UN to appoint space ambassador to greet alien visitors

[Turborama]

Source: Telegraph (UK)

A space ambassador could be appointed by the United Nations to act as the first point of contact for aliens trying to communicate with Earth.

By Heidi Blake -
Published: 11:30AM BST Sep 26 2010 -

Mazlan Othman, a Malaysian astrophysicist, expects to be tasked with co-ordinating humanity’s response if and when extraterrestrials make contact.

Aliens who landed on earth and asked: “Take me to your leader” would be directed to Mrs Othman. She will set out the details of her proposed new role at a Royal Society conference in Buckinghamshire next week. The 58-year-old is expected to tell delegates that the proposal has been prompted by the recent discovery of hundreds of planets orbiting other stars, which is thought to make the discovery of extraterrestrial life more probable than ever before.

Mrs Othman is currently head of the UN’s Office for Outer Space Affairs (Unoosa).

In a recent talk to fellow scientists, she said: “The continued search for extraterrestrial communication, by several entities, sustains the hope that some day human kind will received signals from extraterrestrials. “When we do, we should have in place a coordinated r4sponse that takes into account all the sensitivities related to the subject. The UN is a ready-made mechanism for such coordination.”

Read more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/space/8025832/UN-to-appoint-space-ambassador-to-greet-alien-visitors.html

---

Interesting fact later on in the article; UN members agreed in a 1967 Outer Space Treaty "to protect Earth against contamination by alien species by “sterilising” them".

[RandomThoughts]

1. So you are trying to say

that a UN treaty claimed that it would sterilize aliens, when any alien race would be more tech advanced if it got here.

That kind of post, if true, could only come from a delusion or a metaphor, for 'different groups' and some actually do think they are aliens.

Really long story on that delusion and has some fascinating sub delusions.

[Turborama]

2. I'm just pointing out something that's said later on in the article. I agree with you...

...they must have been really delusional in the 1960s to think they had the capability to sterilize a much more intelligent/technologically advanced species that managed to find its way here.

Fortunately for us "Mrs Othman is understood to support a more tolerant approach", though. LOL

[RandomThoughts]

4. If it actually said that.

It would probably be from the people thinking 'they themselves are aliens' Or as a metaphor for racism or culturalism.

There is a delusion that tells people they are aliens. It is standard breaking of empathy and superiority complex delusion, although does not have despair component, so usually only used on people in position where superiority complex can harm other people.

[My Good Babushka]

12. Here's wiki's entry for "Outer Space Treaty"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outer_Space_Treaty

No mention of aliens, though, sterile or otherwise.

[Posteritatis]

45. Yeah, it's an incredibly broken spin of Article IX. (nt)

[Hissyspit]

3. I saw that episode:

[lumberjack_jeff]

22. When Mars Attacks, I want Slim Whitman as ambassador. n/t

[Paper Roses]

5. I don't know whether I should laugh or not as I read this.

Any self-respecting extraterrestrial would and should give this planet a wide berth. These beings would be so advanced that looking at our planet would be a sad spectacle for them. Who would want to face us? I'm sure the first thing we would do is arm the world and try to blow this being to kingdom come, that is if they didn't wipe us out us in self defense.

As an aside, How much is this woman going to be paid for this job? Since we don't know if and when anyone will visit us from another galaxy, she might have a cushy lifetime job.

Does anyone really think this is a good idea? I think it is foolish.

No-one would be able to converse with these beings, they would certainly be a lot smarter than any of us.

Note to aliens, do yourself a favor, go find some other inhabited planet where people are not so war-crazy, self centered and inconsiderate. You don't need our headaches.

This idea ranks right up there with some of the other government stupid wastes of money.

Just my opinion folks. I do believe there are other civilizations out there and I'm not afraid of them. It is the residents of planet Earth that make me shiver in my boots.

[exboyfil]

13. Actually they may want to throttle us in our crib

before we can endanger them. Classic book on the subject is "Forge of God". As weird as this sounds, scientists such as Davies (author of "The Eerie Silence") have given thought to it. It is better to think about it now than when it actually happens.

Chances of it happening seem to be quite low though. Read "The Eerie Silence" for the reasons. Another book "The Inverted Bowl" looks at it from a different angle. Davies thinks that the famous Drake equation has at least one term near zero and possibly two. He does not think we have seen necessarily any self organizing principle that would lead to the emergence of life. Also the length of time between single cell life and multicellular life was so long that it may be a freak occurrence. Also why should multicellular life eventually occupy a sentient niche? The dinosaurs were around a very long time and never achieved any sort of leap forward like hominids.

We should definitely keep looking but expand how we look beyond readio signals. We should look for shadow life in our own biosphere (single cell without a common ancestor to us) and those planets/moons with possibilities. We should look for things like Dyson spheres or evidence of high level energy use (think propulsion) by aliens.

We can readily project our technology forward such that we could produce replicating machines and send them forth for exploration. Much simpler than sending entire human beings. We have not seen any sort of evidence of this happening though.

[lunatica]

25. If it has happened here it has and will happen elsewhere in the Cosmos

I find it's probably smarter to stop thinking of ourselves as being a unique laboratory for life in the Cosmos. If it happens here it happens everywhere. We have yet to discover laws of nature or physics or biology or chemistry that we don't believe are universal. We're not special in that regard, and probably not special in any other regard.

[exboyfil]

32. I am a Saganite

grew up believing that life is ubiquitious and probably sentient life. Davies is using reasoning to throw some cold water on that belief. Davies is not arguing that we are special, but he is making a bottom up case why we may be the only based upon everything we currently understand about the formation of life. If anything Sagan used a top down approach which requires more faith. Because we are here that means others must be here (self organizing principle in the universe) but that is a real logical fallacy in argument. Second level is probability states that since we are here and we have so many opportunities in the galaxy for a repeat of our complex life experiment, it only makes sense that other complex life exists. That immediately requires looking at the mechanisms for complex life to occur and what could stop it from occurring. Your back to how many monkeys can type a Shakespearian sonnet.

Some additional points:

1. We probably need a third generation star for single cell life and especially multicellular life (need the heavy elements to form the chemistry necessary for life - you can only do so much with Hydrogen, Lithium etc.) - this compresses the time frame for multicellular life to have occurred.

2. We thought our solar system, which is ideal for the formation of complex life, is typical of other solar systems. The extrasolar planets which we have found to this point challenges that assumption. We have a selection bias in finding these extrasolar planets (big ones close in), but the number found to this point leads us to believe that our solar system formation is not that typical. This is important because scientists believe that Jupiter is a great vacuum cleaner reducing the number of extinction events from comet/meteor impact.

3. We have gone through several keyhole events as as species, and it was a near thing to actually reach this point.

4. Given the time already spent (well over half of the useful time for Earth around the sun) we have only emerged as a technological species in the last 100,000 years. Maybe we are late bloomers, or maybe we are typical??? Who knows.

5. As Fermi asked, where are they???

6. Lots of really dangerous stuff in the galaxy especially as you get into more densely packed stars. Maybe technological life needs a rural environment to develop. Curren theory is that we go through a really bad 30 million year cycle as we drift above and below the galatic plane.

7. 98% of all species are no longer around.

[lunatica]

33. And another theory is life actually came to the planet on meteors

So in an infinite universe how many times do you think that alone can happen? If there is life there is probably an infinite manifestation of life in myriad forms. Through sheer mathematical averaging we can't be the only planet teaming with life in abundance and diversity. What that life looks like is something we may find out. But if our own planet is any indicator, life can look like just about anything anyone can imagine.

[exboyfil]

36. The universe is not infinite in either space or time

and the question, as far as SETI and Contact is concerned, is what is a relevant distance and how much time. At the first cut it is within our own galaxy, and the time frame is from the Big Bang/galatic formation (13.7B years ago). There are reasons to think that neither 1st nor 2nd generation stars would support life (especially not multicellular) which condenses the available time frame down considerably. It may be that we are near the first. We do have 100B stars in the galaxy but a majority of them are of the older 2nd generation type.

After formation of earth we used up nearly 3 billion years before multicellular life evolved. Another almost 2 billion years was taken up getting a life form to a intellectual/technological level to ask these questions and go looking for the answers.

I am still looking for the age on the oldest 3rd generation stars in the galaxy. I think that is a pretty important number.

[Hissyspit]

39. Strongest argument: "Where are they?"

Extremely good chance that conscious cognitive life (and, yes, I know that is very open to definition), in other words, us, is a complete fluke.

[CoffeeCat]

18. The kind of thinking in the OP...

...also assumes that certain elites on this planet will determine with whom the aliens will converse.

"Take me to your leader." Oh please.

If they're advanced enough to find us, they might not want to talk to us. After seeing how
we live and how we're devolving by the minute, I doubt they would have as high regard for
our "leaders" as they do of themselves.

Why waste a few nanoseconds of travel time to have a meeting with the 'king of the dipshits'? :rofl:

[LARED]

6. What a waste of money, Everyone knows aliens

are already here. And have us under quarantine.

http://io9.com/5040784/is-the-earth-quarantined

[Cronus Protagonist]

7. Yay!!

"Spaceship Landing"

[no_hypocrisy]

8. Who's the contingent ambassador if she's vaporized?

[billlll]

10. noorie sold out - endorsed GOP paul twice

Very at odds with prior mood of his show for years.

Paul the elder...what's his name.

Guest kath. Austin Fitz, ditto.

[ixion]

9. My, we certainly do think highly of ourselves, don't we?

Our species, who is still burning fossil fuel for it's primary energy source.

Our species, who still clings to fairy-tales from long ago.

Out species, who can't even get out of the solar system


If extraterrestrials do come this way, whatever science we have will be pretty much null and void, and they will most definitely view us as a hostile, primitive species, and thus take appropriate precautions.

[My Good Babushka]

11. I can't see why they didn't go with John Bolton

[dave29]

15. 'stache itself is an alien

on that one.... biding it's time..... biding it's time

[Vidar]

46. LOL. Well, that made me spit up and take notice. Luckily, the shirt wasn't clean.

[Scruffy1]

14. Should have picked Lieberman

That would scare anyone away.

[yurbud]

17. ''these earthlings are such sanctimonious mopes, they can't be worth conquering...''

"Let's get the hell out of here before we become like him!''

[wuvuj]

16. As a representative of the IGC....

...(InterGlacticCouncil) I was specifically instructed to avoid over involvement with humans. Humans are considered an "unstable population". They are expected to experience a die off "soon". There is some discussion of how to handle this inevitability...as in how to partially preserve the earth's biosphere and other species so the planet is still inhabitable after the die off. You will not believe this and are not expected to.

[Rozlee]

29. Get over yourself, Rep. for the IGC

I'm a representative from the Galatic Order of Nose Pickers from Ultran IV. We've been hanging here to check out the snots from the Republican Party to see if we can take one them back with us to be our Imperial Leader of the Wet Willies. We're leaning toward Sarah Palin or Mitch McConnell.

[wuvuj]

43. The IGC would likely fully approve of this....

...in order to get them away from the earth...but nose picking in public is always frowned upon. Some species involved in the IGC have very large noses....could get messy.

[yurbud]

19. Declassified docs show Churchill & Eisenhower agreed to cover up UFO evidence

to keep people from wetting their pants:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1299994/Churchill-Eisenhower-agreed-cover-UFO-encounter-WWII.html

[struggle4progress]

20. United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs

The United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) is the United Nations office responsible for promoting international cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space ... Through the United Nations Programme on Space Applications, UNOOSA conducts international workshops, training courses and pilot projects on topics that include remote sensing, satellite navigation, satellite meteorology, tele-education and basic space sciences for the benefit of developing nations. It also maintains a 24-hour hotline as the United Nations focal point for satellite imagery requests during disasters and manages the United Nations Platform for Space-based Information for Disaster Management and Emergency Response (UN-SPIDER) ... http://www.oosa.unvienna.org/

The Telegraph should blow it out of its nose, whatever it is it has

[Demeter]

48. Outer Space Affairs? Sign Me Up!

[earcandle]

21. Kinda backs up Kucinich and his statements about UFO's etc, doesn't it.

(giggles) I am an alien, take me to your leader... who?  your
leader?  uh.. we don't really have any, anymore.
Perhaps Mrs. Othman can help?  At Unoosa?  She is now in
charge of aliens.  Her number?  Do you have phones? 

[felix_numinous]

23. Good to have a procedure in place, just in case

because, you know, utter chaos and panic would be so humiliating--wouldn't it?

[lunatica]

24. Well, if any of the UFO sightings and abductions are true

It's way too late for that. I've never heard of a single sighting where witnesses claim the aliens asked to see our leaders. Wouldn't ya think it would be an easy google for aliens to find out who all the leaders are?

Just saying...

[Desertrose]

26. Maybe they wat to be ready for DISCLOSURE....

....just sayin.....

[Safetykitten]

27. Pick a tasty one. We want to make a good impression.

[MilesColtrane]

28. UN members and their scientific consultants were probably concerned with...

a returning probe or astronaut unwittingly unleashing an alien virus or other microbe on the Earth.

The equivalent of interplanetary kudzu would be a disaster if it was allowed to flourish in an environment with no checks on its growth.

I don't think they were thinking of wasting Glaxx from Zamacron IV if he showed up.

[Demeter]

49. Like the GOP Tea-Party Invasion, you mean?

Too late to prevent that.

[PfcHammer]

30. All your bases are belong to us

:)

[Towlie]

31. I wonder how she'll explain all of the contradictory religions.

Hopefully, as a scientist she's part of the 0.9% of the Malaysian population who find them all equally worthless.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysia

The Malaysian constitution guarantees religious freedom, although Islam is the largest and official religion of Malaysia. According to the Population and Housing Census 2000 figures, approximately 60.4% of the population practiced Islam; 19.2% Buddhism; 9.1% Christianity; 6.3% Hinduism; and 2.6% practice Confucianism, Taoism and other traditional Chinese religions. The remainder was accounted for by other faiths, including animism, folk religion, and Sikhism while 0.9% either reported having no religion or did not provide any information.

[valerief]

34. Where do we get the special sunglasses?

:rofl:

[PfcHammer]

35. What is a good covered dish to serve?

Prolly uranium or some other hot fissionable material.

[boppers]

37. "Leader".

Yeah, because all advanced civilizations are based on hierarchy.

:eyes:

[Synicus Maximus]

38. They are all ready here and they are our masters. I have two living

with me. They control us with all that purring.

[skoalyman]

40. lets make this man space ambassador

[opihimoimoi]

41. and How we gonna explain our fucked up Planet??? Our WARS? Our degradation of the environs?

[Honeyporter735]

42. more crap from the U.N. n/t

[Posteritatis]

44. And why not?

Also, the article's claim about the Outer Space Treaty is an impressively ridiculous interpretation of the thing.

[Demeter]

47. "I am Nomad....Sterilize!"