Yes and no. I'm basing my conclusions on both mathematical and logical statistics. We know for a fact intelligent life evolved once (see: planet earth). So it's already not impossible. Statistically speaking, if it can happen once, it can happen again. Our universe is huge. Impossibly huge. We humans can't comprehend how big it is, and we probably never will. There has to be more intelligent life out there. I don't see how it's possible that we're the only ones, and I'm quite sure that the vast majority of scientists would agree.
The only people in my family who seem to take issue are my Dad (a Hazzan), and my mom's dad (a Deacon). The rest seem absolutely fine with it.
And here's why I'm not an agnostic:
http://www.merriam-w...ionary/agnostic
I do not hold any view that ultimate reality is unknown and unknowable. In fact, while I agree it may not be currently known, I in fact think it is most definitely knowable. I also am NOT unwilling to commit to a position.
Here is what I say, specifically, about God and the supernatural:
I do not rule out the possibility that my mind can be changed. If future evidence suggests that there is a higher power, then I will change my mind most readily. That said, my understanding of our universe (based on studying astronomy, cosmology, physics, biology, etc) leads me to conclude that any sort of creator is entirely unnecessary. Therefore, I lack belief in any form of higher power (or am otherwise skeptical).
I believe the position is known as "weak atheism" or "agnostic atheism".
I do admit that if definitive evidence of a creator came about, I'd most likely be a Jew. I love the culture and the civilization. So I'm no anti-theist (I was when I first lost my faith, mostly just out of anger that I lost my faith). I honestly don't care what anyone believes, as long as they don't try and force it on me, and, unlike some, I'm not interested in "spreading atheism" (which I think is incredibly stupid, quite frankly, especially since the lack of proselytizing is what first endeared me to Judaism). I am, however, quite vocally outspoken against religious radicalism (creationism, Sharia Law, religious-inspired bigotry, etc) and do in fact support anti-theism in response to religious radicalism (because while you can't fight fire with fire, you also can't put out a raging inferno with a light drizzle).
Although I do think I'm starting to pull this thread off-topic. Sorry...
Perhaps we should move to a private conversation or start a new thread if you want to continue with this?
Fair enough.
No.
Light speed is the cosmic speed limit. From everything we know, it is literally impossible to go faster.
The closest star to our solar system (that is not the sun) is Proxima Centauri. It is 4.2421 light years, or 2.49371841 x 1013 miles, away. Currently, the fastest vehicles we have are the twin Helios spacecraft currently in orbit around the sun. Using their fastest speed, it would take 18,110 years to get there from here (or from here to there). The reason light speed is basically an impossible speed barrier to break is because as matter goes faster, its mass increases. In order to reach light speed, we would need a rocket many times the size of our solar system burning more fuel than is estimated to exist in our entirely solar system... indeed, burning more fuel than our sun burns. Even if we were thousands of years ahead in technology, it would be impossible (the reason light can reach that speed is because photons basically have no mass, so there's no mass to increase).
Yes, there are other ideas... wormholes, warp drives, etc. But none of these are currently technologically possible for us, and even Michio Kaku and Stephen Hawking have trouble seeing how it could ever be done. The amount of energy required would be ridiculously massive... making a supernova look non-existent by comparison, in fact. And there's no way of knowing what damage such a thing could do to the fabric of spacetime (and therefore existence), so even if it was possible, the question would then be, is it really worth the (possible) risks?
We are currently not technology capable of understanding anything that could come from so far away. If the human species lasts long enough, I promise you that our great-great-great-...-great-grandchildren will likely not be alive to see the day we actually "make contact" with other life. We are currently just too primitive, and will be for an extremely long time.
Let's be realistic for now and just look forward to landing the first man on Mars, perhaps a colonization on the Moon, and private/commercial flights into space. Those are more realistic goals with our current level of technology, and I can guarantee that most of us on this board will be alive to see at least 2 out of those 3 goals, if not all 3 (in fact, I would not be surprised if Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, and John Paul Jones live to see the first man on Mars... it will likely happen within the next decade).
No, don't worry. Our TV/Radio signals die out before they even leave our solar system, so I Love Lucy will most likely never be heard/seen by anyone out there.