Let’s say that you’re an alien ready to say hello to human beings. How would you do it? Perhaps, you could
email the United Nations? Or you could call Jill Tarter at the SETI Institute?
I wonder how that would go over? We know the answer: it wouldn’t go far. In all
fairness, Jill Tarter and the SETI folks do have alternative contingencies for
contact falling outside of their primary “signal in space” expectations. Still,
the primary issue is the signal to noise ratio. How many nuts are already
pretending to be aliens and would all of that “noise” make it impossible to
sort out the real thing? Aliens, even those who could easily visit Earth, might
be best sending a signal from far-off space in hopes of getting our attention,
since currently that’s our only organized method for dealing with First
Contact.
I know that Direct
First Contact is the least likely form of First Contact, but it’s a scenario
that has always interested me. I think that my answer to the alien dilemma
would be this- contact one person to help you organize a welcome for the entire
planet. Clearly, you would have to pick the proper person- someone outside the
primary systems of scientific and governmental bureaucracy. However, that
person should have the knowledge and skills to help in staging such an event.
Michael Michaud, Paul Davies of Douglas Vakoch would be good candidates. They
have a solid base of knowledge, proven communication skills and, most
importantly, the ability to be creative in problem solving. First Contact would
come with plenty of problems.
Why do you need a
human? Aliens could simply land a craft in a major city and then come outside
to have a news conference. But such an unaided event could easily backfire,
leading to misunderstandings and perhaps violent conflict. Aliens could also
hijack our communications system, taking over TV channels worldwide. This would
be tough to do, but one would assume that aliens able to visit Earth would have
highly advanced technology at their disposal. So, why get a human to help you?
Humans would be much less of a threat than aliens. Human help could also
provide a buffer of sorts, to safely introduce the welcome before aliens
actually presented themselves. Finally, humans would best understand and
respond to the reactions of other humans. No matter how long aliens had studied
the human race, they would still be at a disadvantage in managing the fine
points of human interaction. Having a human guide could help.
This may sound nutty,
but if you think about it, such a scenario does make sense. There are certainly
a multitude of ways aliens could make contact with humans. And aliens would
probably have very different considerations in making contact, considerations
that could be tough for us to understand. However, it is a scenario worth
considering. I decided to explore human introduction in my new novel “The Ashland City Landing”. Alex Morrison has made a new friend on the Internet.
It’s a relationship that could drive his wife and friends half-crazy and that’s
if federal agents and newspaper reporters don’t blow it wide open before the
big moment. Can Alex hold it all together before The Ashland City Landing?
The Ashland City Landing is a sometimes-funny,
sometimes-serious, science fiction novel about the practicalities of meeting
space aliens and having to save the world from itself and also perhaps those
very same aliens. Alex fights to keep his sanity, while concocting an
introduction that will change the course of human civilization. He’s being
pursued by a journalist desperate for a cover story. Alex’s best friend is a
real ass and sometimes his psychologist. Alex’s wife does her best to be the
Southern belle, but that’s not going too well. And yet he needs them both to
pull it off. Along the way Alex enlists help from a burned-out astrophysicist
and meets federal agents who are definitely not amused.
The Ashland City Landing is available in printed and
Kindle electronic format through Amazon USA, Amazon Europe affiliates and through Nook at Barnes and Noble.
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