Quote Originally Posted by Little-Acorn View Post
Maybe life is out there, and we simply missed it.

Consider two factors: size and time.

SIZE

Is there a chance that the "life out there" is so small (compared to our own) among the vastness of the universe, that we are unlikely to see it even if we are looking right at it?

Brings to mind a cartoon (always a good reference ) on the subject that I once saw. Some guy is sitting at a table. On the floor beside him is a tiny space capsule the size of a pea, with a tiny door open on it. He's looking through a microscope, and a bunch of cells in the viewfinder are lining up to spell out the words, "Take us to your leader".

TIME

Some people say the Earth is maybe 4.5 billion years old, and the rest of the universe is much older. How long has Man existed on the planet? For that matter, how long has ANY "life as we know it" existed here, from single cells thru trilobites thru T-rexes thru man? Just a tiny fraction of the life of the planet. And if we start tossing nukes around or some other thing, that could all be gone in a thousand years or less.

"Life as we know it" has only existed HERE for a blink of an eye, in the history of the universe. Who's to say some other life form didn't develop or get created (insert your own favorite theory of origin here), half a universe-lifespan ago, grow, invent machines, spread through a galaxy or two, then goof and wipe themselves out like we might, all in their own relative blink of an eye, say ten billion years ago? Would there be ANY evidence of that left now? Even if there were, what are the chances of our finding it? We've been listening (and broadcasting) for less than a hundred years. And we've sent out what, a grand total of three spacecraft to exit our own SOLAR SYSTEM, and only in the last 20-30 years?

We have ZERO evidence that we are the only ones who are here, or have ever been. Course, there's zero evidence that we aren't, too. There's a very good chance that, if there was ever "life" in the universe, we (inevitably) missed it, and it's long gone now. If it ever existed.

What chances are there that, many billions of years in the future, other beings someplace will be saying the same thing... never knowing they are referring to US?
Good post.
Regarding size, I'm not sure if that can happen though, science has gotten bits of material down to smaller than an electron or proton or nucleus of an atom. I forget what they are called, but they can distinguish these things that are clinging together making up the nucleus. Im just not sure if anything can get much smaller, but then again, no matter how small of a particle you discover, there is always the question, what is that made of...

But in terms of missing others, not only possible, but more likely than not. That is, if you are running on the notion there is no creator. If there is a creator, either possiblity is just as likely, since its his choice.
It seems space travel to another solar system just isnt possible within our current realm. Wormholes, or something has to be discovered.

But I have also been contemplating the notion about something else being alive, could be right in front of us, and still we cant see them. Kinda like we cant see glass. Maybe they are comosed of something we just cant discern.
Not to mention, our body is composed of 99.999999999999999999999999999999999% space. It entirely possible that the old scientific addage that two things cant occupy the same space at the same time, might not be true. Suppose some other particles are capable of filliing in between the atoms whirling around, and they can be a part of a larger organism.
Its possible they could pass right through us, and we dont even know it, the molecules or atoms, or protons could be composed of a substance that makes it impossible for their atomic parts to collide with ours, kinda the opposite of gravity.
In fact, there might not be any gravity at all. Maybe everything is held together by some universal force that pushes things together.

Oh, and there is NOTHING that is Vanilla and delicous in the same sentence, CHOCOLATE BABY, CHOCOLATE !!