The creative minds who fill movies and TV shows with angry aliens will soon be defending their vision of these extraterrestrial antagonists at SETIcon, a public event sponsored by the SETI Institute. The Institute is known for its science-based search for radio signals that would betray the existence of intelligent beings on distant worlds. SETIcon will take place June 22 through 24 in the heart of the Silicon Valley, and will feature a celebrity banquet honoring Jill Tarter who, for the last 35 years, has led the search for extraterrestrial intelligence at the SETI Institute.
Tickets are available now at http://seticon.com/
Aliens are exceptionally well represented at the local multiplex this spring. Hostile invaders, tipped off by an overly enthusiastic broadcast from Earth, try to sink a lot of naval hardware in “Battleship;” domestic extraterrestrials give headaches to urbane government agents in “Men in Black III;” and fans of the “Alien” films finally get the back story of Ridley Scott’s toothy terror in the famous director’s prequel, “Prometheus.”
“Often the aliens of science fiction say more about us than they do about themselves,” said Jill Tarter, who announced on May 22nd that she was stepping down as Director of the Center for SETI Research. “While Sir Stephen Hawking warned that alien life might try to conquer or colonize Earth, I respectfully disagree. If aliens were able to visit Earth that would mean they would have technological capabilities sophisticated enough not to need slaves, food, or other planets. If aliens were to come here it would be simply to explore. Considering the age of the universe, we probably wouldn’t be their first extraterrestrial encounter, either. We should look at movies like ‘Men in Black III,’ ‘Prometheus’ and ‘Battleship’ as great entertainment and metaphors for our own fears, but we should not consider them harbingers of alien visitation.”
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