This week, a former senior Israeli military official proclaimed that we've been contacted by Aliens from a Galactic Federation - and that not only is our government aware of this, but they are working together.
How naive to think that election news would be the craziest stuff you'd hear this holiday season ...
Back to aliens (for the record, that was a sentence I haven't typed before). There are many stories (or theories) about how we have encountered aliens before and just kept them secret. In contrast, I have found it more realistic and thought-provoking to consider theories about why we haven't seen aliens until now.
For example, the Fermi Paradox considers the apparent contradiction between the lack of evidence for extraterrestrial civilizations and the various high-probability estimates for their existence.
To simplify the issue, there are billions of stars in the Milky Way galaxy (which is only one of many galaxies), which are similar to our Sun. Consequently, there must be some probability of some of them having Earth-like planets. It isn't hard to conceive that some of those planets should be older than ours, and thus some fraction should be more technologically advanced than us. Even if you assume they're only looking at evolutions of our current technologies - interstellar travel isn't absurd.
Thus, based on the law of really large numbers (both in terms of the number of planets and length of time we are talking about) ... it makes the silence all the more deafening and curious.
If you are interested in the topic "Where are all the aliens?" Stephen Webb (who is a particle physicist) tackles that in his book and in this TED Talk.
via TED
In the TED talk, Stephen Webb covers a couple of key factors necessary for communicative space-faring life.
- Habitability and stability of their planet
- Building blocks of life
- Technological advancement
- Socialness/Communication technologies
But he also acknowledges the numerous confounding variables including things like imperialism, war, bioterrorism, fear, moons' effect on climate, etc.
Essentially, his thesis is that there are numerous roadblocks to intelligent life - and it's entirely possible we are the only planet that has gotten past those roadblocks.
What do you think?
Here are some other links I liked on this topic. There is some interesting stuff you don't have to be a rocket scientist to understand or enjoy.
- 75 Reasons We Don't See Aliens
- Wait But Why: The Fermi Paradox
- A New Theory on Why We Haven't Found Aliens Yet
- A List of Solutions to The Fermi Paradox
- Dissolving the Fermi Paradox, Future of Humanity Institute, Oxford University
To Infinity and Beyond!
Let's Play: News Segment or Propaganda Piece?
The original,, from The Outer Limits TV show was:
As a society, we're fairly vulnerable to groupthink, advertisements, and confirmation bias.
We believe what we want to believe, so it can be very hard to change a belief, even in the face of contrary evidence.
Recently, we've seen a massive uptick in distrust toward news agencies, big companies, the government, and basically anyone with a particularly large reach.
To a certain degree, this is understandable and justified. Here is an example of the power of the media focused on a message. Click to watch.
via Courier News
Propaganda has always been an issue, and almost everyone does it; governments, companies, etc. Luckily, it's easier to see today than in the past, but unluckily it's also more pervasive and insidious than before.
It's to the point where if you watch the news you're misinformed, and if you don't watch the news you're uninformed.
The above segment portrays a rosy picture of Amazon's efforts to protect its workers while delivering essentials to the struggling homebound masses. This comes while Amazon has come under massive fire for removing some of its protections.
Honestly, I use Amazon and, in my opinion, this isn't a massive breach of trust. News stations have a lot of time to fill, they often have sponsored content.
That being said, it's something to be cognizant of - not necessarily offended by.
Personally, I believe I am reasonably aware and somewhat immune from propaganda. That probably isn't as true as I'd like to believe.
It used to be true that winners wrote history (think empires, wars, etc.). Now, the one that delivers the most broadcast narratives shapes the emotional and seemingly logical responses to what we perceive to be happening around us.
The result impacts elections, financial markets, buying choices, and countless other areas of our life.
As A.I., Bots, and social media grow, our ability to discern truth from 'truthiness' weakens.
It's a great reminder that what you're seeing and hearing is carefully manufactured, and hopefully, it encourages you to get outside your bubble.
Posted at 04:59 PM in Books, Business, Current Affairs, Film, Gadgets, Healthy Lifestyle, Ideas, Market Commentary, Science, Television, Trading, Trading Tools, Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (0)
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