Space: Whats more disturbing to you, the idea that we are one of a billion different civs, or alone

Space: Whats more disturbing to you, the idea that we are one of a billion different civs, or we are alone


Just a thought
With us being just one of countless other civilizations in the milky way, it makes me feel totally insignificant...our planet and species could die out and it wouldn't matter even a little bit.

On the other hand, What if we are truely alone...that this one planet, this one ball is all there is in regards to advanced life...and should we get wiped out, thats it...no more intelligence. What a lonely outlook.

Which thought is more haunting to you? insignificance or solitude

There is a story by david brin called the crystal spheres.

In it man has mastered space travel to find they are not alone in the universe, but that each planet with life has a sphere that can onlybe broken from the inside by an object going light speed.

Another words each planet with life is protected from advanced civilizations, the only problem is that Man is among the first to break their sphere and is alone out there.

In the story they find a planet whose sphere is broken but the Civilization is gone, having pretty much given up because it was alone in the universe .

Good short story dealing with these type of concepts.

Truly master space travel would suck if we find there is nothing out there.

Your purpose? What do you mean, you are a life bearer. Millions of other little tiny creaters are what makes you.

I think I feel it more disturbing to think that there is a billion civs, As I already find it disturbing when I think about this earth, and what is going on, on our little planet just right now. Like all those who dies, all those who win something, right now.

And when I then start to think about what could happen on other planets, it gets too much haha.
My brain gets cooked when I begin to think about it.

Nice topic btw.

Originally posted by benrl
Truly master space travel would suck if we find there is nothing out there.

Was thinking, imagine if indeed we found out we were completely alone...some sort of super warp speed and scan that allowed us to say matter of factly that the entire universe is void of life except for our planet.

What would happen to smaller things...would our sci-fi stories and games suddenly stop, would our greater creativity be hobbled? Would we take more or less care of the world(s) we inhabit?

Actually, it might make us more creative...creating new life elsewhere, genetic alterations to create species on various planets...we might become the wandering deities in time, creating new life and new civilizations...simply because we are bored.

And in thinking on those lines...I am suddenly reminded of some stories and such about us being created..perhaps thats the reason...that the universe was void, and so a bored civilization is going around populating the universe with various lifeforms.

if we are one in a one in one billion.

Then mother earth is so precious it would be beyond comprehension.

I heard a quote somewhere.

Imagine if we are not along in the cosmos, now imagine what if we are !

I think with all of the amount of space that is out there, it would be a terrible waste, to say we are the only creatures to have successfully made life, on a planet. I'd be more disturbed to find out for SURE that we are the only ones. Then really what is our purpose, why was life possible, by a couple of freak occurances, that tipped the scale more in favor of a dominent Human world, than a Lizard world (dinosaurs). Truly the hardest and most debated and fought over Question. our origin, and our origins after this realm

To be honest, human's are not alone in the universe: given enough time, any one of the species here on Earth could evolve to match us.

Now there's a story for someone to write.



But, to stay on topic... neither scenario is disturbing. There are billions of life forms here on Earth I will never have to pleasure of meeting so what difference does billions more make?

I have thought about this subject at length and can not seem to get my head around why we Pollute the planet on a mass scale.

Lets say for instance that intelligent life has not been discovered yet so as far as we know we are alone. So why in hell do we pollute the planet so much I just don't get it.

My son asked the other day who my God was and I told him EARTH

Neither is disturbing, both ideas completely fascinate me.

if we are one of a billion civilizations,
we should feel extremely distinguished as human beings to have made it this far,
i'm on a computer.. in a house with heat, air conditioning running on electricity, have a car (my earth rover)..

we are sitting comfortably on a planet in a hostile chaotic universe, how does THAT make any sense?

if we are alone, I would only assume that we are the FIRST life to have evolved but that another will be along shortly.

if not, then we will just begin assembling a massive robot army no doubt to march out into the stars and colonize on our behalf.

reply to post by SaturnFX

Strangely enough I find both thoughts strangely comfortable. As individuals we often turn out to be insignificant and alone. Is it really so bad? The small stuff matters too, even though they are just fleeting moments.

I think sometimes a lot hope for some kind of...direction or great technological jump when regarding aliens. As if they will save us or bestow us with hitherto unknown knowledge and views of "reality". Such as fixing any alleged environmental problems we may have or light speed travel. Just my 2 cents. I would like for all the above and more but "Is that a realistic outcome?" is the question always lurking in my mind.

Pretty much all sci-fi that deals with alien races (star trek, star wars, mass effect, etc) have a small handful of races that play part.
This allows for diversity, but also with it being such low numbers, the significance of humanity is not dismissed...a few dozen different species total for our galaxy, great..nice and diverse, but not overwhelming.

I however would feel differently if it was millions of significantly different advanced races, or even billions...that would in itself make me feel equally alone as a species...

20 different races, some very much like us, some very different, sounds great...any more or less and it becomes depressing.

just my view on it.

But, if it was the extreme (void or billions), I would go with the billions as more comforting. end of the day, life is important, no matter what form it takes.

neither...i don't think we are alone, we just treat other lifeforms like crap...

i was thinking the following:

what if on this planet humans are humans and every other living thing is what it is; fish or bugs and birds and creeping thing.

on the other planets where life is, the things we call lesser lives on this planet are in the place of humans and humans are a lesser life.

and the distance between star systems; therefore, planets is equal to our distance between between other non-human life...it was never intended for us to travel in a physical sense to somewhere else, nor were they.

its not disturbing at all...its comforting to know that ultimately people will either choose to live at peace or be destroyed.

I think that believing we are alone would be more disturbing. If space is as big as we believe it to be, then there is no way that we are the only civilization that is in it. In fact, I would go as far as saying that it is human arrogance that leads us to believe this.

reply to post by SaturnFX


I suppose I should answer your question too... The thought of us being the only civilization would be more disturbing...especially if we were to be wiped out. Then, intelligent life would be over.

Billions of other civ's is scarier simply due to its likely hood. This is like asking "Which is scarier? Having a loaded gun pressed to your head, or unicorns?"

It is statistically impossible for us to be alone in the universe. We live in a vast and edgeless universe, and our galaxy alone has at least 200 billion stars in it, and going with the very pessimistic estimate of one in every 500 million galaxies has a planet able to support life, there are still at least 400 planets able to support life in our galaxy.

We are not alone, it's a concrete fact.

reply to post by michaelbrux


exactly, it is amazing how rare are who make sense

they keep looking at anything being their whole life, no least breath needed from them to make it

i guess its gods crimes, with all those lovely theaters in rhymes and intelligent lyrics humans keep asking for more by doing none

but for the op i will give my sentiment from different angle

between being alone or one of billion i surely find more normal to b alone

we are always at a point alone so it cant b disturbing since it cant be negative in absolute terms

but one of billion i hate it, it is like bugs mass, while it is not normal, billions of individuals is a paradox

whta is funny is how a lot shout that all is one, which bring the animal kingdom figure back

how billions can b a reality?? reality is always freely superior to its freedom seen which makes it quickly more stable constant clarity

anyways, all that is frightening i dont understand why there is nothing normal coming from up how is it worse there then here

Well, neither particularly disturbs me. I consider us being alone less likely than a universe teeming with life. However, with that being said, either way, it's mysterious.

If there is other life out there, which is what I suspect, how did it develop and progress? If we are alone, well, that would be mysterious indeed. Why? Why would we be the only sign of life in a universe that seemingly has no end?

Originally posted by marloin
Billions of other civ's is scarier simply due to its likely hood. This is like asking "Which is scarier? Having a loaded gun pressed to your head, or unicorns?"

It is statistically impossible for us to be alone in the universe. We live in a vast and edgeless universe, and our galaxy alone has at least 200 billion stars in it, and going with the very pessimistic estimate of one in every 500 million galaxies has a planet able to support life, there are still at least 400 planets able to support life in our galaxy.

We are not alone, it's a concrete fact.

edit on 14-5-2012 by marloin because: Typo

I like your optimism

But its not a fact until there is proof
numerical likelyhood is not proof, that is just a hypothesis...a good one, but still, just a hypothesis.

Here is a thought

if we are alone in the universe and do get completely wiped out then the universe never really existed you know a bit like if a sound is made in a wood and nobody hears it did that sound ever happen