What are your thoughts on life and extraterrestrials?

[jeffthebaker]

Hey all, I've got a bit of an assignment for my uni course. I need to put together a composite of responses from a number of individuals. Would love to get a few responses to the following two questions:

In one or two sentences, define what exactly life is, as clearly and completely as possible:

Do you think there is anything akin to human life somewhere out there?

I should note that this is simply for a homework assignment. None of this information will be published or solicited. The goal is to get 5 responses so would love some help from you all

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[o_e_l_e_o]

Life is anything that actively sustains or furthers its own existence.

Given that humans exist, we can definitively say that the chances of intelligent life arising are non-zero. The Drake Equation tries to estimate the number of intelligent civilizations in our galaxy, but due to the nature of estimating a number of factors, the results range from just us to 1 million or more. Bear in mind that this is our galaxy only, and there are estimated 200 billion more galaxies out there. Given these staggering numbers, I find it hard to believe that we are the only intelligent life in the universe.

On a related note, here is how far our radio signals have traveled in to our galaxy over the last 100 years (click for full size):

[jeffthebaker]

Thank you both for your responses. Am able to finish my homework now

Life is anything that actively sustains or furthers its own existence.

So,  just for fun let's discuss a bit. Would this definition constitute the Bitcoin blockchain as a form of life?

[o_e_l_e_o]

Life is anything that actively sustains or furthers its own existence.

So,  just for fun let's discuss a bit. Would this definition constitute the Bitcoin blockchain as a form of life?

I've been think about it a bit more, and my definition is inadequate, as it would include things like fire as being alive. We would need to add an additional clause about maintaining homeostasis or performing metabolism.

Even without this clause, I don't think a blockchain can be classed as alive, as it needs external input to be sustained or furthered.

[Vod]

It's the same as one ant hill believing they are the only hill that exists, because they can't explore far enough.

We've been transmitting into space for less then one hundred years (radio waves); today we hardly transmit at all (digital).

It would be a godlike stroke of luck to detect radio signals from one tiny point in space for the time they were transmitting.

If the speed of light is indeed the speed limit, we will never meet extraterrestrials out there. 

[o_e_l_e_o]

or just have Darwinian evolution.. like i did

I don't think that's sufficient, though. "An object which can reproduce and has Darwinian evolution" excludes sterile hybrids such as mules, which can't reproduce and therefore can't undergo Darwinian evolution.

If the speed of light is indeed the speed limit, we will never meet extraterrestrials out there. 

True, but since we know Star Wars is a 100% factual documentary, it's only a matter of time before someone invents the hyperdrive.

[Instely]

Life is the ultimate hallucination, it's a dream that hasn't been understood and won't be understood by any human mindframe, theory or logic. It's own nature have a source that can be actually experienced by each one of us, but for that to happen, we must surrend our ego and trascend our minds.
As Tesla once said:
"My brain is only a receiver, in the universe there is a core from which we obtain knowledge, strenght and inspiration, I have not penetrated into the secrets of this core, but I know it exists"

[jeffthebaker]

It's the same as one ant hill believing they are the only hill that exists, because they can't explore far enough.

We've been transmitting into space for less then one hundred years (radio waves); today we hardly transmit at all (digital).

It would be a godlike stroke of luck to detect radio signals from one tiny point in space for the time they were transmitting.

If the speed of light is indeed the speed limit, we will never meet extraterrestrials out there. 

Reminds me of the theory of space life (can't remember the name of it) that uses the analogy of the ant hill and the highway. The ants living next to the highway have absolutely no clue of its existence due to the limit of their perception and observation. The theory suggests that we are the ant hill, and alien civilization is just out of our reach.

IIRC, the theory doesn't hold much water, but I certainly find it as a good food for thought.

[fitraok09]

in this earth was governed by the laws of physics, and that is standard. but there are other laws that make us human beings more alive, i.e:

• fiction
• humor and horror

you can imagine if we are live without fiction and humor nor horror, then the status of our lives will be same as a table or stone that just lies. so fiction has a role to revive humans. humor and horror are make human life more meaningful as well make human life have a vision and mission life.

[OgNasty]

I like the theories outlined in the book Chariots Of The Gods. It’s a quick and thought provoking read.

[Lucasgabd]

Life is a laboratory.

and this is why the ETs don't talk to us:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfGMYdalClU&ab_channel=SteveCutts

The chances are that they're out there, around, somewhere... probably

[Cryptotina]

1: Life is a battlefield and living is war. 2: Personally, yes I do believe there are things out there beyond our understanding. And somethings are better left alone