14 DAY TRIAL // Scientists are convinced that, if a hypothetical alien invasion were ever to occur, it would most likely be carried out by robots, and not by organic creatures. Indeed, this scenario seems to make the most sense, if you are an advanced civilization able to travel within a galaxy, or between galaxies.
If we were to set out to conquer another world, which is obviously less technologically advanced than we are, we would most likely not send in foot soldiers, but rather robotic airplanes and tanks.
This would help us minimize casualties on our part, and also to instill fear in whatever organ passes for a heart in our intended targets. There is no reason to believe that alien invaders won't do the same.
After analyzing a host of science-fiction movies, researchers have determined that existing portrayal of alien invaders are highly unrealistic. The chance of them coming in the flesh to kill us is minimal.
“If an extraterrestrial spaceship ever lands on Earth, I bet you that it is 99.9999999 percent likely that what exits that ship will be synthetic in nature,” explains University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) professor of computer science Michael Dyer.
The reason for this is very objective in nature. As evidenced by our own society, the more advanced you get as a race, the more you rely on machines. They can do things better, faster, more precise, and have very little demands in return.
This makes them perfect for prolonged space travel. If you send organic, sentient beings on a spaceship for millennia, or centuries, this is very likely to case a tremendous strains on the bounds keeping that society coherent and together. Conflict resolution can only get you so far, experts say.
Additionally, robots don't really care about the chemical composition of the atmosphere at their destination, about the type and number of microorganisms they encounter, or whether the surface is hot, cold, battered by blizzards, or ravaged by sandstorms and radiation.
“I fully agree that anyone likely to visit will not be biological beings attacking us like in 'Battle: Los Angeles.' Anyone coming here would likely be confronting many of the same problems that we as biological life would encounter in space,” says Seth Shostak, quoted by Space.
The expert holds an appointment as a senior astronomer at the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) Institute.
One “advantage” of using artificial machines to take over a planet, or another civilization, is the fact that these agents cannot be easily swayed to jump sides, and join the other camp.
In sentient, intelligent beings, displays of courage can sway opinions, and change ways of thinking, but robots would always follow their programming and directives to the letter no matter what.