1 Scientist Adam: So. A real life Martian. We have to announce this to the world!
2 Scientist Jamie: Yes, a discovery of this magnitude is too scientifically important to conceal. The world must know!
3 Scientist Jamie: Think of the change of perspective this will generate for the human condition!
4 Scientist Adam: I was thinking of the money we can make on the talk show circuit.

I've thought often about what would happen if/when we discover proof of extraterrestrial life. It's very hard to predict what changes it might make to society.

There's the grand feeling that we'd all suddenly know for sure that we weren't alone in the vastness of the universe and the feeling that this would inevitably usher in some sea change in the human condition and the collective psyche of the entire planet.

And then there's the feeling that the person in the street would just shrug and get on with their day to day life, and not really give it a second thought after the initial announcement.

The truth would probably be somewhere in between, but that's a really big continuum to play around in.

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2023-10-25 Rerun commentary: I'm talking about just the knowledge that life is out there somewhere. Of course, if we also had proof that it was intelligent aliens visiting Earth, that would probably change a lot more people's lives.