Does Alien life exist? Sentient?

[Oscar]

The Fermi approach has always been a favorite of mine. Any and all welcome.
I am named for a man of great talent whose De Profundis cemented our understanding of his genius, but only after petty men imprisoned and sickened him to death.

Life is what it is. Do aliens have the same potential problems? Is sentience always sentience? Is individuality necessary?

Happy Saint Patricks.
Deny the Cross. Betray the King.
Laugh, and do your own damn thing. Amen.

[Da Skinna]

They are probably watching us thinking either we are not ready to be shown some universal religious truth, or we're not ready to be shown aliens, or we are just a violent, odd race of ants on some blue planet in the middle of butt-**** nowhere.

Why wouldn't alien life exist?

[Dayman]

No way of knowing, but I think there is something out there. But there also could be nothing. Who knows.

[Haakon]

I think the Drake equation is pretty cool

The Drake Equation was developed by Frank Drake in 1961 as a way to focus on the factors which determine how many intelligent, communicating civilizations there are in our galaxy. The Drake Equation is:
N = N* fp ne fl fi fc fL

The equation can really be looked at as a number of questions:

N* represents the number of stars in the Milky Way Galaxy

Question: How many stars are in the Milky Way Galaxy? Answer: Current estimates are 100 billion.

fp is the fraction of stars that have planets around them

Question: What percentage of stars have planetary systems? Answer: Current estimates range from 20% to 50%.

ne is the number of planets per star that are capable of sustaining life

Question: For each star that does have a planetary system, how many planets are capable of sustaining life? Answer: Current estimates range from 1 to 5.

fl is the fraction of planets in ne where life evolves

Question: On what percentage of the planets that are capable of sustaining life does life actually evolve? Answer: Current estimates range from 100% (where life can evolve it will) down to close to 0%.

fi is the fraction of fl where intelligent life evolves

Question: On the planets where life does evolve, what percentage evolves intelligent life? Answer: Estimates range from 100% (intelligence is such a survival advantage that it will certainly evolve) down to near 0%.

fc is the fraction of fi that communicate

Question: What percentage of intelligent races have the means and the desire to communicate? Answer: 10% to 20%

fL is fraction of the planet's life during which the communicating civilizations live

Question: For each civilization that does communicate, for what fraction of the planet's life does the civilization survive? Answer: This is the toughest of the questions. If we take Earth as an example, the expected lifetime of our Sun and the Earth is roughly 10 billion years. So far we've been communicating with radio waves for less than 100 years. How long will our civilization survive? Will we destroy ourselves in a few years like some predict or will we overcome our problems and survive for millennia? If we were destroyed tomorrow the answer to this question would be 1/100,000,000th. If we survive for 10,000 years the answer will be 1/1,000,000th.

When all of these variables are multiplied together when come up with:

N, the number of communicating civilizations in the galaxy.

The real value of the Drake Equation is not in the answer itself, but the questions that are prompted when attempting to come up with an answer. Obviously there is a tremendous amount of guess work involved when filling in the variables. As we learn more from astronomy, biology, and other sciences, we'll be able to better estimate the answers to the above questions.

[Da Skinna]

Nice to know we actually have them in equations, like we've figured it out this far, even if only in probabilities.

[The Good]

Although I'm mostly under the impression that the Earth is the only inhabited planet (that we know of thus far), I'm open to the possibility of there being another inhabited planet. If there are aliens, then they may most likely look humanoid in appearance.

[Dayman]

If there are aliens, then they may most likely look humanoid in appearance.

Why is that LJ?

And the existence of aliens would really...mess up the whole "Christianity" belief you have going.

[Haakon]

Why is that LJ?

And the existence of aliens would really...mess up the whole "Christianity" belief you have going.

So does quantum mechanics, physics, and just plain common sense. But that never stopped the religiousfrom deluding themselves.

[Dayman]

So does quantum mechanics, physics, and just plain common sense. But that never stopped the religiousfrom deluding themselves.

I'd just like to see what would happen.

The Mass Effect prequel novel touches on what religions do when aliens are discovered, they all try and "retcon" aliens in.

[Haakon]

I'd just like to see what would happen.

The Mass Effect prequel novel touches on what religions do when aliens are discovered, they all try and "retcon" aliens in.

They already did it regarding the earth and its orbit around the sun, babies in limbo and so on. I don't think any event or action will convince a person of faith.

After all, having faith means believing in something that cant be proven, and most often is completely ilogical, irrational and unrealistic.

[Cúchulainn]

If there are aliens, then they may most likely look humanoid in appearance.

How?

There are and have been millions of different species on this planet.

All evolving here and none of them look at all like us.

So how the **** can aliens look even remotely like us.

[Bokks]

I would say, logically, that is there are no alien lifeforms out there, that's a huge waste of space.

... and I am NOT quoting that movie...

[Georgy Zhukov]

How?

There are and have been millions of different species on this planet.

All evolving here and none of them look at all like us.

So how the **** can aliens look even remotely like us.

Well assuming that any alien species evolves on a planet similar to earth and become intelligent, they may at least stand vertically. We as Humans, only developed intelligence once we moved on to two legs. We were able to see better and thus avoid predators, we had two appendages free letting us make tools, and overall we became more fit, this even allowed to break open bones while scavenging and eat the marrow which would power our brains. But this is hypothetical, while it may seem that a earth like climate/environment would be able to sustain life.

Besides that, have you ever considered that we may be the intelligent ones, that once the inevibility that we will colonize space may become a reality, and if we find another sentinent being they may be the ants?

[King Yngvar]

God wouldn't allow the existence of Alien life

How do you know God did not create life on other planets?

[Fingon NL]

How do you know God did not create life on other planets?

Because the bible says so duhuh
/sarcasm

[PointOfViewGun]

Considering billions of galaxies exist in the universe, the chances of us being the only living creatures is sort of 0 to me. If we're the only one then there is only one thing I can say and that is "what a waste!"

[jankren]

All the people who claim to have been abducted by aliens describe them to have big heads. Therefor it means that those aliens must have way bigger brain. That is why it seems we are far behind them in terms of technology.

(This is what my psychology professor said. LOL)

[Ummagumma]

I think there is almost certainly other sentient, intelligent species in the universe. However, I think space and time involve numbers so large as to make it almost infinitely unlikely for any 2 sentient species to ever meet each other.
As for them judging us as barbaric, or them being humanoid or whatever else is a bit curious. How can we begin to place a value system on anything we have never met to guess what would be a promising alien species (meaning us - we'd be the aliens..). War develops technology really well - if we were to meet another species with high technology they could be quite barbaric themselves..
And Humanoid? That really is quite a stretch. We are assuming there that intelligent aliens should be an arboreal species adapted to existence on plains... Besides, I prefer the thought of psychic jellyfish.

[IamthePope]

God wouldn't allow the existence of Alien life

[Dayman]

God wouldn't allow the existence of Alien life

Good to know that God's killing life on other planets too.