Imagine there is a race of beings that far exceeds humans in intelligence...

[Ebbikenezer]

If they "far exceed" us in intelligence, there's really no debate on the issue.

[yetgdhfgh]

The universe is infinite

anything that can possibly be has been done

Azeroth actually exists so does Coruscant and romulus also there is countless worlds where there is a doppelganger of you

[Deleted]

I'm not sure if far more intelligence is possible. More technology, more lexical knowledge, faster brains, better memory. But how would you describe a higher intelligence beside these?
I think we would be defenseless if they've existed and wanted to use us as food. But a higher intelligence should have their own ways of food producion already that's better than us. Humans are not good for food since we are slow with reproduction compared to animals, also we are intelligent and keeping us would be more bothersome than a chicken that cannot even complain.

[Deleted]

I'm not sure if far more intelligence is possible. More technology, more lexical knowledge, faster brains, better memory. But how would you describe a higher intelligence beside these?
I think we would be defenseless if they've existed and wanted to use us as food. But a higher intelligence should have their own ways of food producion already that's better than us. Humans are not good for food since we are slow with reproduction compared to animals, also we are intelligent and keeping us would be more bothersome than a chicken that cannot even complain.

We have more uses than a chicken. Ever heard about slaves? They weren't complaining too much, weren't they? If you believe that more intelligence is not possible, you are naive. We are actually a pretty stupid species. Don't take credit from the 5% or even less of humanity that brought us where we are today.

How would one describe a higher intelligence? Less instincts especially the tribal ones, more reason, more individuality. Please do not confuse intelligence with crafting. Humans are tool users, tool builders and one of the most intelligent species on earth. But just because we are more intelligent than other species, that doesn't automatically make us worthy of being called intelligent. We are shallow, arrogant, we overestimate ourselves, we judge wrongly. Instead of enjoying living our only life we will ever have, we kill other people for being born in another corner of the world and for any other stupid reason such as different religion or different culture, or political affinity. These are signs of an idiot creature, not a smart one.

[jbombard]

I'm not sure if far more intelligence is possible. More technology, more lexical knowledge, faster brains, better memory. But how would you describe a higher intelligence beside these?
I think we would be defenseless if they've existed and wanted to use us as food. But a higher intelligence should have their own ways of food producion already that's better than us. Humans are not good for food since we are slow with reproduction compared to animals, also we are intelligent and keeping us would be more bothersome than a chicken that cannot even complain.

Or perhaps we lack the intelligence necessary to comprehend the level of intelligence these other beings would have. Frankly if dolphins had bodies capable of tool building, they would have surpassed us already. Really being smarter than man is a pretty low hurdle.

[Deleted]

We have more uses than a chicken. Ever heard about slaves? They weren't complaining too much, weren't they? If you believe that more intelligence is not possible, you are naive. We are actually a pretty stupid species. Don't take credit from the 5% or even less of humanity that brought us where we are today.

How would one describe a higher intelligence? Less instincts especially the tribal ones, more reason, more individuality. Please do not confuse intelligence with crafting. Humans are tool users, tool builders and one of the most intelligent species on earth. But just because we are more intelligent than other species, that doesn't automatically make us worthy of being called intelligent. We are shallow, arrogant, we overestimate ourselves, we judge wrongly. Instead of enjoying living our only life we will ever have, we kill other people for being born in another corner of the world and for any other stupid reason such as different religion or different culture, or political affinity. These are signs of an idiot creature, not a smart one.

If an alien lifeform is so intelligent, why wouldn't they build far stronger, faster and more efficient robots and use us as slaves. I don't see the point. We are not trying to use monkeys to build our skycrapers. We want the best tools. It is either us humans (slaves) or even better robots. If we need strength or speed we may use horses, elephants. But why humans if they are already much higher in technology? We are not that strong or fast.

I think more intelligence is relative like everything else. Depends on your point of view. What is intelligence? I asked if more lexical knowledge, or speed counts. If they are, then more intelligence is possible. What about function? We are most likely capable of everything, but more difficult things take more time. So does brain speed means more or not? i.e. If you would meet and alien and he/she/nonofthem would show you a very difficult mathematical excersice and solve it in 10 seconds in front of you. You would think 'wow this thing is superintelligent!!!'. Would that statment be true, or the alien's brain is just much faster than yours and did the same example you could also do, but 100 times faster.
I think a higher intelligence would mean they can show us something that is impossible to understand for us even if we have infinite time. If we have the parts we can always combine them in less or more time. Till we can't find a task that is impossible for a human brain but possible for a given alien race, then I will accept the existence of their higher intelligence. ie. If they would be 4 dimension creatures while we are 3D and they could think in 4D but we cannot even see it. That is a task our brain couldn't process. If 4D even exists.

I does not count less developed cultures as less intelligent. We use the same words to describe these 'intelligence types', but I count them as less develped still capable of the same instead. If I change my perspective and count a higher educated professor more intelligent than a native of jungle, then yes, higher intelligece exists even between us.

[Viperdream]

We have more uses than a chicken. Ever heard about slaves? They weren't complaining too much, weren't they? If you believe that more intelligence is not possible, you are naive. We are actually a pretty stupid species. Don't take credit from the 5% or even less of humanity that brought us where we are today.

How would one describe a higher intelligence? Less instincts especially the tribal ones, more reason, more individuality. Please do not confuse intelligence with crafting. Humans are tool users, tool builders and one of the most intelligent species on earth. But just because we are more intelligent than other species, that doesn't automatically make us worthy of being called intelligent. We are shallow, arrogant, we overestimate ourselves, we judge wrongly. Instead of enjoying living our only life we will ever have, we kill other people for being born in another corner of the world and for any other stupid reason such as different religion or different culture, or political affinity. These are signs of an idiot creature, not a smart one.

You can't call us stupid until you found a more intelligent specie.

And why wouldn't aliens have the same wars like we had? Maybe they would be even worse. Why would a being with a higher intelligence than us, be better? If they were better, they surely wouldn't eat us.
And if they really were that much smarter, it wouldn't surprise me that they wouldn't even need any food. And just take some pills, made from some common resource, or have food directly injected in their blood via their suit.

[Kalyyn]

You missed the point. The subject of the topic is not about whether we should fight aliens that try to eat us. You are supposed to view the whole thing from the alien's perspective.

Morals are man made things. It's funny to catch human beings being hypocritical about ethics. It makes them feel like shit, which they deserve, since people try to enforce them on you.

Well if we're looking at this from the alien's perspective, then I suppose there are two questions that must be answered: Are humans actually a good source of food, or even decent tasting? And if so, does the resulting food justify the tremendous effort required to subdue and harvest a species that will actively seek new and creative ways to hurt you out of spite?

[Thelxi]

Well, if we are actually those aliens it wouldn't be an analogy any more. It's not a perfect analogy of course, the point is just that we don't automatically find it acceptable to eat something for being less intelligent.

But we do! we are at the absolute top of the food pyramid. There are many humans that consider themselves ethical that eat dogs and horses, some of the most domesticated animals there are.

[thatguy181]

It's a poor argument to convince me to become a vegetarian or even worse, a vegan.

Sorry, i like my meat and animal products. Congratulations to those of you who don't, whether for medical or personal ethics, but don't hate me because I do :P


Anyway, onto the subject at hand. As far as mankind's sense of ethics are concerned, yes, it would be highly unethical. If there is one thing mankind is in full agreement with, it's that mankind, for all our good and evil, is a sentient being.

Will these aliens consider us sentient enough to meet their standards of something that shouldn't be eaten? Will these aliens care? All we know is that they're highly evolved intellectually speaking. If they chose to eat us, there's likely very little we can do to stop them since they're clearly so much more advanced than us so our opinion means very little.

Another thing about humanity? They don't know the meaning of defeat. Desperate times call for desperate measures and all that. They may very well eat us, but we'll go down fighting.

[loganroth51]

Well I think humans as a race will not just be told we are inferior or that we will be used as food, without a fight. Id like to think if that happened that the human race would put aside our differences and try to band together and defend ourselves. Even though the alien race might be more intelligent, that doesn't mean we are all of a sudden stupid, so we would at least be smart enough to be like, oh shit, this don't look good lol and try to do something.

ALSO, just because this race is more intelligent doesn't automatically mean they are smart enough or the means to take down the whole human race. For all you know, this alien race is so intelligent that there brains are the size of cars, hindering them unable to move around, and thus maybe giving us a chance to fight back :P

[Chirri]

This whole thread makes me happy that we're near the edge of our galaxy. Unless we're a galactic experiment (Douglas Adams style), I see us being out in BFE as one of the reasons we're around at the moment.

I guess I'd rather be a pet.

But humans take a while to reproduce and mature, unless they prefer the human version of veal. Of course that assumes that their life spans are anything like ours (or shorter), and that their size vs ours makes our size and abundance worth their while in terms of nutrition or flavor. If they're more long lived than we are, then sure, we'd be easy enough to farm, though I think a bit complicated. Hopefully we taste good enough to make it worth their while... or bad enough to make use more useful as pets/servants.

Who would eventually rebel, fail, rebel again, fail again, and one day just prove too much of a problem to keep. And then we'd be space vermin! Because that's something we'd do quite well once we'd become accustomed to their technology!

[Rooflesstoofless]

Ethicality is relative, so by their standards there might no question that humans can be ethically eaten. By our standards, it would not be ethical, because we do not eat other intelligent/semi-intelligent creatures.

This is one of the best answers (although we still eat hog...and those fatties are smart). I would have the aliens try a well cooked del monico or filet minion steak first. That HAS to taste better than people.

[Powerogue]

Probably not, given how much our own will to survive factors in to our concept of ethics. It'd be ethically right to them probably, but if you ask the people if they're okay being eaten, they're going to say no.

[Heltoray]

no, I can't even begin to list the reasons why this idea is absurd.

[Razorice]

Hah. They wouldn't like me... too much fat

[Albert the fish]

I hope they keep us for pets.

dude if they treat their pets like we do than i could totally handle that.

[crica]

dude if they treat their pets like we do than i could totally handle that.

i know right? get handed my food and given a cushy home to live in...they will clean me and clean up after me and play with me...and i dont even have to work for it all!

hell yah id love to be a pet like my pets!

[Albert the fish]

i know right? get handed my food and given a cushy home to live in...they will clean me and clean up after me and play with me...and i dont even have to work for it all!

hell yah id love to be a pet like my pets!

plus we're intelligent enough(for the most part) that we don't need to get spade/neutered

[Deleted]

Infants are less intelligent than us. We do not eat babies, nor is it ethical to do so.

i consider my adult cat more intelligent than a baby. but then, i'm also her slave and not the other way round! *gg* most humans don't eat babies because it wouldn't be clever to eat the own old age insurance in the first place, and it's cannibalism.

but back to topic, certain clutures eat apes. pigs are quite clever too. whale and dolphin meat also ends up in the plate of many people. many mammal and bird species are very intelligent but are being eaten. humans aren't even the end of the food chain. last i checked, we're the dinner of a tiger and not the other way round. but i'm drifting away now.

i see no difference between them eating us and us eating animals. i just don't like the idea of being on the wrong end of the fork. the answer to the question about ethics is the same for us as it's for aliens.