Unbelievable facts
The Fermi paradox, proposed by physicist Enrico Fermi, is something like this: “Where are all the aliens?”
Given the size of the universe and the number of Earth-like planets, there should be tens of thousands, if not more, of extraterrestrial civilizations in our galaxy.
And since the galaxy has been around for about 10 billion years, intelligent beings should have had plenty of time to communicate with each other.
So if aliens did exist, why haven't we found them yet?
Extraterrestrial life
1. The land is special
According to the unique Earth hypothesis, a number of events that led to the emergence of life on Earth were complex and inimitable. And while there are planets similar to Earth, none of them have the perfect combination of conditions that are required for intelligent life to develop.
One of the factors that contribute to the emergence of life on Earth is the unique orbit and position of the Earth, due to which our planet has been fairly stable for a long period climatic conditions.
If the distance between the Sun and the Moon were different, the planet would be too hot or cold, it would not have enough oxygen, and it would not be able to support life forms other than bacteria.
2. Intelligent life has run into an obstacle
According to the “Great Filter” theory, alien life exists, but does not have the technology to communicate or travel such distances. While our technology may be getting us closer to this point, we'll run into an obstacle or a disaster will cause us to collapse.
Natural disasters periodically hit the Earth, and perhaps such events also affect other worlds, and their technologies do not have time to develop properly. We can also destroy ourselves, for example, in a nuclear war.
Whatever the scenario, we're not only likely to never be able to communicate with aliens, but we're likely to die if we try to.
However, some scientists believe that we may be the first to overcome this filter and become superintelligent beings in space.
Extraterrestrial civilizations
3. They're out of the universe
According to futurist John Smart and his “beyond hypothesis,” intelligent alien life once existed in the universe, and it has become so advanced that it has focused on internal space, not outer space.
This process can be compared to reducing the size of computers. At first, these were huge space-consuming devices that became smaller and more complex at the same time.
Intelligent life could evolve in a similar way, using space, time, energy, and matter more efficiently. After all, once we reach the nanoscale, we can become so small that we can create and exist in a black hole beyond the space-time continuum.
Black holes are ideal for computing and learning, time travel, and storing energy. Civilizations that don't reach this level are doomed to fail.
Also, given Moore's Law, which states that a computer's computing power doubles every two years, other creatures may have already reached the limit before exploring space.
4. The Earth is not as unique as we think
It may be too arrogant to say that aliens are interested in us or our planet. It can be assumed that there are more interesting worlds that support life, and intelligent beings are more likely to concentrate on better places.
An alien race capable of traveling light years away would hardly care to communicate with us. In addition, they would most likely have more advanced technologies and would not need our resources.
But no matter how smart aliens are, time travel isn't easy. And would they spend energy getting to our planet instead of the 8.8 billion Earth-like planets in the Milky Way galaxy?
5. We live in virtual reality
According to the “planetarium hypothesis”, our world is a form of virtual reality, a “planetarium” designed to create the illusion that the universe is empty. We did not find aliens simply because this is not provided for by the program.
The basics of this theory were expressed by Descartes: “How do we know that the world around us is real — maybe we're just a brain in a flask that thinks we live in the real world?”
Read also: 6 incredible scientific theories about our existence
But modern proponents of this hypothesis believe that we are in a computer simulation created by highly advanced aliens. These aliens are able to use energy to manipulate matter and energy on a galactic scale.
Some physicists believe that we'll discover this simulation by noticing a system glitch or developing a test that proves this theory.
6. We live in a space jungle
While intelligent extraterrestrial life may exist, our planet is too far away to communicate.
It is possible that Earth is so far away from other inhabited worlds that we were simply overlooked. Some even believe that other worlds are relatively close and interact with each other while we're standing on the sidelines.
The idea is based on the mathematical theory of “percolation”, which explains how things accumulate in a random environment. According to theory, the universe formed with large clusters and small isolated regions.
The famous physicist Stephen Hawking believes that we should not seek to establish contact with aliens, but rather not stick out until we reach the proper level.
The search for extraterrestrial intelligence
7. We haven't recognized their signals yet
Carl Sagan also claimed that “lack of evidence is not the same as proof that there are no aliens.”
Programs to search for extraterrestrial life relied on borrowed radio telescopes and other equipment that could be used for a limited amount of time.
Because of this, there has been no significant progress either. But there is also good news. The Allen Array, a radio telescope consisting of 42 6-meter telescopes designed to search for extraterrestrial intelligence, is ready for serious space exploration and may pick up alien signals.
8. We can't recognize their signals
Even if there is life on other planets, does that mean that other creatures evolved in the same way as they did on Earth? They may be so different from us that we simply don't recognize their signal.
For example, bats visualize sound waves while we only see light. It can be assumed that humans and aliens use completely different senses.
The problem is that we're looking for something similar to us, but it's possible that extraterrestrial beings have shapes we can't even imagine.
A highly developed race can use communication methods that go beyond our technological understanding. And our primitive radio signals may be nothing more than white noise to them.
9. Superorganisms are naturally suicidal
According to Medea's hypothesis, put forward by paleontologist Peter Ward, humans and other superorganisms carry the seed of self-destruction. This is consistent with the “Great Filter” theory, which states that we will die before we reach the point of communicating with aliens.
The hypothesis is named after the ancient Greek character Medea, who killed her children. In this case, Medea is a planet and all living things are her children.
Extinction is part of our nature and ensures that we eliminate ourselves before we create an imbalance on Earth. As soon as humans create an incurable disaster on the planet, we will take action to destroy us.
The scientist believes that previous mass extinction events, for example, two ice ages, were triggered by living organisms.
And if humans are to blame for the current global warming, our species might not survive on Earth either. In other words, we'll eliminate ourselves before we get in touch with aliens.
Aliens among us
10. They walk among us
Some people think aliens live and work among us.
Thus, former Canadian Secretary of Defense Paul Hellier said in a 2014 interview that about 80 different species of aliens live on Earth. Some of them, like Nordic blondes, look very similar to humans. Other “short gray” ones look like typical aliens and are hidden from the general population.
Read also: Shocking statement: aliens live among us
Physicist Paul Davies and Dr. Robert Trundle share a similar opinion. They believe that the Fermi paradox has been resolved and that extraterrestrials exist, and we, without realizing it, communicate with them every day.