Do aliens exist?

[Kirby101]

A thought I have about intelligent life. There could well be other intelligent life out there. But what type of intelligence? Whales are very intelligent, they construct long songs to communicate. But they have no need for technology. One could imagine a species taking that route, becoming super intelligent, but never needing to develop technology, therefore, no radio transmissions, no space flight.

[seismic-2]

There are an estimated 10 billion Earth like planets in the Milky Way alone.

"Earth-like" covers a wide variety of possibilities, many of which would not permit the development of more than basic life forms. For instance, the presence of large planets close to the sun could likely cause frequent collisions with life-exterminating asteroids. As another example, much of the stability of the earth is due to the presence of its (unusually large) moon, which helps keep the tilt of the earth's axis from varying much. If the axial tilt could vary more strongly, the climate would go through huge swings. Similarly, if the eccentricity of the earth's orbit varied significantly (as it would do if, say, a large planet were close to it), then the earth would go through rapid cycles of being completely frozen and swelteringly hot. Even if there were 10 billions earth-like planets, perhaps only a small fraction of them could sustain life. Incidentally, the most common planets may in fact be Neptune-like rather than earth-like.

[Kirby101]

"Earth-like" covers a wide variety of possibilities, many of which would not permit the development of more than basic life forms. For instance, the presence of large planets close to the sun could likely cause frequent collisions with life-exterminating asteroids. As another example, much of the stability of the earth is due to the presence of its (unusually large) moon, which helps keep the tilt of the earth's axis from varying much. If the axial tilt could vary more strongly, the climate would go through huge swings. Similarly, if the eccentricity of the earth's orbit varied significantly (as it would do if, say, a large planet were close to it), then the earth would go through rapid cycles of being completely frozen and swelteringly hot. Even if there were 10 billions earth-like planets, perhaps only a small fraction of them could sustain life. Incidentally, the most common planets may in fact be Neptune-like rather than earth-like.

True, I guess it's what you would consider as wide spread life. .001% of those planets still mean 1 million planets with life. And we are discovering that life can exist in amazing places, like the volcanic plumes in the oceans and perhaps on a moon of Jupiter or Saturn.

[WillieMorgan]

Of course alien life doesn't exist. For there to be extraterrestrial life then space would have to be a reality. The Earth is flat and outer space is a huge hoax perpetuated by NASA.

Wake up sheeple!!

[DrNewGod]

Statistically? Almost certainly.

Establishing it convincingly? Not until we put a space craft on one of those planets to see.

[Jim Kelly]

No, aliens do not exist.

[Kirby101]

Of course alien life doesn't exist. For there to be extraterrestrial life then space would have to be a reality. The Earth is flat and outer space is a huge hoax perpetuated by NASA.

Wake up sheeple!!

Don't Flatearthers believe the Earth is a disk in space?

[Moon Ronin]

Don't Flatearthers believe the Earth is a disk in space?

Most now seem to think it is a disk with a dome covering it that creates the illusion of an infinite space. What's outside the dome? Don't know but are damn sure it is not what "THEY" tell us it is. Down with the man and his ….. globes!

[WillieMorgan]

Don't Flatearthers believe the Earth is a disk in space?

Their 'beliefs', for want of a better word, are pretty much all over the place. I don't think that a definitive or official cosmology exists in Flat Earth circles and they seem to fall out with each other just as much as they do with 'Globies' (or normal people in other words). Some believe in outer space and others don't. Some believe in an ice wall surrounding their flat plane, others don't. Some believe that the 'erf is totally motionless and others believe that the planet constantly 'rises' up through space (it's one of their, ahem, explanations for what anyone with an IQ over 80 calls gravity).

To properly answer the OP's question, I can certainly believe that life in some form or another exists somewhere out there in this vast universe. That's perfectly plausible for me. Little green men and their flying saucers hiding out in woodlands and waiting to kidnap and brain-probe drunk or stoned 'earthlings' is a completely different thing though. If by some miracle alien life DOES visit Earth one day it will be a much more traumatic experience for humanity than that.

[Celgress]

My uncle told me - "Of course, there is alien life. Everyone knows the Goa'uld built the pyramids. They used their portal technology to move between different solar systems until a secret military branch wiped them all out."

[Joker]

I like to think there is other life out there, but they would be so incomprehensibly alien that no interaction could properly take place.

[Kirby101]

Most now seem to think it is a disk with a dome covering it that creates the illusion of an infinite space. What's outside the dome? Don't know but are damn sure it is not what "THEY" tell us it is. Down with the man and his ….. globes!

Is that what the fool in his rocket a few weeks ago was trying to reach? The "dome"?

[norj]

Don't Flatearthers believe the Earth is a disk in space?

Carried on the backs of four elephants riding a turtle.

[WillieMorgan]

Is that what the fool in his rocket a few weeks ago was trying to reach? The "dome"?

His name was 'Mad' Mike Hughes and yes it was. It's not nice to speak ill of the dead but his foolishness is the inevitable outcome of pseudoscience being so prominently and loudly a part of modern life.

This is what happens when you base your world view on stupid Youtube videos. Will Flat Earthers take stock of this? Will they f--k, they'll just carry on spouting their ludicrous vebiage.

[Kirby101]

Carried on the backs of four elephants riding a turtle.

And after the turtle? Yes I know the answer.