Humans ‘probably only intelligent life in the Universe’
Researchers put odds of mankind being alone in Milky Way at up to 99.6%
UFO hunters’ hopes have been dashed by a new study that says humans are highly likely to be the only form of intelligent life in the Universe.
A team of scientists led by Anders Sandberg, a research fellow at Oxford University, have concluded that there is a 53% to 99.6% probability that humans are alone in our galaxy, the Milky Way, with a 39% to 85% chance that no intelligent life exists outside of the “observable universe”, Metro reports.
The team reached that somewhat depressing verdict after studying the “Fermi paradox”, which addresses the belief that there is a high probability of intelligent aliens existing in the universe despite a lack of supporting evidence, the newspaper says.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The study, called Dissolving the Fermi Paradox, does not dismiss the possibility of alien life but rather suggests that other life forms could be “less advanced than on Earth or simply no longer exist”, the Daily Express says.
Speaking to astronomy news website Universe Today, Sandberg said: “One can answer the Fermi Paradox by saying intelligence is very rare, but then it needs to be tremendously rare.
“Another possibility is that intelligence doesn’t last very long, but it is enough that one civilisation survives for it to become visible.”
There is a “fairly high likelihood that we are alone”, Sandberg adds.
Other studies have come up with a variety of theories as to why humans have not been contacted by extraterrestrials.
One theory, known as the zoo hypothesis, states that there is an abundance of life in the universe but that such life forms consider humans to be too “basic and primitive” to merit attention, says US-based magazine The Atlantic.
Another suggests that intelligent life “pops into existence for a few thousand years before getting wiped out of existence for mysterious reasons”, the magazine says.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Aid to Ukraine: too little, too late?
Talking Point House of Representatives finally 'met the moment' but some say it came too late
By The Week UK Published
-
5 generously funny cartoons on the $60 billion foreign aid package
Cartoons Artists take on Republican opposition, aid to Ukraine, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Knife: Salman Rushdie's 'mesmeric memoir' of brutal attack
The Week Recommends The author's account of ordeal which cost him his eye is both 'scary and heartwarming'
By The Week Staff Published
-
Nasa reveals first findings from asteroid that could explain origins of life
Speed Read Sample from Bennu has been found to contain an abundance of water and carbon
By Jamie Timson, The Week UK Published
-
How worried we should be about space debris
feature As part of a rocket washes up in Australia scientists warn ‘critical mass’ of orbital junk could only be decades away
By The Week Staff Published
-
What is NASA's Artemis program?
Speed Read NASA's ambitious Artemis program will eventually create a base on the moon — and lay the foundations for manned missions to Mars
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
SpaceX launches 1st all-civilian crew into orbit
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Is SpaceX's Inspiration4 really an inspiration?
Talking Point
By Jeva Lange Published
-
Jeff Bezos' Promethean impulse
Talking Point
By Damon Linker Published
-
The benefits of billionaires in space
opinion This is how innovation begins
By James Pethokoukis Published
-
How cybercriminals are hacking into the heart of the US economy
Speed Read Ransomware attacks have become a global epidemic, with more than $18.6bn paid in ransoms in 2020
By The Week Staff Last updated