E.T.’s Next Stop in the Galaxy: Beijing?
Scientists from NASA and Pennsylvania State University recently published a scenario analysis which investigates the potential implications of contact with ETIs (extraterrestrial intelligence) and ultimately suggests that alien-human interaction would be harmful to earthly beings, even if the ETI civilization held universalist ethics. The scientists reason that,
given we have already altered our environment in ways that may be viewed as unethical by universalist ETI, it may be prudent to avoid sending any message that shows evidence of our negative environmental impact. The chemical composition of Earth’s atmosphere over recent time may be a poor choice for a message because it would show a rapid accumulation of carbon dioxide from human activity. Likewise, any message that indicates widespread loss of biodiversity or rapid rates of expansion may be dangerous if received by such universalist ETI. On the other hand, advanced ETI may already know about our rapid environmental impact by listening to leaked electromagnetic signals or observing changes in Earth’s spectral signature. In this case, it might be prudent for any message we send to avoid denying our environmental impact so as to avoid the ETI catching us in a lie.
Ironically, reports of UFO activity in China have caught the attention of global news outlets this month, from an “unusual cloud” in Chongqing resulting in the shutdown of Jiangbei International Airport to a super colossal sphere of light seen from Shanghai to Beijing. Even a few days ago- after cheering on Joe Biden’s caravan as it sped through Jianguomen- I gazed up at the night sky to witness two multi-colored triangular shapes hovering overhead. “Military intelligence? Spy technology? Alien armchair politicians? A sale at Uniqlo?” I pondered. “Just a few kites,” I was told. Still, I wonder… After spending the past week in Beijing, unable to run outside or breathe through my nose or open my eyes all the way without crying, I suspect that- given this scenario analysis is correct and ETIs do in fact exist (and we’d be arrogant to think that they don’t)- China will be their first stop on Earth once they figure out how to navigate through the dull gray scourge that blankets it. Disclaimer: I had not been back to Beijing since Nov. 2002- not since that fateful day when I’d abruptly decided to leave my home in Shandong for my home in New York. Beijing is not China to me. Beijing is the headliner for horror stories- the black jails and bird flu and that unknown incident in a famous square. And on a personal level, Beijing is a dream derailed and a relationship soured; I’d stayed South ever since. My return was thus laced with a small dose of PTSD and my expectations- save for a trek on the Great Wall- were quite low.
And so, I should not have been surprised when- after going through immigration at Beijing Capital Airport, past all the signs reminding me that I too am an alien, and emerging into the dusk- I instantly felt a grip on my lungs. All the air quality index tweets and blog photos of pollution stew could not have prepared me for this. Was I having a panic attack? Were past memories triggering a physical meltdown? Nope. Just a concoction of oxides, compounds and particulates asphyxiating my life force, suppressing the most important activity we humans do every single second of every day. Breathe. This simple oversight- never mind all of the other issues that China now contends with- makes mention of China as a “developed country” laughable. Thankfully, as an alien, I have the option of leaving when I want to, when my body breaks down and demands clean air. The vast majority of the residents of Beijing- the children especially- do not. A city can have all of the Bugatti dealerships and Gucci stores it desires, but if it cannot provide its populace with clean air to breathe and safe food to eat, then its leaders aren’t doing such a great job.
This brings me back to the ETIs. As a guilt-ridden American expat in Asia, I have generally tried to be sensitive about openly criticizing a government which is not my own. And yet, when an issue directly impacts the future of this planet- a planet that we have to share whether or not we agree with each others views- that issue (severe pollution and global warming in this case) becomes collective business independent of politics, citizenship or race. The NASA scenario analysis goes on to state:
“Humanity may just now be entering the period in which its rapid civilizational expansion could be detected by an ETI because our expansion is changing the composition of the Earth’s atmosphere, via greenhouse gas emissions, which therefore changes the spectral signature of the Earth. While it is difficult to estimate the likelihood of this scenario, it should at a minimum give us pause as we evaluate our expansive tendencies.
Instead of waiting for an intergalactic savior or foe to intervene, perhaps it is time to take a good, hard look at what development and nationalism actually mean in the face of a planet that we all rely on for the continuance of our own species. That said, if a UFO does decide to make an appearance on the ground anytime soon, my official bet is on Beijing… the roads are wide and Tiananmen would make a great landing field.
Do you think that the global community has a right to put more pressure on China for its environmental situation? Where do the boundaries lie? If aliens did invade our planet and threaten to destroy us if we did not clean up our act, would we? Have your say in the comments section.
Great post, Aimee! I have also been reluctant to criticize. After all China is still developing. Yet I am also quite sure that, even at its worst, Los Angeles was never as polluted as Beijing is today — which is a real shame since Beijing is quite an enjoyable and intellectually stimulating place to hang out. Were it not for the state of its environment, I would probably be living there now. Still, The US is far ahead of China in terms of greenhouse gases emitted on a per capita basis.
As for NASA’s projections, I think it is pretty arrogant of us to assume that extraterrestrials will breathe oxygen and prefer an average temperature of 72F. (Maybe they’ll also speak English!
Who’s to say that ET may not have already passed us by because our planet is way too cold and there isn’t enough chlorine gas in the atmosphere?
the only people who should not complain about china’s environments are the ones who are buying the products made in china .. which is all of us.
we are all culpable.
as for et’s they are already here, have been for centuries … many are in human bodies. just ask your local mystic.
@G.E. Anderson
Greg, thanks for the comment. You know, I’ve always made a point NOT to point a finger at China, especially since my own country isn’t exactly perfect. But, the pollution that China’s producing is truly a global issue- gregorylent makes an excellent point in highlighting the fact that we’re all culpable here. I’ve never experienced LA pollution at its height, but I thought Manila was pretty bad, as well as Jinan in the early 00′s. Beijing today really takes the cake.
Regarding your comment on arrogant assumptions, I remember reading commentary from a scientist a few months ago who said something along the lines of “why do people think that UFOs have flashing lights?” I believe many hope they’ll be just like us… except smarter… and more savior-like… and that is a problem.
@gregorylent
gregorylent, you constantly push me to think while simultaneously instilling a sense of normalcy and I really hope you’ll blog again or write in a public forum soon. We are all culpable- that is for sure. So, where does that leave us? What is the solution (is there a solution?) aside from decimating overall production and consumption by replacing capitalism with another model, like a resource-based economy or parecon society or some transhuman economy or, etc. etc. etc. (they all also have flaws).
It is really Western culture that shuns the idea of ETIs existing…or on Earth already. Don’t Hindu vedas teach that there are infinite planets and parallel universes and hundreds of thousands of beings? And in most of Asia, reports like the ones in China recently are treated as factual, relevant news items. Why do the young civilizations always think they’re right- like teenagers! Anyway, I am obviously a believer- to me, the forms and possibilities seem limitless and largely unexplainable. Thank you for your comment!
Hi Aimee,
I think the problem with the question you pose is that it assumes that China is responsible for the pollution it produces. As a commenter before me has pointed out, China is at worst only partly responsible for the pollution because we, as consumers of the goods produced by China, help perpetuate the pollution. It’s also worth noting that foreign corporations are responsible for over half of the manufacturing output of China.
But regardless of where the blame properly lies, I don’t think the solution to China’s pollution problem is to somehow slow down or even stop China’s development. Ideally, we should instead be helping China (and all the other developing countries for that matter) to reach developed status as quickly as possible because, ultimately, the solution to the global environmental problems that we all face will be found in the technological progress that comes with advanced economies, not economic austerity. And while we’re here, LA has been mentioned as a point of reference to show how bad the current state of Beijing is, and I think it’s worth noting that London was literally covered in soot during the Industrial Revolution – that would be a more appropriate comparison with modern day Beijing and Beijing doesn’t come out too bad in that match-up.
And your post reminded me of this article: http://news.ucsc.edu/2010/09/planet.html
Aside from picking on my favorite city in the world I liked the post. You highlight why I try to stay out of Beijing in summer when the pollution mixes with the humidity, the sad fact, I still think Beijing is outside the top ten for most polluted cities in China. While it may not of seemed like it, according to the experts, the measured pollutants are declining, heading west to Inner Mongolia, Gansu, etc as factories and pollution along with economic activity continually moves west.
In terms of worrying, at this point I would be worried about the United States, who produces 80% more CO2 per capita than China and India, the 1.2 billion behemoth that nobody pays attention to. China seems to be ground zero for some of the smartest minds and some of the most innovative experimentation in terms of cleaner energy, urban policy and pollution mitigation. Sure we all buy goods from China, I joke that the blame should be on Europe, for the industrial revolution, for making the US the factory of the world in 20th Century and greatest emitter ever of CO2, and now for making China the factory of the world.
Yep. And we wouldn’t. Great article. You should write some books.