Other Civilizations in the Universe

     I recently came across a very interesting paper in a nsa.gov portal (National Security Agency) that was entitled ‘Communication with Extraterrestrial Intelligence.’ The very first line is ‘We are not alone in the universe’ which sets the tone for the article. The article goes on to say that even accounting for a five thousand percent margin of error there are probably 100 million stars in our own galaxy which have a planet in the habitable zone. If you then consider that there are probably a billion other galaxies in the universe the number of civilizations that could have arisen by now is probably closer to a billion. A billion other civilizations in the universe is certainly a huge number.

    I discuss similar information with a bit different data in my book Aliens Are With Us and also in my blog post regarding other intelligent life but it is always good to read other papers and articles that corroborate the same theory. The article goes on to discuss the challenges of these other planets with possible civilizations being 100 or more light years away, therefore communication for us with them is certainly an issue. But scientists on earth are actively discussing methods to allow travel that is faster than the speed of light so other civilizations that may be 500, 5000 or 50,000 or more years more advanced than us have undoubtedly already conquered that issue.  So I  believe those are the aliens that are already visiting us and communicating with us in different ways and not constrained to methods such as the radio waves we sent out in the universe in our attempt to communicate with them.

    The paper goes on to state that many of those civilizations around the universe that have formed have probably destroyed themselves by now. There is a quote that is certainly troubling, especially since it seems to be unfolding for us on Earth now:

“Professor Iosif Shklovsky, Russia's greatest radio astronomer, has cited the profound crises which lie in wait for a developing civilization, any one of which may well prove fatal:

(1) Self-destruction as a result of a thermonuclear catastrophe or some other discovery which may have unpredictable and uncontrollable consequences;

(2) Genetic danger;

(3) Overproduction of information;

(4) Restricted capacity of the individual's brain, which can lead to excessive specialization, with consequent dangers of degeneration; and

(5) A crisis precipitated by the creation of artificial intelligent beings.”

    The first point reminds me of the statement made in the movie Oppenheimer about there being a chance (he stated that it was unlikely but still a chance) that the detonation of the first atomic bomb could ignite the atmosphere and destroy life on earth. That statement in the movie was not just added to the movie for additional suspense but was truly a concern for some scientists that were involved in the project. But they detonated the device anyway, which goes to show that some other scientist somewhere in the world could be working on some new technology that could end up having a chain reaction and destroy all life on earth so that certainly is a valid concern.

    The second point – clearly a concern these days. Genetically modified food, genetic modifications to supposedly cure diseases, creating viruses in labs that ‘accidentally get released’ these are all happening today and could easily go catastrophically wrong at any moment.

    The third, fourth and fifth points – all happening today. Some smart and influential people are concerned about the current information overload and the creation of AI (artificial intelligence) getting out of hand and leading to the demise of humanity, but the research and development in these areas continue to happen anyway. All supposedly to help mankind but really, it’s all about money, power and control.

    The paper goes on to discuss a conference held in 1971 whose topic was communication with extraterrestrial intelligence and the US delegation to it was headed by Carl Sagan. One of the outcomes of this conference was a signal that was beamed into space and was man’s first attempt to communicate with another civilization. But as I stated above and in my book, I believe that's not necessary because they are already here.