Brian Cox - Alien Life & The Dark Forest Hypothesis

The renowned physicist and science communicator, Brian Cox delves into the topic of alien life and in particular, the question about intelligent alien civilization.
With his trademark enthusiasm and engaging style, Brian Cox explores the possibility of extraterrestrial life and why we haven't found any.

The video starts with a brief overview of what Brian Cox & astronomers call: "The Great Silence". Cox then goes on to explain the Fermi Paradox and the Dark Forest Hypothesis, which suggest that intelligent life may be intentionally avoiding contact with other civilizations to avoid being destroyed.

Cox uses his expertise in physics and astronomy to explain how alien life may be closer than we think. Like on the surface of the red planet, Mars. He discusses the potential for life to exist in other planets because there are at least 20 billion other earth like planets in our galaxy alone.

Throughout the video, Cox provides easy-to-understand explanations, making complex scientific concepts accessible to a broad audience.

Whether you're a science enthusiast or simply curious about the possibility of life beyond Earth, Brian Cox's insights and knowledge are sure to captivate and inform. Don't miss out on this thought-provoking and entertaining exploration of the universe and our place within it.

#briancox #aliens #universe

[TacShooter]

Aliens: "Greetings! We send this message in an attitude of peacefulness."
Us: "Your able to communicate in English?"
Aliens: "You're"

[arron]

It's wild to think that even if a signal was sent at the speed of light from an advanced civilisation a million light years a way, by the time we receive it, that same civilisation could have been extinct for hundreds of thousands of years.

[chrishernandez]

The fact that we have looked at what is equivalent to a cup of water from the Pacific sea of space and some people throw up their hands like "well we looked in this cup of water of space and found no intelligent life so intelligent life isn't possible " is one of the most insane proposition in science

[deis.w]

Given how long it can take for complex life to form, another possibility is that alien civilisations could be about as old as our own. In this case, we both only started looking out into space very recently. It's like placing 2 people on the opposite side of an empty earth for 2 minutes and asking them why they haven't found each other yet.

Edit: I said it's one POSSIBILITY out of millions and billions of other possibilities.

[mrfishbulb]

Just because we haven't found them, doesn't mean they haven't found us.

[sagan]

The way the Dark Forest is presented in Lin Cixiu's books is amazing.

[realsatoshihashimoto]

"There are 2 possibilities. Either we are alone in the universe or we are not. And either possibility is equally terrifying."
- Arthur C. Clarke

[KennethEvans-ufhc]

"it could be that we're the only island of meaning in an ocean of 400 billion suns." I love how scientists and science can be so effortlessly poetic and beautiful without trying.

[baronvonhoughton]

Vast distances, the limited speed of light, extremely specific stable conditions, and our own lack of ability to reach/message even nearby stars, all easily explain the Fermi paradox for me.

[jmlaw]

I personally look at it as seperately picking two people anywhere on earth throughout the history of human civilization and expect them to meet eachother - only ridiculously more difficult.

What are the odds that they will be born within the right timeframe and distance and with the ability to actually meet? If there is life out there its likely died before us, will live after us or if actually alive now is so far away we will both be gone before we could ever make contact.

[Greenishprint]

The way we search for Aliens, not even knowing they are friendly, is absolutely terrifying..

[hushingsilence]

I think it's pretty damn special to live in a universe on a planet at a time when Brian Cox is alive to share his knowledge and enthusiasm. 🥰

[troubadour]

To think how unique we might be in the galaxy and yet how self-destructive we are is extremely depressing.

[dennishrmn]

I don't think there's anyway possible that we are alone. The size of the universe is inconceivable, in the amount of planets orbiting suns seems almost endless.

[BrianHartman]

Imagine you drop a 10-foot circumference boulder in the Atlantic Ocean from 100 feet up, off the coast of France. Would you expect to be able to detect the waves the boulder makes in New York City?

I think that's the problem we're dealing with: There's just a lot of space out there, and the signals we're looking for are small.

[dennyworthington]

I recently read the book "Rare Earth: Why Complex Life is Uncommon in the Universe" by Ward and Brownlee. The authors contend that simple, single-cell life, such as bacteria, is likely quit common in the universe, but more complex multi-cellular life may be exceedingly rare and so-called "intelligent life" (whatever that means) would be rarer still. Excellent, thought-provoking book for those interested in the subject. Spoiler alert: Don't hold your breath waiting for that signal from outer space.

[Chimera_]

Brian is so enthusiastic and over the top happy when it comes to these things

[davidktd]

After reading The 3 Body Problem I subscribe wholeheartedly to the Dark Forest hypothesis. I do believe that we’ve been “visited” by ET’s but that they hold a similar outlook to us. We should, however, be extremely careful about how we advertise ourselves in the universe

[DaveLL]

Any alien civilization aware of us would certainly have the intelligence to not make their presence known.

[Jansen]

Planets evolve so much over millions of years. The distance between us and other planets plus the multitudes of variables evolving those planets make contact and space travel so incredibly difficult.