[otto_ortega]

What amuses me is the fact that we are so obsessed with finding civilizations that have an equal or superior level of technology than we do... If such civilization does exists, and if they are anything like us... Our history show us things will NOT end well for us!

The more advanced civilization will eventually (always...) conquer the less advanced civilization when in need (or desire...) for resources.

It is like if a deer were obsessed to find the hunter that will put its life to an end...

If the question we are trying to solve is "Are we alone?" we have better try to look for "less advanced" forms of life, like marine animals or something like that...

Otherwise we will get the kind of reply we are not looking for... IMHO

[kruczek]

> The more advanced civilization will eventually (always...) conquer the less advanced civilization when in need (or desire...) for resources.

I think this doesn't translate so directly into space. If they are thousands of light years away, then they will have plenty of other planets nearby to harvest for resources.

[celticninja]

It all depends on what sort of resources they are looking for, no one is crossing light years to come steal water from us, when there are other planets that have water (perhaps as ice) and would be undefended. However if they needed territory and the earth had an environment that was hospitable to them then yes they might very well travel light years to invade.

[NeedMoreTea]

Perhaps they are trying to attract contact from less advanced species to find planets supporting life, so they can have more meat in their diet...

Resources are not solely iron ore etc.

[de_watcher]

Especially while the planets aren't the first place you go to harvest resources.

[em3rgent0rdr]

and they will probably (or at least hopefully) be more enlightened.

[sneak]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fermi_paradox

[cjslep]

Liu Cixin does a great job exploring these ramifications in his "Three Body" trilogy.

[yesenadam]

I sometimes imagine a species which is to us like we are to cockroaches...