to monopolize this knowledge. The temptation to patent and then monopolize would be very strong among those with access to information from advanced ETs. This would be highly probable if the information was relevant to military or commercial interests. One obvious drawback to ETI communication is the risk of exploitation by cults and commercial interests. It might also be noted how leaders of UFO cults monopolize and then manipulate the alleged information from ETI in their own interests. There are already very powerful forces on Earth with a determination to control information. Knowledge of an advanced ETI technology could very well fall into the hands of these forces.
Societies on Earth have long histories of contact with superior beings, such as saints and reformers, even gods, without lasting success. What grounds do we have for assuming that a message from Tau Ceti would improve matters? Moreover, our history shows that the technologically ‘inferior’ do not benefit from contact with more advanced societies. If they are not exterminated or enslaved, they frequently fall victim to various pathologies, alcoholism, drug abuse and high suicide rates, which have been attributed to the influence of Western technological culture on various native cultures. Captain Cook’s sailors introduced Christianity, syphilis and leprosy when they discovered Hawaii. In general the history of European exploration and discovery led to the spread of disease and cultural disintegration, and too often slavery.
Advanced ETs might not look upon us from a benevolent standpoint. There is always the chance that radio silence may conceal an impending invasion. They may come armed and we will either be annihilated or enslaved, or they will come in the guise of friendship and take us over by stealth by appearing to help us while making us dependent upon them. They might come and exploit us like pets, raw materials or food products. There is no reason to suppose that a superintelligence would develop superlevels of compassion and empathy.
Yet it is very unlikely that ETs would take us away as slaves or food products or steal our mineral resources; the vast distances would render such an outlay of energy uneconomical. But maybe they would have no choice but to come and would be forced to migrate as their star approached extinction. Yet if that were the case they would have had time to undertake reconnaissance and would most likely prefer to move to a habitable but uninhabited world. On the other hand, if they are so advanced and morally unscrupulous and Earth appeals to them, then our resistance would be negligible.
Other than enforced migration or invasion for our natural resources, the main commodity they would seek is information, which costs little to transport. In fact, information would be the most likely commodity they would look for. But this would still leave open the threats associated with a culture clash. On the other hand, SETI researchers will argue that the culture clash would not have to be damaging. We have all experienced contact with minds much greater than ours – in the great literature and science of the world – without negative effects, and such contact is frequently inspirational.
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Perhaps contact would not have such a profound effect on the scientific community, as the fundamental shift in thinking about the possibility of ETI has already taken place throughout the twentieth century. During the latter half of the twentieth century there was a gradual awareness that the processes which gave rise to life and continue to support it, could be widespread. More generally, belief in the existence of ETI is a strong feature within our culture, even when it is associated with discredited beliefs in UFO visitors. So rather than seeing the discovery of ETI as heralding a scientific revolution, it might be seen as an important stage in a series of changes to our view of life in the universe.
Contact would certainly inspire discussion of the age-old philosophical problems of where do we come from, are we unique, and what does it mean to be a human being? Moreover, if there is a galactic community, possessing knowledge of how to survive technology and prevent cultural destruction, then membership of this community would likely produce a pride in identification with a supersociety; far from a loss of morale, there would be an intense pride in membership. If contact is by radio, the effects of culture shock would be reduced because of the lengthy communication time involved. It will take time to verify that the contact is of artificial origin, then more time to decipher the message and eventually achieve consensus regarding the content of the version that will be published. The research group authorized to decipher the message would probably sit on it for years until public interest has long evaporated. The initial news will be impressive but it will be hard for it to overshadow the hype that currently accompanies trivial events. A royal marriage, a soccer star’s divorce or an adulterous liaison between characters in a soap opera, will easily push news of alien contact to the back pages.
Radio communication, then, would not be like a swift invasion or sudden confrontation with an alien culture. In the latter case, a well-authenticated physical presence might well produce an effect similar to the notorious War of the Worlds broadcast. This is probably unlikely, as knowledge of ETI would precede any physical appearance and years of popular science and SF have prepared the public mind for contact. Consequently, the knowledge that we are not unique is unlikely to have any destabilizing influence.
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