Extraterrestrial First Contact: How Scientists Could Lead the Gatekeeping Effort

http://www.firstcontact29.blogspot.com/

High information contact with an extraterrestrial civilization would provide many challenges for humanity. As usual, I am not suggesting that any such contact has occurred. I have seen no evidence that intelligent extraterrestrials even exist. However, on this blog I examine the issues that could be raised if the event does occur. I operate on the assumption that this hypothetical extraterrestrial meeting occurs in our Solar System, making high information contact possible, and that any extraterrestrial representatives we meet can communicate in at least one of the human languages, and have had time to research the basics of our society. I know those are a lot of assumptions on my part. Narrowing the topic is the only way to have this discussion.

In such a situation, human governmental leaders would need to take charge of diplomacy and communication. But there would be an important role for scientists, aside from the front end of operating observation and communications technology. High information means that extraterrestrial representatives share what they know about science and technology, to whatever degree. This would require a cautious approach by humanity. Not only could alien information be tough for us to understand, but it could cause major disruptions to human society. So, I have proposed in past blog posts that:

     A. Humans would need to go to school, starting with the alien basics, looking for commonalities as a starting point.

B.  Humans would need an information firewall with a system of gatekeepers to decide what information can be shared with the general Earth population.

I know this is a controversial proposal. Many people would call for unfettered access to alien information. I have two responses to that way of thinking. First, unless the aliens have already processed such communication, so that we can understand their information, it would not do us much good. We would have to develop ways of understanding what they are telling us. A small group of academics would need to be chosen in specific fields, to learn and synthesize. Second, alien information could undermine the foundations of human science. It would need to be handled carefully.

I want to go into more depth about how this could be done. I suggest that humans could utilize the non-profit organization, Science International, for building the framework for information review and dissemination. Science International is an initiative by three largest international science organizations:

International Science Council (ISC)

Forty international scientific Unions and Associations and over 140 national and regional scientific organizations including Academies and Research Councils.

The Inter Academy Partnership (IAP)

A global network consisting of over 140 national and regionals academies of science, engineering, and medicine.

The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS)

A merit-based science academy established for developing countries, uniting 1,000 scientists in some 70 countries.

These groups have each experienced several changes in the last 10 years. There has been a movement towards consolidation of international science organizations. Science International is the effort to connect the three largest organizations on joint projects. Initiatives thus far have included a program to help displaced scientists and a push for open data to aid in research. The development of a gatekeeping framework for alien information review would be a huge leap in responsibility for Science International. The entire structure of such a project would have to be created from scratch. Science International is simply a starting place for such an effort.

I propose that an independent panel be formed by the three organizations that make up Science International, with representatives from the major areas of science. The group should be independent of the United Nations, but in consultation with the UN and, in particular, the Secretary General and the UN Security Council. Science International should develop the framework with input from professional science organizations from across the globe. The final vote on the framework should be conducted in the General Assembly. Nations need to ultimately decide how things move forward. The goal would be to make such an organization as efficient as possible, and to avoid in-fighting and gridlock.

There would be many dynamics at work in such a situation. China, Russia, and the United States would probably try to control things, perhaps through the UN Security Council. Meanwhile, UN professionals would be trying to exert influence and grow their mission. Corporations and other groups would try to exert influence. It will be a cacophony of demands and requests. Science International would have to build a bubble of sorts to shut out that din.

The humans who are learning about alien information and making the decisions about how it should be shared would need to be carefully insulated from the rest of the world. Each representative would need to temporarily resign their professional positions and agree to decide matters objectively. They would need to be paid for their work and not receive outside money from any other group or organization. The potential for leaks and other types of corruption would be incredibly high. A great deal of effort would be required to keep the process free of influence from governments, corporations, religions, and other human groups.

Is that too big a job for an organization as new as Science International? Perhaps. It would be up to the three parent science organizations to provide the expertise, funding, and other support to build the new system from the ground-up. But Science International would be a great place for the process to start.

Photo by Michael Dziedzic on Unsplash

http://www.firstcontact29.blogspot.com/