We Should Learn To Speak To Dolphins Before Talking To Aliens

To Talk With Aliens, Learn to Speak With Dolphins -- Wired Science

The Kepler Space Telescope announced a new bonanza of distant planets this month, reconfirming that solar systems, some possibly hosting life, are common in the universe.

So if humanity someday arrives at an extraterrestrial cocktail party, will we be ready to mingle? At the Wild Dolphin Project in Jupiter, Florida, researchers train for contact by trying to talk with dolphins.

Behavioral biologist Denise Herzing started studying free-ranging spotted dolphins in the Bahamas more than two decades ago. Over the years, she noticed some dolphins seeking human company, seemingly out of curiosity.

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My Comment: This is a novel idea .... but I am more hopeful that the aliens will be better at communicating to 'us' than 'us' communicating to dolphins.

The Day That Our Communications Grid Died

Artwork showing space debris in low and geostationary Earth orbit. Space debris includes thousands of inactive satellites, fragments of broken up spacecraft and equipment lost by astronauts. This artwork is based on density data, but is not to scale Photo: European Space Agency/Science Photo Library

Space So Full Of Junk That A Satellite Collision Could Destroy Communications On Earth -- The Telegraph

Space is so littered with debris that a collision between satellites could set off an “uncontrolled chain reaction” capable of destroying the communications network on Earth, a Pentagon report warned.

The volume of abandoned rockets, shattered satellites and missile shrapnel in the Earth’s orbit is reaching a “tipping point” and is now threatening the $250 billion (£174bn) space services industry, scientists said.

A single collision between two satellites or large pieces of “space junk” could send thousands of pieces of debris spinning into orbit, each capable of destroying further satellites.

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My Comment: There is a lot of redundancy in our communications grid .... still .... a perfect storm of disruptions could result in severe disruptions that will impact everything .... including our military that is dependent on uninterrupted communication networks.