SETI; worth our taxes?

Is SETI (The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) worth our taxes? I think their mission is definitely worthwhile. Imagine the impact it would have on the world if we tuned in to some faraway system and heard


Meesa Jar Jar Binks

OK, bad example. But seriously, it's very difficult to think of things on the cosmic scale with our non-cosmic sized minds. The chances of finding intelligent life on any particular planet are absolutely minuscule, pretty much zero. However, there are so many planets and systems to examine, that it just might be possible to detect something if we look in enough places.

There may not be a pay off in the next five or ten years, but we may find some signs of civilization in the next century. Even then, the impact will be more philosophical than practical. Communicating across the cosmos with the laws of Physics that we know of today is very inefficient and useless.

I won't go into all the gory details of how SETI tries to detect civilizations, but you can read all about it (Wikify!). Basically, they scan the skies for radio signals, like the ones we emit from TV's, radios, phones, etc. How do they know the aliens don't communicate using something we don't know how to use yet (elementary particles, qubits, donuts)


Incentive for alien invasion: donut shortages?

In conclusion, I think it's pretty arrogant of us to assume we could detect an advanced civilization but I'd give up one penny per paycheck to support any efforts.

Also, there is a really wacko philosophical idea that's pretty fun to think about and that I think everyone should check out that pertains to E.T. and our relations to him. It's called the Zoo Hypothesis (Wikify!) and I think I will dedicate a full post to it and other explanations for the Fermi Paradox in the near future.

And, finally, I leave you with this gem: