SETI Waste of Time & Money

a reply to: SLAYER69

You make some interesting points and I can definitely see where you're coming from, however, I think that to stop looking for other forms of life would be absurd! when Copernicus first proposed that the Sun was at the centre of the solar system he too receieved a lot of doubt and as a concequence suffered judgement throughout his life, but his discovery created a breakthrough for mankind and is heavily appreciated in modern society! In context, even though SETI requires funding, the truth that we will uncover will be of great value for us and the future. I also think that evidence of extra terrestrial life is becoming more and more evident, so hopefully evidence will begin to show.

I used to "donate" CPU time to SETI until one day I got a file that seemed to me it had detected a signal (probably a Satellite, TV station or something like that, I think they call it "Narrowband Interference"). When the program started to analyze the file, it showed very high bars and thick in the middle of the 3D graph, after a few seconds of analyzing the file, the program stopped and sent the results back and got a new file to analyze...

The thing is, I never saw the results published from SETI... So I just uninstalled the program. I don't trust them, they should say if it was a satellite, a microwave oven or interference or whatever, that would add more transparency to the organization.

originally posted by: virraszto
I think either SETI is a distraction to ease peoples minds that if they haven't picked up a signal, then there are no aliens. However, if aliens do all their communicating telepathically, how do they expect to pick up any signals?

I agree SETI is a waste of time and money. Instead of them listening, they should be watching the skies. Set up the best video equipment and start rolling.

good point

originally posted by: virraszto
Instead of them listening, they should be watching the skies. Set up the best video equipment and start rolling.

There are already hundreds if not thousands of scenic web cameras, security cameras, all kinds of cameras, recording a big chunk of everything day and night. But who is looking at all those hours upon hours of images, analyzing them to catch UFOs flying around? Most of them are just deleted without ever being looked at.

The problem isn't that we're not looking and listening enough, or that we're doing it in the wrong place. It's that we don't have the time or resources to actually analyze the data.

There have been some recent suggestions that we can use active AI to look for patterns in the "old" data that we dumb humans might have missed. Maybe that will help us keep up with the data flood. Still, somebody's gotta pay for it with time and money.

I can't help but feel like it is good that we are listening even if we find nothing. Listening is the path forward. If they want to be heard they will be heard...but imagine if we accidentally pickup their incidental frequencies. Like some sort of alien space tugboat cursing out a mothership that was not lined up right to dock.

Then when they do contact us in a couple of decades we show them the recording. Then they break out laughing...oops.

Okay, it is funny in my mind!

Wow my first post after 15+ years on ATS.

R.I.P. Seti

And I don't want a second post saying R.I.P. ATS.

originally posted by: yeti101
reply to post by SLAYER69

 

yes even paul allan who donated $12 million to seti described it as the "longest of long shots" But the payoff is so immense its a worthwhile task.

The problems you talk about in distance and time are known in seti as the "synchronicity problem". Seti is doing real deep space exploration, christopher columbus could have sat in a spanish bar all day argueing whether there was another continent out accross the ocean. The only way to ever find out is to do the experiment and go look.

This is how science works we explore & do experiments to further our understanding of the universe. Even a null result is significant as it tells us long lasting transmitting civs are rare.

Any experiment that explores a new parameter space is worthwhile. Many scientific discoveries have been made while looking for something else seti is poised for something like that becuase nobody has ever searched the way they are.

Setis worldwide budget is $5 million dollars per year and the total for the last 40 years is around $100 million dollars. Thats 2 military helicopters. We spend BILLIONS looking for microbial life in our solar system so why not a tiny amount to look for intelligent life? (seti is privately funded now anyway purely through donations- no tax dollars involved)

Seti has searched only 2000 stars in our galaxy. To search all of them will likely need a multi generation effort. I think its one worthwhile no matter what the results are.



[edit on 19-9-2008 by yeti101]

Damn, I swear I was 100% with SLAYER 69's OP but your above post has swayed me..great reply.

Advanced civilizations do not use electromagnetic technology for space communication: it's way too slow. They use highly developed psychic techniques.

Yep. SETI is for eager and gullible schoolboys.

originally posted by: SLAYER69
HMMMM.... no replies now that is a conspiracy

nobody has an opinion?

We will never know if SETI got any communication.

a reply to: Phirun

Or probably quantum communication that we are not privy too?

originally posted by: Annee

originally posted by: SLAYER69
HMMMM.... no replies now that is a conspiracy

nobody has an opinion?

We will never know if SETI got any communication.

Ignorance is bliss?

SETTI does signal intelligence. I would imagine that they would upgrade the range of signal acquisition as they become apparent. I would be looking for Warp drive signatures (gravitational waves). One thing is for sure, If they are not looking, they won't find any. I vote they keep going.

If I were and Alien wanting to communicate with earth what would I do ?
or if I was stranded here, how could I "Phone Home"

a reply to: SLAYER69

Sounds like the spurs came out on SETI this time.

A reply to: myss427

> Or probably quantum communication that we are not privy too?

This is a HUGE topic that's probably of little or no interest here. If you ask yourself what's meant by "quantum this and that", you'll realize that it's just an umbrella term covering anything at a scale smaller than atoms. So what DOES exist there, apart from the "particle zoo" of the Standard Model? Conventional answer: nothing. The SM covers it all.

My own research suggests that this is the boundary between the Physical and Psychic realms. In other words, once you get down to those scales, you're on the boundary of another space-time continuum that is coterminous with the Physical Realm (sc. exists in the same "space"), has parallel phenomena existing and operating within it, as well as unique phenomena of its own.

The "bridge" between the Physical and Psychic is consciousness. Humans (and other creatures) have both Physical and Psychic bodies, the latter invisible and undetectable in the Physical Realm. It's only by training your consciousness that you can first become aware of it as an independent entity, gradually assert control over it, and eventually operate cooperatively in both.

The most important aspect of ALL ETs that's never discussed is that they are far more advanced Psychically than us. In the case of the Greys and similarly highly-evolved races, they actually live in the Psychic Realm, only manifesting for short times in the Physical when required; or, for longer periods, making use of technologically-advanced physical cyber-bodies. This is what Transhumanists are trying to copy - building cyber-bodies into which their consciousness is "uploaded" - without understanding the ESSENTIAL preliminary: evolving their own psychic faculties in order to make use of it.

As I said, a topic for a LONG book rather than a forum post.

originally posted by: SLAYER69
SETI Waste of Time & Money

Thanks fir your opinion. Millions of people do want to find out if Intelligent Life is out there.

The closest star that may have a world in the Habitable Zone is the Centauri system, 4.5 light years away.

Just the diversity of life on Earth, especially in our oceans, should tell you that there's life elsewhere. Whether there's Intelligent Life...

We've been sending TV signals into space for about 100 years. Radio for about 50 years earlier at the most. So about 100 light years for TV and 150 light years for Radio.

Just remember, someone has to be first. It could be us.

It's information. Act like you are trying to reach out when they are already here. Act like they're in space when they are on the other side of here. Prevent us from sending signals because earth is like north korea, and they don't know how bad it is here, those in power don't want us saved.

a reply to: SLAYER69

If I was a space traveling species I would use instant communication for where ever I am in the universe by means of entanglement. Because I have no idea about the specifics of this technology I could not say if such a "signal" can be captured and understood. And the understood part is an other problem...as you can imagine.

SETI entertains the people involved in it. Does it really need a greater purpose?


If they ever found anything, the benefit would be that our civilization would be getting to see, first hand, another civilization at our own level of development. IE: Someone else who still uses radio.

Species more advanced than that will be undetectable. Or well.... sort of. It could be that the radio signal is reaching us from 2000 light years away, and the people who sent it have already achieved higher technology in that time. Indeed one of their faster-the-light flying saucers might have left their planet 1990 years after the signal was emitted and be visiting us right now as the signal arrives.

But we would at least be getting to see someone else in our situation as we listen to the signal.