why is it assumed that all aliens are naked. How come they never wear clothes? Can we assume there is no alien version of Tommy Hilfiger in the universe? I know there will be arguements that there is no need... yadda yadda yadda, but maybe it's just for fun. Wasn't there some people who saw greys wearing blue turtle necks for a while?

3.) Why do we assume (with exceptions) that aliens have no emotions. Do they play jokes on us? It always seems like everything I read that aliens are business only types. Saving the world, trying to control our government, or doing medical experiments. Where's their fun.

4.) If they do experiments on us and cows and others, is there another group of aliens that can compare to PETA or something saying that it's wrong to experiment on earthlings.

5.) Apparently aliens don't need space suits in our atmosphere. Maybe some don't, but we can't assume that all aliens wouldn't be wearing space suits. And some could look like a giant bigfoot.

I realize I'm trying to make aliens too human, but can we assume that they are so different from us? I would think there could be more similarities. Like alien versions of drugs/alcohol, video games, physical pleasures that we never hear about from aliens?

Am I wrong?

General Assumptions that I've seen:

1) That aliens are from other planets.

2) That humans are alienoid in nature.

3) That aliens come here for some higher purpose other than cable theft.

Assumptions I have noticed:

1) Aliens exist

2) Aliens visit our planet

3) Aliens have the ability to space travel

4) Aliens abduct people

5) That the people who have had observations of Aliens are not making it up / or actually encountered a alien being

1) Aliens exist
2) Aliens visit our planet
3) Aliens have the ability to space travel
4) Aliens abduct people
5) That the people who have had observations of Aliens are not making it up / or actually encountered a alien being

To me those are all facts. Proven to myself over a long stretch of time. If I did not know humans as I do I would be surprised that everyone does not agree with me on this by now, but I do know them and I am not.

I would certainly word some of them a bit differently, I would for example replace 'abduct people' with 'have done experiments on humans and other forms of life'.

Sightings are Mistakes, Secret Craft, Fake & Real in decending order, mistakes are always the largest catagory in any set of raw reports.


A.T
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[edit on 8/24/05 by Alexander Tau]

Originally posted by The_Final
Assumptions I have noticed:

1) Aliens exist

2) Aliens visit our planet

3) Aliens have the ability to space travel

4) Aliens abduct people

5) That the people who have had observations of Aliens are not making it up / or actually encountered a alien being

Perhaps any asumptions concerning the 99.999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 99999999999999% of the solar system mankind hasn't been to may be a mistake, not to mention the rest of the universe.

And, perhaps thinkin I could believe any of the 6,698,923,462 +/- 500,000 other people on this planet is a stupid assumption as well.

NO MORE EYE WITNESS IN DEATH PENALTY CASES !!!!!!!!!!

I am a contactee/abductee. People usually think that some entity does not have intelligence if it does not move, change its environment with inventions, and communicate with us. We have dolphins and whales, who seem to have languages of their own. If we can eventually decipher their speech, we might find out that they laugh at us!! They have FINS, so they CAN'T make machines, yet they MAY be very intelligent.
Same with apes. They can learn sign language because they have FINGERS! If we can ever get them to SPEAK we may be setting ourselves for a real-life "PLANET OF THE APES"! Not only can apes learn sign language, but they TEACH IT TO OTHER APES!
Star Trek has dealt with the possiility of intelligent "rocks". Other than the Greys and other species that "abductees" have encountered, we just don't know what forms OTHER ETs may have.
We should keep open minds about what defines intelligence. It may not be what we think.