08 Aug 10
Originally posted by sonhouseI'm thinking about it. Who would you select?
What do you do? show them Kiss? Segovia, Jordi Savall? Alfred Hitchcock? Mozart? Da Vinci?
How do you present the accomplishments of the human race in the best light, they are trying to figure out if we are worthy of joining the Galactic League.
08 Aug 10
1 edit
Originally posted by badmoonI would try to glean information about the aliens, such as, do they actually hear like we do? Do they use our hearing bands? Like 20 to 20,000 hz. Or maybe they hear like dolphins, 40,000 hz to 300,000 hz. That would kill any chance of us impressing them with music.
I'm thinking about it. Who would you select?
Do they see in our wavelengths? Or maybe they all see only infrared or ultraviolet. That would suck because we couldn't show them much of our art.
Do they talk, vocalize? Maybe they use telepathy or something. That would suck, they couldn't listen to our poetry.
Do they have limbs like ours? Maybe they are giant snakes, unable to run. That would suck, they would have no appreciation for our athletic ability, tennis, basketball, etc.
Do they have some kind of religion? No? Maybe that would give us a chance with our own atheists or agnostics.
Could we understand their math if they have any? If not, there goes another avenue of commonality.
So the question would have to be put to the aliens, how close are you to humans in those kind of terms?
What kind of political system do they use, if any?
Can you think of any other commonality that could link us to them?
Do you begin to see the problem dealing with real aliens?
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08 Aug 10
After several million years of humans watching the night skies and wondering whether we are alone in space, if an alien civilisation did make contact and I was indeed chosen to 'represent', I think it would be a huge laugh to anger and annoy said aliens to the point where they would choose to have no further contact with the human race, ever. Accordingly I would show them a Tom Cruise movie. ANY Tom Cruise movie.
08 Aug 10
1 edit
Originally posted by cromlechSo you have figured out they see in the same wavelengths as us and their vision system can turn a series of flashing images into a recognizable image flow? What if they have to have images flash by at a rate of 1000 frames per second for them to recognize an image as moving?
After several million years of humans watching the night skies and wondering whether we are alone in space, if an alien civilisation did make contact and I was indeed chosen to 'represent', I think it would be a huge laugh to anger and annoy said aliens to the point where they would choose to have no further contact with the human race, ever. Accordingly I would show them a Tom Cruise movie. ANY Tom Cruise movie.
And they hear in our 20 hz to 20 khz range? What if they only hear in megahertz ranges and can't hear anything under 300,000 hertz?
08 Aug 10
Originally posted by sonhouseThen they will enjoy the movies a whole lot more than the rest of us did!
So you have figured out they see in the same wavelengths as us and their vision system can turn a series of flashing images into a recognizable image flow? What if they have to have images flash by at a rate of 1000 frames per second for them to recognize an image as moving?
And they hear in our 20 hz to 20 khz range? What if they only hear in megahertz ranges and can't hear anything under 300,000 hertz?
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09 Aug 10
Originally posted by sonhouseGranted, they may see things differently to the average human, they may hear things differently to the average human, perhaps so differently as to be beyond our collective comprehension, but really, Tom Cruise movies are bad on a universal level.
So you have figured out they see in the same wavelengths as us and their vision system can turn a series of flashing images into a recognizable image flow? What if they have to have images flash by at a rate of 1000 frames per second for them to recognize an image as moving?
And they hear in our 20 hz to 20 khz range? What if they only hear in megahertz ranges and can't hear anything under 300,000 hertz?
23 Aug 10
Originally posted by sonhouseC.J.Cherry's The Pride of Chanur is a good SF book, deals with those topics. the first of five in the series, i think.
I would try to glean information about the aliens, such as, do they actually hear like we do? Do they use our hearing bands? Like 20 to 20,000 hz. Or maybe they hear like dolphins, 40,000 hz to 300,000 hz. That would kill any chance of us impressing them with music.
Do they see in our wavelengths? Or maybe they all see only infrared or ultraviolet. That ...[text shortened]... ality that could link us to them?
Do you begin to see the problem dealing with real aliens?