[stcredzero]

How many data points do you have for saying we're not "highly advanced?" I should not have said "highly advanced" and should just have said "sentient interstellar" instead. My discussion is about the future of humanity, not the present day. We are not quite even space-faring yet.

Learning from another species' technology is likely to be a largely one-way transaction. Instead of trading warp drive tips, it's much more likely that the "Xarcon" will have warp drive and we will not. (Or vice-versa.) In any case, if the other side has things like antimatter fueled starships, they may still have the potential to wipe out the other civilization, or at least preemptively cause huge damage to it. Why would another intelligent species give up a potential technological advantage without first assuring the safety of their own species? Of course, there are many ways of assuring such safety. In the case of practical warp drive, one way of doing this would be to withhold warp technology and use the intervening time to propagate your own species. Another option might be to absorb the less advanced species into some sort of confederation. Actually, a really savvy species would do both!