Are We Sure We Are Looking For The Right Thing In The Right Place?

We should always question and doubt our assumptions

a couple of aliens look for signs of intelligence life in the universe, futuristic digital art — by DALL·E

In my early days as a guitar player, I remember an anecdote that still haunts me. I was tuning my instrument rather absent-mindedly, apparently achieving no success, becoming increasingly, if almost distractedly, frustrated by my lack of progress when a sudden, tearing twang announced the explosion of the string. Like an idiot, I woke from my reverie and realised I had been turning the wrong tuning peg. I would have never dreamt of being so open about my stupidity back then. Perhaps if we were more open about our shortcomings, we wouldn’t be fools for so long.

For a long time, many have argued that the lack of contact with alien intelligence hints at the possibility that we may be alone in the universe. Yet, scientists couldn’t be clearer about the fact we have only explored an infinitesimal portion of the known universe. Moreover, most will agree that any advanced civilisation would look for signs of intelligent life — such as radio waves — when scanning the stars from dozens to millions of light years away. Humans have only been emitting such signs for under a hundred years! What if someone looked in our direction before or hasn’t had the time to check on us yet? More possibilities: what if that civilisation no longer…