From: mcgrew@dropout.rutgers.edu (Charles Mcgrew)
Newsgroups: alt.alien.visitors
Subject: Re: Sightings show: Big Bang Theory?
Date: 13 Sep 92 00:17:21 GMT
Organization: Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, N.J.


	jlinder@Bonnie.ICS.UCI.EDU (Darrow Linder) writes:
	My point is, if the world began development at the same
	instant (the Big Bang as scientists are still trying to
	prove), how can one species be so much more developed than
	another?

... if the big-bang and associated planet formation theories are
followed, there is plenty of room for alternate "start-times" for
different interstellar societies.  Since the distribution of matter in
the universe is non-uniform, different stars will develop at different
times, some will go supernova at different times, and so on.  Since
heavy (like carbon) and superheavy (like uranium) elements require
supernovas to be created, any life formed from or using these will
appear at different times in the life of the universe.  There will be
a long delay after the big-bang while this process is "initializing"
(first-generation stars forming), but after that,
novas-and-following-star-formation will happen at different times.
Also, the actual development of life on an individual planet wouldn't
necessarily happen at the same rates or in the same way.  It depends
on environment, radiation, etc.

   There is also a certain amount of cultural effect on technological
progress.  Some cultures invent and assimilate new technology faster
than others.  In a lot of ways, Europe and North America's historic
technogical lead is not from being particularly smarter or better than
other cultures, but its competitive nature led it to exploit new
technologies much more quickly.  (For instance, the Chinese invented
gunpowder, but the Europeans were the ones to exploit it to great
advantage -- the Chinese were certainly not dumber than the Europeans-
in a lot of ways they were smarter - but in that period, their culture
actually impeded development of new technologies.)  So at another
level, your "same time means same development" argument is incorrect,
since we see examples of cultures at differing levels of technical
progress here on Earth, but human beings as a group all come from the
same evolutionary process.

   Remember that we're talking about billions of years here.  The age
of the universe is 10 or 20 billion years old, and our sun is about 5
billion.  However, the lifetime of asupernova-candidate stars (for
instance, B-class stars) is 'only' 8-400 milllion years.  So, even
with the low-estimate of the age of the universe, there's plenty of
time for lots of supernova-child 'G' stars to arise, and to arise at
different times, due to the variation in lifetime of the 'parent'.


	If a UFO can be sighted, not visible by radar, and literally
	DEFY all of the laws of physics here on Earth,

... well, we know aircraft can be not seen on radar - we've got some
of 'em.  You're also making assumptions about the craft that are seen
"defying the laws of physics", notably that the craft have
just-like-us living beings on them, and that we know all there is to
know about physics (we don't.)

	So, UFO's are now mentioned in the bible.

... this, as you might imagine, is not a particularly accepted view, by
religious as well as non-religious people.  

Charles

PS - sources: Steven Hawking's "A Brief History of Time", and "First
Contact", Ben Bova and Byron Preiss, editors.
Newsgroups: alt.alien.visitors