If you've noticed, there's a new show on Discovery called "Into the Universe with Steven Hawking." In one of the episodes Hawking discusses his opinion on alien lifeforms in the universe and if intelligent aliens were to visit Earth.
Hawking believes that the aliens to visit Earth would only be interested in our planet/sun for it's resources and most likely will declare war on us. The only way, he thinks, aliens would travel great distances is in vast armies of ships, traveling from planet to planet, collecting whatever resources and sucking it dry.
Steven Hawking is certainly a smart guy, but I don't buy it. An armada of ships traveling great distances does not seem very logical to me.
1.) It would take a lot more resources to supply than a single ship.
2.) It is possible to create artificial world-ships. If you've played Halo then you know what I'm talking about. If you put a spin on something in space, you can create a sort of artificial gravity, which would allow you to do just about anything we can do from Earth. Which would make the need to suck a planet dry, unnecessary.
3.) I find it unlikely that the only determinable source of energy for vast space travels would be a star. Yes, stars are powerful, but what's even more power is making your own star. With fusion reactor technology being worked on right now on Earth, I think aliens should be able to develop and perfect the technology. It would essentially be the same as creating your own star. Remember Dr. Oc's power generator thing in Spider Man 2? That's essentially what I'm talking about.
4.) We've noticed how societies develop through evolution. By being nice to your neighbor and helping them out, you both survive a little better than you would going it alone. So, why not do the same for intergalactic societies? By working together with humans, the aliens could learn about our world and the possible microscopic dangers that might affect them (as in War of the Worlds) if they were to visit. We could teach each other the things we've discovered about the universe and conquer it, as well as possible multiverse travel. The benefits of working together seem to be greater than war.
In my opinion, Hawking is stuck with the idea that aliens would be somewhat like us today. Since the birth of this country we've been in war after war with seemingly no end. Perhaps other life forms would do the same, but I'd think by the time they're exploring the universe, they will have finally learned the basics of moral behavior (unlike our poor species). I'm sorry Mr. Hawking, but I think SETI should keep at it a little longer.
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