Stephen Hawking: Alien life is out there, but it will be primitive

Mr.Hawking is quite an intelligent man, but to say that life would be primitive is going to far. Fact is we don't know and most likely wont in my life time. If we did find intelligent life, it better not be like us or we're going to be in real trouble.

Oh Stephen, why are you so cool? I loved this quote:

"Primitive life is very common and intelligent life is fairly rare," he then quickly added: "Some would say it has yet to occur on earth."

More from Stephen here:

"We live in a society that is increasingly governed by science and technology," Hawking said. "Yet fewer and fewer people want to go into science."

Sending astronauts back to the moon, establishing a lunar base with a clear target of going on to Mars would do much to restore the public's support for spaceflight, he added.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/space/20080422/sc_spa...

Yes, I say. Let's make it so.

Here is an in-depth article on the lecture that also includes a photo of Stephen experiencing zero gravity aboard a modified Boeing 727:

http://space.newscientist.com/article/dn13748...

Here is a great photo from the lecture:

http://www.breitbart.com/image.php...

By the way, Professor Hawking and his daughter, Lucy, have published a children's book called George's Secret Key To The Universe:

http://www.georgessecretkey.com/

I feel humans are very unlikely to actually visit any planet with living beings. The nearest star(s) seems to be a triplet, Proxima Centauri, Alpha Centauri A and Alpha Centauri B. It (they) is (are) about 4-4.5 light years away and highly unlikely to have planets—certainly none at all similar to earth.

There are only 43 stars within 15 light year and only one of them, TAU Ceti 11.8 light years away appears to have planets.

See: http://www.cosmobrain.com/cosmobrain/res/near...

Einstein’s theory holds that it would take an infinite amount of energy for matter to travel at the speed of light so, unless travel in a manner completely unknown of is possible, it would take MUCH longer than 30 years to reach even these “nearby” stars (the traveler’s would have to “speed up” and “slow down” twice, once going, again coming back. They would have to live much longer lives than we do today!

Perhaps exploration of the more distant stars (say up to 50 light years away) could be by machines with artificial intelligence, more resistant to acceleration and deceleration and with longer “lifetimes” than humans but this, too, is “pie in the sky” now.

Even searching for electromagnetic radiation from far distant planets is questionable—it left them as much as 13 or 14 million years ago!

IF we have been investigated by those from another world I suspect there no aliens IN the “flying saucers” but they themselves are the aliens, machines with artificial intelligence.

Isa 61:1 ¶ The Spirit of the Lord GOD [is] upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to [them that are] bound;

Isa 61:2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;

Isa 61:3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.

Isa 61:4 ¶ And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations.

Isa 61:5 And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien [shall be] your plowmen and your vinedressers.

Isa 61:6 But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD:[men] shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.

Isa 61:7 For your shame [ye shall have] double; and [for] confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them.

Isa 61:8 For I the LORD love judgment, I hate robbery for burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.

Isa 61:9 And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they [are] the seed [which] the LORD hath blessed.

Isa 61:10 ¶ I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh [himself] with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth [herself] with her jewels.

Isa 61:11 For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.

Guess Who wrote:

Isa 61:1 ¶ The Spirit of the Lord GOD [is] upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to [them that are] bound;
Isa 61:2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;
Isa 61:3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
Isa 61:4 ¶ And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations.
Isa 61:5 And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien [shall be] your plowmen and your vinedressers.
Isa 61:6 But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD:[men] shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.
Isa 61:7 For your shame [ye shall have] double; and [for] confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them.
Isa 61:8 For I the LORD love judgment, I hate robbery for burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.
Isa 61:9 And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they [are] the seed [which] the LORD hath blessed.
Isa 61:10 ¶ I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh [himself] with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth [herself] with her jewels.
Isa 61:11 For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.

why don't you people go preach in the ghetto. it may sooth your flaming desire for converting everyone to idiosy. this post is about SCIENCE not that crap.

As much as I enjoy the biblical spoutings (sarcasmmmmmm), I would appreciate some intelligent conversation instead of lines from a book thank you....

That being said, honestly, who knows what's out there. Fact is if we ever make first contact with anything intelligent, the fact that they were able to travel to us this far means that their technology is thousands of years beyond our own. Do I think this is probable in my lifetime? Absolutely not.

Christopher Columbus has my support!

that would be congress , crude alien life forms ,,

TrilbyKat wrote:

Oh Stephen, why are you so cool? I loved this quote:
"Primitive life is very common and intelligent life is fairly rare," he then quickly added: "Some would say it has yet to occur on earth."

I like this quote, too. Smart and funny. ;)
BTW... my opinion is that there IS intelligent life in space.

---
DeeJay
http://deejay.blog.hr

Skeptic wrote:

I feel humans are very unlikely to actually visit any planet with living beings. The nearest star(s) seems to be a triplet, Proxima Centauri, Alpha Centauri A and Alpha Centauri B. It (they) is (are) about 4-4.5 light years away and highly unlikely to have planets—certainly none at all similar to earth.
There are only 43 stars within 15 light year and only one of them, TAU Ceti 11.8 light years away appears to have planets.
See: http://www.cosmobrain.com/cosmobrain/res/near...
Einstein’s theory holds that it would take an infinite amount of energy for matter to travel at the speed of light so, unless travel in a manner completely unknown of is possible, it would take MUCH longer than 30 years to reach even these “nearby” stars (the traveler’s would have to “speed up” and “slow down” twice, once going, again coming back. They would have to live much longer lives than we do today!
Perhaps exploration of the more distant stars (say up to 50 light years away) could be by machines with artificial intelligence, more resistant to acceleration and deceleration and with longer “lifetimes” than humans but this, too, is “pie in the sky” now.
Even searching for electromagnetic radiation from far distant planets is questionable—it left them as much as 13 or 14 million years ago!
IF we have been investigated by those from another world I suspect there no aliens IN the “flying saucers” but they themselves are the aliens, machines with artificial intelligence.

Seeing that your screen name is Skeptic, I also see it in your writing. Viewing things in special contexts can do wonders for discovery. Relativity also states that a person's movement inside the universe can be also viewed as the universe moving past that person. That could mean moving the universe past us may bring all of those inhabitable planets our way. Too many folks zero in on the limitations but what we need are more folks who look for the opportunities.

Ed Teach wrote:

Mr.Hawking is quite an intelligent man, but to say that life would be primitive is going to far. Fact is we don't know and most likely wont in my life time. If we did find intelligent life, it better not be like us or we're going to be in real trouble.

I agree. As much as I admire the guy, some of the statements he made disappointed me. But, hey, pick any famous scientist, musician, politician, religious leader, etc. and read their works deeply. You are sure to find something askew and eye-opening.

He was simply speculating and my opinion is that he speculated wrong.

How arrogant it is to believe that out of all the billions of planets out there, we are the only ones with INTELLIGENT life. I believe almost any planet in the solar system will be more advanced than this one. Especially with all the racism, prejudice, and the lack of care for the environment, animals, and other human beings. Humans constantly limit themselves with thier own personal limitations.

i believe that some of the planets talked about as myths and legends are actual planets. Planets that I know about (vagely) Krynn, Pledias, Sandross, Zimitaur 4, Teskeron4, Nibiru, Alagaesia, all have intelligent life more advanced than this craphole of a planet does.

The bottom line is, we don't really know. If we want to know, I see 2 choices:

a. build a self-sustaining spaceship and plan on making a multi-century journey, or

b. invest some of our youth into researching faster-than-light travel.

I agree with the post that asked how can we be so arrogent to think that we're the only intelligent life. Intelligent by who's standards? Ours? Ha. Any alien reading these forums would die laughing, especially at the religious fanatics.

sometime ago I sent dr.hawkins a letter explaining that he was at great risk not wearing the anti-alien mind control aluminum foil head wrap,I see now that it is too late. the article stated his quote,'one option is that there likely is'nt life elsewhere,...or maybe there is intelligent life elsewhere'????? I decided to consult an academic equal on this subject,'mother'who holds a g.e.d.from the brooklyn women's house of detention,a certicate in lawnmower care and repair,and part time psychic advisor.I asked about infections from aliens,she said,the goverment needs to open ellis island again.then I asked the big one 'are we alone'she answered,'of course not honey,we have each other,.feeling much better,I suggested that tonights bedtime story should be the childrens book the dr.and his daughter wrote,'geoges secret key to the universe' mother smiled and said,honey I got a whole drawer full of old keys,I just don't know what locks they go to.I stood in admiration of mother,sharing the same academic view on this subject with one of the most brilliant minds of our time,oprah.

What happened when Jesus exhaled?

in retrospect Mr.Hawkins is a fine mind and great scholar...but on this i think he missed the mark..and i sensed he was being humoruos..that question will always be just that a question..until..the day we either find the way to them or they to us......and say hello. we can only hope they are friendly? as the same if we were to visit them..the meeting of another race from out there will always facinate and bring to the amagination all kinds of emotion..

i would like to see it in my life time as i'm sure others would too..the chance would be ..well cool..as long as the bible thumpers keep there mouths shut..the meeting would do well..

Skeptic wrote:

I feel humans are very unlikely to actually visit any planet with living beings. The nearest star(s) seems to be a triplet, Proxima Centauri, Alpha Centauri A and Alpha Centauri B. It (they) is (are) about 4-4.5 light years away and highly unlikely to have planets—certainly none at all similar to earth.
There are only 43 stars within 15 light year and only one of them, TAU Ceti 11.8 light years away appears to have planets.
See: http://www.cosmobrain.com/cosmobrain/res/near...
Einstein’s theory holds that it would take an infinite amount of energy for matter to travel at the speed of light so, unless travel in a manner completely unknown of is possible, it would take MUCH longer than 30 years to reach even these “nearby” stars (the traveler’s would have to “speed up” and “slow down” twice, once going, again coming back. They would have to live much longer lives than we do today!
Perhaps exploration of the more distant stars (say up to 50 light years away) could be by machines with artificial intelligence, more resistant to acceleration and deceleration and with longer “lifetimes” than humans but this, too, is “pie in the sky” now.
Even searching for electromagnetic radiation from far distant planets is questionable—it left them as much as 13 or 14 million years ago!
IF we have been investigated by those from another world I suspect there no aliens IN the “flying saucers” but they themselves are the aliens, machines with artificial intelligence.

I guess we'll have to learn about wormholes, stargates and time distortion to further our space travel plans. But maybe it all hinges on the explanation of dark matter. I have seen ufo's, they do exist.I'm thinking that there could actually be hyper-intelligent life out there, but they don't want to contact us for obvious reasons, those being greed, lust for power,immoral problems built into the human fabric.Or maybe we just disgust them, like we would view a toilet bowl full of excrement.

Guess Who wrote:

Isa 61:1 ¶ The Spirit of the Lord GOD [is] upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to [them that are] bound;
Isa 61:2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;
Isa 61:3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
Isa 61:4 ¶ And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations.
Isa 61:5 And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien [shall be] your plowmen and your vinedressers.
Isa 61:6 But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD:[men] shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.
Isa 61:7 For your shame [ye shall have] double; and [for] confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them.
Isa 61:8 For I the LORD love judgment, I hate robbery for burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.
Isa 61:9 And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they [are] the seed [which] the LORD hath blessed.
Isa 61:10 ¶ I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh [himself] with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth [herself] with her jewels.
Isa 61:11 For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.

Did the 'aliens' forget to take the probe out??

Stars with Planets will wobble, from gravitational
pull(as shown by time lapse photos).there are many out there, and any one might support life.
just because we can't get there in a timely
manner does'nt mean they can't exist..
maybe we're the primitives.