Or Have We Forgotten Our Place Among the Stars?
I came across this article at Big Think a newsletter that provides counterintuitive, surprising, and impactful stories from an array of industry, education and research leaders. There is a lot of overlap with my article on interstellar travel and related concepts. This article explores the question of whether we are alone in the universe or if there may actually be other beings out there and if they may be reachable across the vastness of space. That vastness is, in my mind, the essential barrier to ever making contact if there are some other intelligent beings out there.
A discussion of “What if we’re alone” is here and I relate it to the Star Gate concept to some extent. The article is worth a read.
When we accept the possibility of a quiet, vacant Universe, we stop looking up and start looking around. We see the brothers and sisters who share this cosmic solitude, and in that recognition, we find the seeds of compassion — a strange and profound form of love.
Albert Camus
Are We Truly Alone? Or Have We Forgotten Our Place Among the Stars?
For centuries, humanity has gazed at the night sky, wondering if we share this vast Universe with others. From ancient myths to modern astronomy, the idea of cosmic neighbors has been an ever-present thought. But what if the silence of the cosmos isn’t just temporary? What if we are, indeed, alone?
A recent article from Big Think explored this unsettling possibility: that despite billions of stars and countless habitable planets, we might be the only intelligent beings in existence. This thought goes against everything we intuitively believe—surely, the Universe is too vast, too old, too rich in opportunity for life to be this rare. Yet, the paradox remains: if life is common, why haven’t we found any evidence of it?
The Fermi Paradox vs. the Stargate Hypothesis
The Fermi Paradox asks this very question: If intelligent life is abundant, where is everyone? One possible answer is the Great Filter, a hypothetical barrier that prevents civilizations from advancing to a stage where they can communicate or travel among the stars. Perhaps intelligent life regularly emerges but inevitably destroys itself before it reaches interstellar capability. Or probably the distances between us are simply insurmountable.
The Stargate franchise offers another, more mythic interpretation: What if civilizations have existed before, but we’ve lost contact with them? What if the Universe isn’t empty, but rather filled with remnants—ruins, long-dead empires, and ancient technologies waiting to be rediscovered?
In Stargate, humanity is not alone but has forgotten its place in a grander cosmic narrative. The movie and TV series posits that Earth was once part of a larger interstellar network, but knowledge of that history was erased or hidden. If the Big Think article presents a lonely cosmos, Stargate offers an alternative: maybe we’ve just misplaced our cosmic invitation.
Cosmic Loneliness and the Role of Mythology
Science fiction and mythology have long served as ways to fill the void left by uncertainty. Ancient cultures populated the heavens with gods, spirits, and celestial beings, much as we now imagine advanced extraterrestrials watching from afar.
- Arthur C. Clarke’s law suggests that “any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” What if past civilizations left technological relics behind that we now mistake for myths?
- The Copernican wound—the idea that humans were “evicted” from the center of the Universe—left a scar on our collective psyche. The realization that we are not at the heart of creation has fueled our search for meaning beyond Earth.
- Stargate’s narrative taps into this longing, blending science fiction with historical mystery. It suggests that what we perceive as gods or myths might be echoes of real, ancient encounters with interstellar civilizations.
This idea is compelling because it offers a third path between the two dominant views of our cosmic situation:
- The Big Think perspective: We are utterly alone, and the Universe is silent.
- The mainstream ETI perspective: Intelligent life is abundant, but we haven’t found it yet.
- The Stargate perspective: Intelligent life has been here before, but we have lost our connection to it. (probably the least likely alternative)
Science, Storytelling, and the Need for the “Other”
Why does the idea of alien life—even fictional—resonate so deeply? Perhaps because, as the Big Think article argues, our identity is shaped by contrast. We define ourselves through relationships—family, culture, species, and, ultimately, how we compare to an “other.”
If no other intelligence exists, humanity becomes an orphan of the cosmos, a singular consciousness adrift in a sea of silence. This solitude is a stark contrast to the Stargate worldview, where our ancestors were part of a thriving, cosmic network. Even if this idea is fiction, it provides a psychological anchor against the void.
- Science fiction as a survival mechanism: Just as early humans created myths to make sense of the unknown, modern sci-fi serves as an existential coping tool.
- AI and synthetic life: Our obsession with creating artificial intelligence might stem from the same desire—to no longer be alone in the Universe, even if we have to build our own companions.
- The search for meaning: Whether through religious belief, scientific exploration, or speculative fiction, humans seek purpose in the vastness. The absence of cosmic neighbors forces us to look inward and decide for ourselves what that purpose should be.
Final Thoughts: Between Fiction and Reality
If we assume the Big Think article is correct—that we are truly alone—then we must wrestle with an enormous responsibility. We are the sole thinking, dreaming, creating species in the observable Universe. That realization could be crushing—or it could be liberating.
But the Stargate hypothesis offers a different perspective: What if the answers are already here, hidden in the past? The idea that we might rediscover an ancient cosmic heritage is as compelling as it is hopeful. Whether or not it’s true, it speaks to a deep, fundamental part of the human spirit—our relentless curiosity and desire to be part of something greater.
So, are we alone? Probably. But perhaps, like the explorers in Stargate, we just haven’t found the right door yet.
