Arthur C. Clarke, author of "2001: A Space Odyssey", once said: "Two possibilities exist:
Either we are alone in the universe, or we are not. Both are equally terrifying."
Most media exploring the topic of alien life in the universe
often work from the assumption that we are not alone, and that our technology is
not sufficiently advanced to detect our distant neighbors, or that they know
we're here and don't think we're worth contacting, or any number of other explanations.
While these hypotheses may turn out to be true,
the other possibility that doesn't get as much attention is that we
are, in fact, alone in the universe. If that were the case, how would it change
our lives and our goals here on Earth? For this thought experiment, we're going
to assume that humanity has a way to accurately determine that we are the
only life forms in the universe, and work from there. If one day, the news broke
that the universe is indeed a cold, dead place, and that all life is contained
here on Earth, it would instantly bring to mind two possibilities: Either we are
the very first life in the universe, or the very last — and knowing humanity's
affinity for giant explosives, we could very easily be the first AND last life
in the universe if we weren't careful. Besides our new terrifying realization
that we are one planet away from a completely sterile universe, what would
change? Let's start with the world's space programs. If we were alone in the
universe, we could scrap any missions designed to search for extraterrestrial
life. That would include numerous probes, such as those intended for the icy
landscapes of Europa and Enceladus, as well as entire branches of national
space programs like the SETI Institute. We could use the money from those
programs to redouble our efforts in preserving the earth and its natural
resources, or to fund new schools, hospitals, or humanitarian organizations.
Of course, that's probably wishful thinking, but the possibility is there.
If we wanted to keep that money in the space programs, we could put it towards
research and development of ways to ensure humanity's continued survival in
the event of disaster on Earth. Colonies on the Moon, Venus, Mars, or even prototype
generational ships that could support human colonies over several lifetimes
would be worthwhile endeavors. Of course, with an announcement of such magnitude,
it would no doubt create polarized groups within our global society.
As the only intelligent life in the universe, would it be our responsibility to
seed life on other planets by sending probes full of bacteria and simple organisms, or
are we no more than a blight on the universe that should be contained to Earth?
Given our history of colonization on Earth, it would stand to reason that
we would at least want to establish colonies as far away from Earth as
possible, if only to ensure the survival of our species in the event of a
gamma-ray burst or some other cataclysm. But seeding life on other planets we'll
likely never visit would probably be met with controversy. So far, we've been
working under the assumption that we are the only life in the universe at all,
but what if we specified that we were the only intelligent life? How would that
change the scenario? Well, if we assume again that humanity has a way to
determine that there is no intelligent life in the universe, then not much will
change initially. However, imagine a scenario in which a probe from Earth
discovers single-celled life on another planet, let's say Europa. In this scenario,
we would be the billions of years more advanced alien species keeping an eye on
new life in the universe — something that many people have suspected
extraterrestrials have been doing to us over the history of life on Earth.
But what would we do about it? To what extent would we interfere with
the growth of a new present in the universe? Many would argue that the best
course of action would be to observe from afar, and allow nature to run its
course no matter the outcome. Others might want to watch, but take it one step
further, and intervene if the new life is headed for catastrophe. Then, there will
most likely be a portion of society that thinks we should physically visit Europa
and try to guide the life-forms to success — a dangerous proposition, as
humans would carry microbes with them that could endanger the very life we're
trying to protect. As one final possibility, what if we were to discover
the presence of a very primitive species just starting to use simple tools? This
would be the truest test of humanity's disposition towards extraterrestrial life.
As with the previous scenario we could look to the zoo hypothesis for one
example of how best to handle fledgling life-forms. The zoo hypothesis suggests
that intelligent civilizations would refrain from visiting planets with life,
to allow natural evolution and socio-cultural development. It certainly
seems like the most respectful way to handle the situation, and it's not too
much of a stretch of the imagination to think that most world leaders could
agree to contact these extraterrestrials only once they had reached a certain
technological or societal threshold. Of course, there would be others who
would want to visit them immediately, and, I don't know, build pyramids or something...
While this may not seem like an important topic to discuss, it allows us
to explore several interesting issues. How would our space programs change if
we were the only life in the universe? Would we scrap them entirely and just
focus on our existence here on earth, or would we reallocate those funds to focus
on something more like an escape plan? Would a newfound certainty of uniqueness
in the universe prompt us to become a more peaceful species, or would life go
on the way it always has? If we discovered we were not completely alone,
but at the top of the totem pole of intelligence, would we act like the
curators of an intergalactic zoo? Would we play the role of a benevolent god
race, intervening to prevent disaster, guiding life towards civilization? Or
would we do the unthinkable, and ensure that no life-forms ever become advanced
enough to threaten our position as the apex predator of the cosmos? These are
only a handful of the questions this topic can raise, and who knows if we'll
ever be able to answer them? Only time will tell.
Leave your thoughts and opinions in the comments below. Hopefully we can spark
some interesting conversations, and maybe explore those ideas in future videos.
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today's thought experiment. Thanks for watching, and I'll see you in the next video.