[nickalaso]

Sublight speed Von Neuman probes (self replicating) are the kind of tech we are likely going to be able to produce ourselves sometime in the future.

Which is tech that would allow complete saturation/exploration of the entire galaxy on the order of millions of years. As essentially by the time one probe is able to reach one side of the galaxy from the host system the entire galaxy will have already been filled with probe copies.

It wouldn't be particularly difficult for a more advanced civ with potentially millions or billions of years evolutionary lead time on ourselves to have explored the galaxy and by extension have probes in our solar system.

These claims in the hearing are definitely extraordinary, but the tech required to "make it here" doesn't particularly need to be.

[alchemist1e9]

I’ll add that a sophisticated enough versions of such probes could also “3d” print new biological entities for example.

As an analogy using our own known technology and scientific understanding. We probably could already construct a probe that eventually could reach the Centauri star system near us. And we could have this probe designed in a way that it contains a 3d printer and once it locates the raw material needed for this 3d printer, then it can print a new copy of itself.

Now extend this slightly in that the probe has a 2 way link, perhaps very slow, light years obviously in distance, but can eventually send and receive information from earth.

Then based on the sensor data collected in Centauri, we can certainly imagine that we can send updated schematics for new designs to print.

Yes this all took 100s of years. But a future technological civilization modeled on us, is likely headed that way.

Lastly, perhaps biology once better mastered, can be manipulated a bit like 3d printing. This could potentially explain reports of humanoid entities. The advanced probes are printing what they observe.

Obviously all this is hypothetical speculation but the point is even biological evidence doesn’t necessarily mean actual original beings that traveled many light years here.

[frede]

There may not be much of a difference left then between machines and biologicals. Generations would alternate like a jellyfish does between polyp and medusa. No need for generation ships.

[alchemist1e9]

I agree, likely no need for generation ships.

Another point I like to make is that the craft we observe, assuming we do, definitely do not need to be the actual interstellar craft, why would they be. We wouldn’t do it like that, why would they. Instead they could be local probes dispatched from another craft, or even local probes manufactured by the master probe.

Lastly, let’s assume we see mach 50 speeds on the craft, that’s still not a significant fraction of the speed of light.

[ASalazarMX]

Self replicating probes, basically spaceship multifactories, is not something trivial to achieve.

[frede]

It becomes easier when science can be millions of years ahead.