posted on Jul, 31 2015 @ 10:05 PM
The content of the message is likely to be the least important aspect of it in the eyes of an alien recipient.
The first thing they're going to notice is the medium. They're likely to either read or circular file our application for membership in the Federation
right there based on whether it's written on paper or quantum-transmitted faster than light. The first thing they will know about us is that whoever
we are and whatever we want, it involves _____ (encoding a certain density of data into a certain modulation of a certain kind of power from a certain
place either in a certain direction or in all directions, or hurling metal plaques into space, or teleporting chimpanzees with helmet cams across the
known universe in a stargate or whatever it is we end up doing).
Beyond that, assuming the likelihood that the species receiving communication from us is more advanced and more experienced in contact, whatever
content we put into message is likely to be evaluated on a comparative basis with past experience and higher understanding of biological and
technological evolution. What we mean to say might not mean nearly as much as who else we sound like to them.
Let's suppose that we put the message on a chemical rocket on a trajectory that passes through as many star systems as possible in the shortest amount
of time, and the rocket broadcasts the message in all directions on all frequencies just saturating all compatible communications infrastructure with
our message everywhere it goes...
That might be seen as a presumptuous and invasive, potentially dangerous method of contact. Or on the other hand we might be the only nuclear age
species they ever met who didn't send a nuclear powered rocket cruising through their star system, and they might judge us well based on that
alone.
And at long last when we get down to the message, I think it's fair to assume that other intelligent species are capable of asking "why". We are,
ultimately, ASKING for something, and I think we have to admit that to ourselves before we can craft a message. What exactly do we want out of
contact? Is this a silly ritual we expect to come to nothing? Are we so lonely that we are just walking into the middle of a crowded room shouting
look at me as if there's no such thing as bad attention? I'm sure the answer is that we want to learn and understand and nice words like that... again
why?
Cause we love math so much? Or because we hope we can use it to get do new things that will solve specific problems.
Frankly the only message that makes sense right now is a cry for help. Our message should somehow mathematically demonstrate the nature of the threats
to our survival and the questions we have that would help us overcome them. It puts us in context and suggests a basis for relations- it says we're
still mired in our problems down here, we understand where we want to go and what we have to do but we're not there- if you wanna help, please, if you
wanna trade, you know our price, if you want our planet, you probably won't have to do anything to us to get it eventually.