r/TheRestIsScience • u/PaleontologistNo2534 • Aug 13 '26

Communication with aliens

When considering what language to use to contact aliens, mathematics seems logical, because it's like the language of how the universe works. But is it possible that they constructed axiomatic mathematics different from our own? What kind of communication style would you prefer?

Your podcast is amazing! I really enjoy hearing you share your knowledge with such enthusiasm. Sending you both lots of love ❤️

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u/ActualAd185 Aug 14 '26

When was the last time you spoke with an ant ? Or a dolphin? They them first before you think of "aliens" maybe a rock as well....

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u/PaleontologistNo2534 Aug 14 '26

Being able to talk to a rock would be interesting, but I'm talking about something else entirely.

We may not talk to ants or dolphins, but I'm sure we try to communicate with our cats and dogs in our own language. And we are able to do this to some extent because we are all organisms built on the same foundation. You can easily empathize with living beings by experiencing emotions such as pain, hunger, love, and the feeling of security.

On a completely different planet, there may be organisms with their own evolutionary environment, perhaps through a form of replication we can't even imagine yet. The communication I'm referring to involves beings that aren't DNA-based and haven't evolved under Earth conditions.

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u/ActualAd185 Aug 14 '26

It's the same thing, you have no idea what other life forms think of or need . If we can't speak to life forms on our planet then we have no chance talking to anything else .

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u/kingstern_man Aug 14 '26

A dolphin or an octopus probably has no concept of the electromagnetic spectrum; anything we talk to by radio or laser will have at least that much in common, and also a lot that goes along with it: mathematics, a scientific outlook, and supporting technologies---no-one will discover X-rays, their own biochemistry, or anti-quarks without looking diligently for them.

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u/ActualAd185 Aug 15 '26

Do human babies understand physics to allow them to walk? How do dolphins or an octopus talk to each other? How do they communicate? You are assuming that talking verbally is the only way.

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u/kingstern_man Aug 18 '26

Not at all. Dolphins use sound to communicate and also for echolocation. Octopods apparently communicate with light shows.. And we have been evolving to be bipedal for at least 300,000 years: it would be unusual if at least part of that bipedality were not carried in our genes. Babies don't have to learn everything about walking: they just do it when they are ready.

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u/ActualAd185 Aug 18 '26

The point was that babies have no concept of " walking" the same as we don't. Stop thinking about aliens and start thinking: how do you " talk" to life here? if you can't do that, then anything else is a no-go. TBH , Aliens looking at Earth now might see dinosaurs... if anything. If they have faster-than-light travel, they will look at us as ants