Why We'll Never Meet Aliens

Re:Why We'll Never Meet Aliens by codex on Friday April 26, 2013 @01:20PM (#5614107)

This article seems to gloss over the hypothesis that aliens evolved under evolutionary pressure, and are thus likely to want to reproduce and expand. So no matter how advanced they may become technologically, they might still want our resources and our planet, simply because they're reproducing themselves at an exponential rate--especially if they've solved the immortality problem, which is likely. Even with advanced birth control, aliens may still want to have cute alien babies. They could chose to simulate their lives in a computer instead, likely it's cheaper to acquire a real planet than simulate one.

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Re:Why We'll Never Meet Aliens by evv on Friday April 26, 2013 @02:11PM (#5614480)

Agreed. The article also seems skeptical that aliens would be willing or capable to travel for thousands of years to reach us. For a truly advanced species who have undoubtedly extended their lifetime drastically, I doubt thousands of years would feel like a very long time.

Hell, thousands of years wouldn't even feel like a long time for human-built computers.

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Re:Why We'll Never Meet Aliens by asdfadfs on Friday April 26, 2013 @01:37PM (#5614233)

>>This article seems to gloss over the hypothesis that aliens evolved under evolutionary pressure, and are thus likely to want to reproduce and expand.

Remember though that we've already seen that people in rich nations are not driven to reproduce and expand like bunnies. Is there some evolutionary pressure on you that drives you fuck woman and have children with them? Is the impulse so strong that you cannot help yourself? We can have as much sex as we want, but without the children because of birth control. Why would it be any different for Aliens?

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Re:Why We'll Never Meet Aliens by danielweber on Friday April 26, 2013 @03:01PM (#5614772)

> people in rich nations are not driven to reproduce

It may be true for many, even most. But you would need to expand it to all. Otherwise those who do want to reproduce and spread will continue to do it.

Also, we may be in a lull. There may be some gene that either makes people not want to reproduce, or makes people really want to reproduce. That gene is about to experience a whole boatload of selective pressure.

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