Sending out signals into space.

Counting out telecommunications, I was always puzzled by the fact that scientists intentionally sent probes and beamed signals out into space to notify anything alive and intelligent out there of our location and presence here.

I mean, if I was to be dropped in the middle of nowhere and knew nothing about who or what lives there, I'd sure be quiet and observe first. Would you risk walking around in unknown territory shouting "Hellooooo"? Sure, you could always encounter a village of Swedish airline stewardesses, on the other hand, cannibals. Would you chose to be quiet and observe instead?

Weren't these signal projects kind of selfish and done in a bit of a hurry when one looks at how vulnerable we could be to civilizations much older than ours?

It's sometimes better to go unnoticed...

The problem is you cant discount telecommunications can we.
We cant go unnoticed.
Every transmission ever made, Radio and TV is beaming out into space as well as to your antenna, so it makes no difference really.

Yep, all that crap from the radio stations and TV is flying out into the cosmos at 186000 miles per second, dont forget all the traffic from Radio amateurs and those CB 'good buddies' its all going out there.


[edit on 28/9/07 by Chorlton]

I'd compare the "noise" of our telecommunications flowing out into space to the glow of a lantern, light is spread all around and diffuses rather quickly. Signals sent intentionally out into space could be compared to the more compact and powerful beam of a flashlight.

I was quite flattered to hear Michio Kaku in a Coast to Coast AM interview not long ago mentioning that sending out signals into space to notify others of our presence was not a good idea and actually quite dangerous for the whole population of earth.

Along with sending out a satellite with a map of our location in the galaxy and other information about the human race, beaming out intentional signals were one of science's stupidest mistakes ever.