back to article One fifth of humans say aliens walk among us

One-fifth of the world's population believes that aliens walk among us, disguised as Homo sapiens for an unknown, but doubtless chilling purpose. That's according to a Reuters Ipsos poll, which probed 23,000 adults in 22 countries, and discovered that India is an epicentre of ET activity, with 45 per cent convinced the …

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  1. Neil Barnes Silver badge
    Alien

    ...probed 23,000 adults?

    Oh noes! IPSOS are aliens!

    I for one welcome our clip-board bearing overlords!

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Alien

      good.

      take me to your leader.

  2. Tom_

    Not as shocking as it may sound

    Don't forget that even more people seem to believe in some kind of deity.

    1. John70
      Black Helicopters

      Deities

      You never know, deities and aliens might be one and the same.

      1. James 127
        Alien

        ou never know, deities and aliens might be one and the same

        Q?

    2. kwikbreaks

      Deities

      a deathbed conversion to Catholicism is the way forward - none of that boring goody goody stuff or praying but you still get the key to the pearly gates with that final confession.

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Go

    "India is an epicentre of ET activity"

    ET phone home^W Westerners

    Crikey, the cooks are out in force. Aliens disguising themselves as people? ridiculous.

    Everybody knows the aliens will take canine form, that way they can sneak their rays under our tin foil hats.

  4. slim mcslim
    Troll

    It all becomes clear....

    Is it not true that 1 in 5 people work for the NHS in this country...?

    And where the NHS/Home Orrafice not having a probe into illeagal aliens working within the NHS ?

    Well it all becomes clear, you couldn't make this stuff up, even if you where the editor of the SUN...

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Alien

    the gender disparity is obvious

    A large proportion of females are from another planet and are thus more likely to pretend that there are no aliens, in order to protect their secret.

  6. TeeCee Gold badge
    Alien

    More statistics.

    80% of survey monkeys found that when they asked a silly question, they got a silly answer.

    Makes more sense to me than space lizards dressed as humans.

    1. Marvin the Martian
      Welcome

      Depends on phrasing by said monkeys.

      If you ask people whether there's "aliens amongst us, illegal or otherwise" you should get about a 100% score; shorten it to "aliens amongst us" and you should get about 15% (from the slightly-autistic, literal-parsing amongst us --- mostly techies and mathsy ones, call 'em RegReaders).

      Damn ambiguous English language. With XKCD and using the Groucho club logic, I'd consider learning Lojban [a constructed language with no ambiguities] but then I'd be only able to speak with the kind of saddos that learn Lojban.

  7. David Simpson 1
    Flame

    Idiots

    Check out how many people vote on X-Factor every week or how many watch Eastenders.

    Idiots walk amongst us everyday I find that much more disturbing.

  8. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    thinking about it

    It's far more believable that aliens have arrived on earth and are among us in some capacity then it is to think a magical man of some kind created all existence. But much like the magical man I don't see much point in getting up tight about it, can't prove it either way may as well get back to everyday life.

    1. Secretgeek

      @thinking about it

      But that's what THEY want you to think!!

  9. Anonymous Coward
    IT Angle

    20% idiots?

    So humanity is only 20% idiots? I would have thought the number would be a lot higher.

    1. Trevor 3

      errm

      Half the people you meet are below average intelligence...

      1. TeeCee Gold badge
        Boffin

        Really?

        Is that because you've heard of the concept of statistics and have no truck with it or just that you're in that "half"?

        Hint: Average intelligence is usually* defined as being within one standard deviation of the mean and 2/3 of the population fall into this category.

        Now, if you'd said that half of the people you meet are below mean intelligence you'd be closer to the truth, but you'd still have a problem with the fact that people of exactly mean intelligence do exist in numbers.

        *YMMV. Some scales tighten this to 10 points against an SD of 15 and other definitions exist, but they all specify a *range*.....

    2. Captain Save-a-ho
      Coat

      But 45% in India...

      Not that there's anything wrong with that, nor am I implying anything about the services provided from India. To be honest, I'm just thrilled to know that the Idiocracy will start somewhere other than the US!

      Need my coat...Ow! My Balls! just came on the telly.

    3. Sillyfellow
      Happy

      is higher

      .. it's the other 80% who are idiots.

      so you were right, the number is a lot higher than you might have thought. hehe.

  10. Gordon is not a Moron
    Alien

    Orson Welles is laughing in his grave

    Someone needs to tell these people that V is a sci-fi show and not a documentary

  11. Secretgeek
    Alien

    Men more than women

    I think that should be amended to 'Anorak wearing, single, lonely, geeky, obsessive, tin foil hat wearing men...'

  12. Blofeld's Cat
    Black Helicopters

    Only 16 per cent in UK?

    Have they not noticed that most politicians seem to come from either a different planet or a parallel universe?

  13. heyrick Silver badge

    Alien visitations

    It still staggers me to think that humans are so egocentric that some super hyper advanced lifeform (which, obligatorily, looks just like us) can span vast distances of space, travel through wormholes, faster than the speed of light, and generally bend the universe to their demands...

    ...and they'd come HERE. A planet full of people who still believe in God. Not just *a* God, but many different ideas of that one God, to whom we'd readily kill each other in defence of. A planet full of people who have yet to step beyond their own satellite, maybe. Or was it faked? A planet full of people with grandiose ideas of The Federation keeping control of the vastness of space, while in reality we can only just about get different countries to agree on things if we push hard enough. A planet full of people who essentially defecate all over their terrain, and then pretend it isn't happening, and when it is too late to stop chaos from unfolding, it'll be a punishment sent from the heavens. And we're right back to the beginning of the paragraph. Repeat until False.

    You think alien life would willingly come HERE? Yeah, right.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      There are plenty of reasons

      There are plenty of reasons aliens may take a passing interest in Earth, an opportunity to watch a primative species grow from apes.

      A reality TV show "How will Ten Aliens survive one year on the Human planet"?

      Studies into primative cultures and superstition.

      Gambling "which country will develop fusion power first? Or will they give up before hand and cluster around a wind mill?"

      If you go further along a "well what if" I suppose it's entirely possible the whole planet is a lab designed for a specific experiment. Or a bet, two ancient powerful Aliens betting that developing the intelligence to transcend your own environment was unique to their species and any other being would simply kill itself long before managing to venture into the cosmos. I bet they were getting a bit jittery in the 60s.

      Or maybe their just fucking with us, much like running mice through mazes. Hey Zorg check out what I made the humans believe! Ho HO HO.

      It's also entirely possible aliens visited, met the most intelligent life on Earth (say Ants) had a fantastic chat then left. Or they came and tried to have a chat with the most organised life form (Cars) but weren't able to strike up a dialogue.

      Your inability to show imagination is far sadder then peoples willingness to believe flights of fantasy. Also your lack of faith in human ingenutiy is quite telling (and rather typical of a large section of modern society.)

      What do I think? No idea, we'll never know in my life time that's something I'd be willing to put money on. As such I shall get on with life,.

      1. Disco-Legend-Zeke
        Pint

        Is The Sun...

        ...sentient?

        If so, other stars would be also. I have long thought Humans exist because out local star has a bet with his buddies about who can create the doofiest lifeforms.

        If that's the case, Sol wins.

        Beer is made from sunlight. Thanks!

      2. MeRp

        @There are plenty of reasons

        You only think the most organized life form is cars because you have not seen the traffic in the Philippines.

      3. Quirkafleeg
        Alien

        Mice?

        They're the ones in charge; eating the wrong piece of cheese, suddenly dropping dead of myxomatosis, sending us along a different path in our maze…

    2. Mountford D

      Agree

      We are also defining life as we know it: The carbon-based model and making the assumption that all higher-order life forms are like our own, where in fact our planet environment may actually be extremely harmful to a superior and incomprehensible alien life form.

      Even if we were to compare like with like and only look at carbon-based models, Earth is hardly the benign environment most of us believe it to be. Aside from the already-mentioned undesirable beings that populate it, the environment is really quite hostile. We just happen to exist in a narrow time-frame that is condusive to our life model. A few degrees higher or lower and we would cease to exist. Remember the dinosaurs?

    3. Anonymous Coward
      FAIL

      quite

      We have no chance of even getting near a Kardashev type 1 society while people are so tribal, and worse yet, murder each other over fsckwit fairy stories. Evolution is a conspiracy!!!one GOd mAeded teh universe! (etc.)

  14. PerfectBlue

    David Icke?

    I don't think that we can seriously blame David Icke for belief in aliens in the UK.

    David Icke's thing is giant alien lizards which is mostly a cover for antisemitism (He thinks that the banking system is run by shape shifting Jewish aliens). This is a US based belief. Few people in the UK know who David Icke is, or what his particular UFO fetish is.

    In fact he;s more famous in the UK for his none UFO related work, and even then 99% of the country has no idea who he is.

    1. JShel
      Black Helicopters

      No, No, No...

      He's yours, not all the nut jobs come from the US.

      1. TeeCee Gold badge
        Happy

        Re: No, No, No...

        Yes, but it is quite revealing that the non-homegrown ones tend to gravitate there in search of a like minded group of wingnuts to believe in what they're saying though, don't you think?

        Here's a thought: Just why does that US immigration form have checkboxes for "Terrorist", "Criminal" and such, but lack one for "I am a complete teapot who believes that the world is built and run by sentient bananas?".

        1. JShel
          Coat

          Umm...

          Because they are dim government bureaucrats? Like dim government bureaucrats worldwide.

          Seems like they should remove the others at some point. After all, the IRS eventually removed the line on the tax form where you enter your income from "criminal or illegal activity." After 10-15 years of nobody seriously checking the box, they'll figure it out. Now, if they actually distributed the declaration before you got on the plane, not 30 minutes before landing - there is some language about not being allowed on the plane depending on your answers. I'm still waiting for the report of someone being chucked off by a dim crew member taking it literally!

          The one with the base jumper rig built in, thanks.

  15. Anonymous Coward
    Alien

    Humm, 20% say aliens are here...

    This means that Aliens do not live among us, but us Humans (20%) live amongst you aliens (80%)!

  16. Craig 28

    Idiots come in different flavours

    It's just that only 20% of the population is made up of idiots who believe aliens walk among us. There are plenty more idiots, and not all idiots have to believe the same things. Hell my mother's boyfriend believes that anyone who doesn't vote in the general election has their vote counted towards the current government, that's some heavy duty idiot right there. No he obviously hasn't considered the statistics that would be involved in that before anyone asks, he also thinks you can make your own distilled water by boiling it in the kettle and that the "try it and see" approach to wiring a light fitting is valid, even when the fusebox keeps banging every time you try a different combination...

  17. amanfromMars 1 Silver badge

    Alien Election Candidates .. are there any or is it just a primitive human population contest ..

    ... /php ego trip?

    "One fifth of humans say aliens walk among us"

    Lester,

    One might like to consider the probability that they would hardly need to walk anywhere but rather more run everything anywhere from here, there and everywhere for everyone.

    And you have failed to provide any figure for what percentage of the planet's population is primitive human.

    * I personally cannot imagine them being stupid enough to waste their time standing for such a waste of time and effort, and for someone with quite a highly developed sense of imagination, that is certainly saying something about the shoddy value of the media show, which appears to be all about avoiding the truth and compounding ongoing fallacies rather than confronting the spin and building novel structures and innovative infrastructures with undoubted politically correct prime champions too.

    Surely anything else is less than honest and a desperately cobbled together travesty of a noble competition for the intellectually challenged and sham beings in a shamefully divisive scam.

  18. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    tighter regulation in space

    With the cheap and ready availability of Loan's and Mortgages we would be stupid not to be amongst you earthmen

  19. Winkypop Silver badge
    Troll

    20% agree with Aliens

    Does that include deities?

    Sky-gods

    Faeries?

  20. John G Imrie
    Alien

    In which case they would say that, wouldn't they?

    Yes I would.

  21. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Congratulations 20%

    Congratulations to the 1/5th of the people for being idiots... Learn to think people!...dont take all the bullshit the government feeds you through your 52inch box call "The Television" . There's this program that i saw on youtube called "The Arrivals"...it states that the biggest card that the FreeMasons are going to play is to convince everyone that the Aliens exist. not only this they are also going...wait for it...wait...they are also going to convince the world that they are a BIG threat to earth and have all the governments come together to the fight....now you're think that this guy is nuts!...well how do you think they manage to fool everyone about the 9/11 attack. Has anyone seen fahrenheit 911?..if not then i suggest you should.

  22. umacf24
    Dead Vulture

    Wrong Category

    Nothing to do with Space: should be Psychology (20% is too many to call it Psychiatry).

    1. Oninoshiko
      Boffin

      I'm not sure that's right either....

      I believe the word you are looking for is "Sociology." It is here that we deal with the beliefs of peoples. Psychology is still dealing with the menal (mis)workings of individuals, although studies like this would be useful in establishing that he belief is fairly "normal." The two topics are quite closely tied together, and it's preatty easy to confuse them.

      I suppose it could also be filed under memeology, although that has never been more then a joke in my mind.

  23. Anonymous Coward
    Boffin

    20 percent? Not bad.

    Given that 50% of humans are of below average intelligence.

  24. Ginolard

    That explains call centres then

    I'm not at all suprised about the high percentage in India. The aliens probably all work in call-centres. Proof-positive then, I think you'll find, that aliens are certainly NOT more technologically advanced than us.

    1. TeeCee Gold badge
      Alien

      Re: That explains call centres then

      They need to work on their disguises a bit too. I ended up speaking to a support type called "Melanie Jones" the other day and I'd swear the accent was more Bangalore than Bangor.

      At least our would-be alien overlords know they're crap. She wasn't very keen to switch to voice chat.....

  25. lucsan
    Paris Hilton

    All your bases are belong to us

    This is the usual sloppy work of humans, how many belive they are aliens. I for one am happy to be your overlord when Eastenders and I'm a nonentity are on. We do not have these documetories on our planet...

    Ps. We aliens do not eat your tasty tasty brains, that the other aliens, the tasty brains eating type.

    Paris cos she's an alien.

  26. Door Handle
    FAIL

    One in Five (20%) Global Citizens??

    A big FAIL in statistics. Individual ratios should be weighted according to the population of the countries. Calculated this way, the actual ratio is around 0.35.

  27. Robert Carnegie Silver badge

    It amazes me how gullible you earthmen are.

    Anyway, why would we -want- to look like you? Remember, we've seen you naked. (Thank you Carl Sagan, don't call us, we'll let you know.)

  28. The Indomitable Gall
    Grenade

    Gender disparity....

    If more men believe in aliens, and men are more intelligent than women, then there must be aliens walking among us.

    So either there are advanced superbeings from beyond the stars on the planet, or women are more intelligent than men.

    It's a Morton's fork between Catch 22, a Pyrrhic Victory and Hobson's Choice -- whatever choice I make, men are no longer the most intelligent creatures in the universe.

  29. Paul Hates Handles
    Grenade

    I suppose...

    ...it's possible - but then a large proportion of people also believe in an invisible man who is everywhere judging them and letting his friends touch your kids...

  30. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    What would humans do?

    Ask yourself what humans would do if they discovered a less advanced alien civilisation, assuming that the humans are led or at least advised by scientists, which isn't that unlikely given the presupposition. What they would almost certainly do is observe and study, without intervening in any way. It would be like the camera robot disguised as a turd used to study a group of elephants. So, if advanced aliens discovered us, that's probably what they'd do, and perhaps they are already here, doing that. In fact, there may be several independent groups of aliens studying life on Earth, and those groups may be unaware of each other, because an intelligent alien, observing life on Earth, is bound to realise that Earth may have attracted other observers and may therefore try to make itself inconspicuous not only for humans but also for other aliens.

    In science fiction aliens often "make contact". However, I find it rather unlikely they'd want to do that in real life.

    If you want to detect those aliens who are secretly spying on us there's no point in setting up a public group to do it as in that case aliens would almost certainly be observing your discussions. There would be no point in having any secret government organisation involved, either, as the aliens are almost certainly observing all secret services. You would have to act alone or in a small group to stand any chance of catching them out.

    I'm probably on an alien watch list now. Bugger.

    1. amanfromMars 1 Silver badge

      Fact is always stranger than fiction, and much stronger too. Real Hard Core Stuff.

      "In science fiction aliens often "make contact". However, I find it rather unlikely they'd want to do that in real life.

      If you want to detect those aliens who are secretly spying on us there's no point in setting up a public group to do it as in that case aliens would almost certainly be observing your discussions. There would be no point in having any secret government organisation involved, either, as the aliens are almost certainly observing all secret services. You would have to act alone or in a small group to stand any chance of catching them out.

      I'm probably on an alien watch list now. Bugger." ..... "What would humans do?" ... Anonymous Coward Posted Monday 12th April 2010 13:59 GMT

      That was a very well reasoned post, AC, and what do you imagine such SMARTer Beings and Alien Phorms would be doing in real life virtual spaces? Making contact with IT and Communications Command and Control and Creating InterNetworking Networks for a Top Secret Government and Special Take Over Force to give the Planet a MakeOver? Or if you just cannot be bothered doing anything, then you could do the

      imperious observation thing until such times as the urge may take you and you feel the need to join in the Earthly Fun and Games, bringing your Own Novel Beta Input to the Party.

      With All of the Planet's Riches and Sinless Viceful Pleasures to Play with, it would be a Devilish Opportunity to Play GOD and Gambol Purposefully with Any and All Primitive Native Species.

      Do you imagine that the smarter human organisations would be smart enough to contact such SMARTer Beings and Alien Phorms in real life and virtual spaces? In Order to take full advantage of their Offers made in Sublime Contracting Contact with IT and Communications Command and Control and Creating InterNetworking Networks for a Top Secret Government and Special Take Over Force to give the Planet a MakeOver? Or will their System of Government and Globalised Economy have to be Collapsed and Destroyed first, rather than just Realigned to Alien Objectives/Subjectives.

      "I'm probably on an alien watch list now. Bugger." ... Probably :-), and if some of them are Smart enough to lead, probably on a human watch list too, AC.

    2. Mike Flugennock

      re: what would humans do...?

      What, you mean aliens are already watching us through cameras disguised as... turds?

    3. Disco-Legend-Zeke
      Pint

      If Humans...

      ...came across an inferior race, they would merely kill them and steal all their stuff.

      Indians, American Indians, Africans, Histror it replete with examples. It's what humans do to each other. Why should extraterrestrial cultures be exempt?

      Somehow we seem to think that being smarter is a license to steal from others.

      Nead a more receint example? Bernie Madoff.

      211, its in my hand as i type.

  31. Ad Fundum
    Joke

    Daily Mail headline ahoy

    I bet the aliens have all come just to get benefits and steal our jobs, etc etc. And I bet half of them are gay and want to get married and still have the same benefits as straight married couple AND want to get David Cameron's not-quite-the-cost-of-a-pint tax benefit for being married to someone you loathe.

  32. troopern
    Linux

    Per cent and not percent?

    So the author is talking about different amounts you get per cent and not the percentage of the matter?

    Correct me if I'm wrong about the word percent not being split ever.

    1. Oninoshiko

      yep!

      It is only ever split if you are figuring mow much value you are getting by volume. Things like "two candies per cent," or the like.

      But you are correct in that "20 per cent of the populaton" is incorrect.

  33. John Savard
    Alert

    Ranking

    I visited the site with the details about poll, and would have been disappointed that Canada, like Britain, is at 16%, rather than 8% like the most sensible countries in the survey... but then I saw that the U.S. is at 24%. I wish our heroic American allies good luck in improving the quality of their educational system.

    1. Mike Flugennock

      Stanking

      What the hell are you talking about? Twenty-four percent _is_ an improvement. You should've seen it _before_.

      Hell, you should see the new survey results on how many people think Barack Obama is from Kenya.

  34. Sean Nevin

    Why

    Why does everyone assume that the aliens would be studying or experimenting on us? Or invading or spying?

    Could be they're just here to hang out; like a vacation spot. No subspace cell phones or whatnot. Like how some humans will travel to the middle of nowhere to relax.

  35. bruceld
    Alien

    two cents...

    I would have to look at this from a different angle asking reasons of more why and who. Let me pretend that I am an alien living amongst humans:

    Are humans really all that interesting to me as an extra-terrestrial? If I were thousands or millions of years evolved and more advanced than humans, why would I want to live among humans? Humans can't even get along with each other and they seem to want to conquer and/or destroy everyone and everything. Humans are self-destructive and even selfishly destroy their environment as well as other species. It makes no sense that if I were an extra-terrestrial that I would choose to live amongst humans particularly if I were thousands or millions of years more advanced and evolved than them. Humans would attempt to conquer and destroy me.

    If I were thousands or millions of years more advanced, I'd most likely be capable of telepathy, space travel and even time travel. My intelligence would be far more advanced that I would have to compare modern human intelligence to that of an earlier evolutionary ape swinging through the trees. Would you be able to explain binary code to your evolutionary ancestor that is swinging through a tree? Why would you even want to?

    As an advanced alien species I'd have far more interesting things to do with my time such as exploring the universe instead of wasting my time living with a backwards and ignorant species.

    If anything I would choose to simply study humans and then quickly move along elsewhere. I'd certainly do it from a distance and I would never want to interact with a human, never mind trying to live side by side with one. Heck I'd be mobbed, lynched, probed and mercilessly dissected quicker than a homosexual living in Iran. Why would an alien want that to happen to them?

    It is unlikely that an alien that is thousands or millions of years more advanced would even want to bother living amongst us. We're not a good species to live with. What is more likely is that WE, or our future species that are thousands or millions of years more advanced (assuming we don't destroy ourselves before then), are going to be more willing to time travel back to us and want or dare to live with us. We would be more interesting to ourselves than to another species.

    Humans think and believe that they are the height of evolutionary perfection and intelligence, and so naturally surely an alien species that is capable of space travel would admire us, envy us and want to interact with us. I think this is far from the truth.

    I for one, if I were an advanced alien species, would never want to live amongst humans.

    1. Robert Carnegie Silver badge

      Obviously dangerous

      for aliens to live secretly amongst humans - but they're so DELICIOUS!

      The United States in particular has all those corn syrup fed twentysomethings, which is why the Python People, in particular like to go there, swallow one whole, then stroll around wearing their clothes (redimensioned of course) while picking out the next meal. So inside every fat American is the semi-digested remains of another fat American...

  36. spezzer
    Joke

    human?

    in a recent survey 90% of mammals reckoned humans are from another planet and 20% said they needed to brush up on their maths

  37. John Savard
    Happy

    Per cent

    If 20% of people are silly, this means that there are 20 silly people per every hundred people. This can also be stated as silly people are found at a rate of 20 per hundred, or 20 per centum, if one wishes to be Latinate about it. That got abbreviated as 20 per cent. which later got run together as 20 percent. So 20 per cent is just archaic, dating from somewhere between 20 per cent. and 20 percent, and is not, in fact, a solecism as claimed.

    So no one is saying that silly people are ten times cheaper than two a penny.

  38. ShadowedOne
    Alien

    What I'd like to know..

    What percentage of aliens believe that humans walk among them?

  39. Paul Nagelkerke
    Thumb Up

    I, for one, blame our Alien Overlords...

    Thank you, Alien Overlords, for giving us technologies that we stupid humans could never figure out!

    We could not get a grip on that fire thingy, but you gave us matches, lighters, and lithium laptop batteries!

    We also could not figure out how to that flying thing, but you gave us solid gold Inca airplanes. They fly as well as a T-Rex covered with feathers!

    Our enlightened Alien Overlords have given us such advanced, totally green and safe technologies: clean burning internal combustion engine, clean and safe Russian nuclear power, and totally fail-safe space flight technology.

    Thank you Alien Overlords! We would never have figured any of this out by ourselves, damn stupid Homo-Sapien DNA!

  40. HFoster

    Hmmm...

    On the one hand, we are shouting out into space with radio broadcasts and general EM leakage, but on the other hand, finding us among all the other sources (natural or otherwise) of RF signals might be like looking for a needle in a collossal haystack.

    I DO believe there is other life in the universe (or, at least, I don't believe that there isn't), but the assumption that sentient life would necessarily look like us is... Well, as someone else already mentioned, egotistical. But then, we also believe the universe was created by a deity (or deities) who bears a striking resemblance to us. Even the possibility of bipedal reptilian extraterrestrials capable of fabricating and fitting into a convincing human disguise is a long shot.

    This is what happens when you cut science education funding. Are you listening, Peter Mandelson?

    1. Mike Flugennock

      re: looking like us

      "I DO believe there is other life in the universe (or, at least, I don't believe that there isn't), but the assumption that sentient life would necessarily look like us is... Well, as someone else already mentioned, egotistical."

      Very true, but, still... more technically-realistic alien-being appearances would drive makeup and effex budgets through the roof.

      (;^>

  41. Mr Larrington
    Black Helicopters

    It's true, though

    Did you see the trousers Ian Poulter was wearing on the final day of the US Masters? No human would even think of doing that.

  42. Ismael
    Alien

    Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal

    Says it all:

    http://www.smbc-comics.com/?db=comics&id=1192#comic

  43. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Aliens are among us!

    Hi, they are among us doing the God's work. Angels can be invisible or appear to humans. They are not of this earth but the of the kingdom of heaven. or they ae fallen angels doing the work of Satan. And God himself is here in the form of the Holy Spirit saving souls every moment of every day. God is omnipresent, present everywhere in our universe. they are all aliens. Angles, demons and Satan can only be in 1 place at a time.

  44. Paul Stockwell
    Alert

    The Puppet Masters

    If Aliens are among us what are their intentions? In Robert Heinleins book (filmed as invasion of the body snatchers) it was an invasion. In star Trek it is a helpful visit from annoyingly helpful starfleet types.

    If Faster than light travel is possible and the ship can go to another Star in a reasonable voyage length (sa 3 Months) then all the star Trek style ifrastructure will exist.

    If however the speed of Light is a limiting factor then voyages will take decades, probably centuries so the aliens will arrive after possibly several generations and with a ship that has been worked hard and probably needs a complete refit if it is to carry on to another star. In such instance a desperate crew might

    Disguise themselves as humans and try to settle among us

    Try living in a concealed colony in some inhabited part of the earth

    Conquer the planet and displace the existing dominat lifeform

    Given their likely numbers the invasion by stealth is more probable than a frontal assault on a race of violent humans equipped with atom bombs.

    Maybe we aren't paroniod maybe they really are taking over...

  45. Anonymous Coward
    WTF?

    OMG, WTF

    /facepalm.

  46. Mike Flugennock
    FAIL

    Y'know what's sad...

    ...is the astonishing percentage -- 20%, if I read correctly -- who believe that crap. Granted, that sounds like a small number at first glance, but think about it: that means that two out of every ten people you meet on the street are absolutely bone stupid.

  47. jon 77

    hmph

    "If Aliens are among us what are their intentions?"

    Most likely the same as yours, when you visit another country... see the sights, blend in with the locals... (dont want to break the taboos, never mind scare someone!!)

    re: looking like us..

    Well they wont look EXACTLY like us.. but we are all two legged, two armed, etc.. and many biologists say that that is the most efficient form to develop.. just think what you need, to handle tools with dexterity, and also handle large complex objects, and judge distance, by sight and sound...

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