I did mention in my commentary that this is conjecture and theoretical entertainment...get with the program wiggys...laughing...it's all what if because the statistical probabilities are in favor of there being alien civilizations.

Perhaps they won't talk to us until we "Right" the left...although I doubt the left can be righted...too much weight on one side.

Possibilities since at least one exists that is known of. Probabilities of others would require a sample space of others from which to calculate a probability. Nothing is known such that the probability of others can be calculated. However the probability of at least one civilization in the Universe is 1, unless the Earth is considered not to have civilization, in which case no probability can be calculated for those in the Universe.

Or the multi-verses of those galaxy's being attracted and repelled in what seems to act like an electrical generator. The whole system is like a dipole just like earth is.

When I viewed the video, I didn't see that uniformity but I do speculate that the entire system might be cyclical in nature and we are only seeing half of it. Those galaxy's and universes moving away might be heading to the other side of the great attractor...more at 11:00...laughing.

There is that meme you see on social media when someone says something stupid, or points to some politician saying something even more stupid. It says "And THIS is why the aliens won't talk to us".

The million dollar question...

I agree with you about one thing: the Galaxy (which is what "Milky Way" means) in which we live, is at the center of the universe. All expansion is uniform from the Galaxy.

Everything needed for life, including DNA fragments, rides upon the cosmic winds...chances are they were well received elsewhere as well...but to your interesting point; Did you see this incredible work called Laniakea?: https://youtu.be/rENyyRwxpHo

Seems, from our perspective, the milkyway is in the middle of it all...makes one what to go...hmm.

This is a classic epistemological question: How would we know if alien civilizations existed, if they have ever existed?

Consider this, then: our Solar System is at the "just right" distance from the center of the Galaxy, our Earth is at the "just right" distance from the Sun, the moon is "just the right" size--and the water did not come from outside. (Cometary and asteroidal ices have twice the concentration of deuterium in the oceans of Earth. If cometary bombardment gave us our ocean, what diluted the deuterium? No, Earth had water to begin with.) We should humbly acknowledge that this Earth was d____d lucky to develop or harbor any life at all. Lucky--or set up.

Agreed and that bothered me as well.

I think we should explore the "Possibilities", and the "Probabilities" of extraterrestrial civilizations...if only to keep us humble.

Perhaps the exercise of thinking about other civilizations helps us to figure out where our own civilization could be headed.

Interesting thought on different time scales. Perhaps the vastness of the cosmos, the distances involved, prohibits our sharing the same time scales of other civilizations.

"the answer is out therere!" It seems something once vsiited ancient civilizations ions on Earth. pictures on cave walls of Indian tribes show alien-like beings. An old painting in a museum shows what looks like a space ship far in the background. I know someone whose brother actually works on "reverse technology" at an air base. What if they are among us, hybrids that is? The government has really told us next to nothing, telling their pilots to "keep quiet". I find it odd this professor felt the need to talk about climate change, yet never about meteors. I do agree, we need to feel the oneness with nature and appreciate alone time, lose the tech gadgets sometimes, but I don't think it did much for this article to talk Walden Woods.

So you are thinking that the physical, natural and quantum laws of existence as we understand them and experience them at this point have no relationship or "Meaning" to our own existence?

The mere exercise of thinking about these relationships is what brought about self awareness, self introspection and contemplation of our place within everything we see, experience, explore and wonder about.

Without meaning, we would not create, we would not have the drive to live and to better ourselves and would be forever stuck in an instinctive, reactionary animal like existence.

That's my outlook and the outlook of western civilization anyway.

The Mind, or at least a connection to it, is rare here on earth as well. We can observe that daily.

It also seems that connection is fragile and can be lost, blocked or weakened via a host of purposed and natural circumstances.

Exercising that connection is key and thinking about such things as alien civilizations helps in that regard because we have to introspect our own existence. Viewing self is a key component to connecting to our minds...something the brain alone cannot do.

I don't accept the existence of extraterrestrial civilizations. But if one must grant the premise, let me remind the group: if a civilization lacked sufficient advancement to announce themselves, we wouldn't hear of them in any case.

One sobering thought is that sentient life may develop on different time scales. What that means is that there may have been intelligent civilizations a billion years ago, and we developed too late to share the same time scale. The other alternative is that we might be the fastest-developing sentient life form, and are alone in the universe, for now.

There have been those who say that there are no advanced civilizations because with even simple calculations, they would expand their territory rapidly. In theory, these scientists say, we would already be in contact with these civilizations, if they existed. I contend that comes from an anthropomorphic view, assuming the aliens are like us. Whether from biological, cultural, or philosophic differences, there may be very good reasons why an alien civilization does not expend its reach quickly.

As Earth's human population becomes more affluent, barring a catastrophe, we will reproduce less, and our population will reach a stable point. Will that impede the Star Trek vision of ever-expanding human reach into the cosmos? As we are now finding technologies that promise longer lifespans, and artificial forms of birth, how will that affect our civilization? Trying to make predictions about alien civilizations is ridiculous when we can't even be sure where our civilization is headed.

We can only posit, and as such it's an interesting exercise of the mind. You do believe in exercise, don't you?

I don't think for a second that another civilization would even consider (necessarily) Objectivist values as even a value. From the very beginning, literally, their history would be completely different, and so the growth of their civilization, if they have one...would also be completely different.

I am not sure we would even recognize a different civilization, or the beings that belong to it, as existing, much less be able to "understand" it, even to the smallest extent.

But that mental exercise is what keeps us from getting old. At least, I hope it does, even though I know the inevitable will happen.

My position is that nothing means anything, and I mean that literally.
We (beings, conscious or otherwise) make up meanings to justify our existence and give - yes - meaning to it.
Intrinsically there is no meaning, only "stuff." All that "stuff" has no meaning, except what we create.
We are our own nightmare.

It all comes to the question-could highly advanced civilization develop without freedom of mind? Could it be malicious and opressive? I think not. It requires recognition of individual rights and all Objectivist values and principles . Slaves and slave drivers, blood thirsty barbarians don’t build interstellar ships. They don’t produce. Highly developed civilization should be benevolent to all beings with potential rational capacities including humans. Since emotional response is an outcome of integrated premises, automatic value judgment, every sapient being must have them- as a mechanism of response. And in this case their feeling toward humans should be at least simpatetic. Mind is rare in Universe.

are there alien civilizations? the subject of alien civilizations is theory at this time so how can know something about what does not exist?

The question would be is that alien civilization based on logic or do they similarly have to fight with emotion as well? If they are logical, there's nothing to stop them from taking off as a civilization technologically. And yes, they would be looking down on us and shaking their heads.

If they are emotional, I suspect they would have very much the same problems as we do and aren't any more advanced than we are given a similar timeline length.

Freakin' fantastic, dude!

Yes...you mentioned fantastic 4 and that reminded me of the movie fantastic voyage.