# Found space object proves we are not alone \[Nothing is proven\] **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 22, 2021, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237 "2021-01-22T20:45:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2021, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/42 "2021-01-22T23:29:24Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > Bonanza? That is all we need. Just wait, the next interstellar object will be named BenCartwright2021. šŸ˜ƒ ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2021, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/43 "2021-01-22T23:34:43Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > Bonanza? That is all we need. Day by day, work or play, ready side by side. Hello friend, come on in, the gate is open wide. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/44 "2021-01-23T01:26:28Z")
> [@rboyce](#): > > You are assuming it is made of ā€œrockā€ ā€œRockā€ is kind of ambiguous. Do you know what the Earthā€™s most abundant element is? ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/45 "2021-01-23T01:44:44Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > If we canā€™t prove that itā€™s not a probe then we need to hold a contest to rename it. Bad idea: the aliens wonā€™t appreciate the humor in Proby McProbeface. ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/46 "2021-01-23T01:54:22Z")
Yes, but they only take issue with the name due to the anatomical error. Now, Proby McProbebutt, on the other handā€¦ ---
**Author:** ![gnarator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gnarator/32/8266_2.png) [@gnarator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnarator)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/47 "2021-01-23T02:57:38Z")
You rang? ---
**Author:** ![PoppaSan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/poppasan/32/189_2.png) [@PoppaSan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoppaSan)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/48 "2021-01-23T05:00:15Z")
Is stupidity an element? Or just an elemental force? As someone considered much brighter than I is rumored to have said > Blockquote > " The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has limits " > -Albert Einstein- ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/49 "2021-01-23T05:17:37Z")
> [@PoppaSan](#): > > Is stupidity an element? No, it is obviously a gauge field force, mediated by gauge bosons which are commonly referred to as ā€œmoronsā€. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/50 "2021-01-23T17:54:04Z")
Their brakes need work. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/51 "2021-01-23T18:02:07Z")
> [@rboyce](#): > > Iā€™ve learned what I needed to learn from this so Iā€™m off to learning something new And what specifically have you learned? if it that what you considered to be evidence for your supposition actually wasnā€™t, then o.kā€¦ If it was that your supposition didnā€™t take hold here and now, so you should maybe try again elsewhere/elsewhen, thenā€¦not so much. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/52 "2021-01-23T18:04:05Z")
Never mind. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/53 "2021-01-23T18:05:41Z")
> [@rboyce](#): > > may we remain assuming different assumptions and still remain friends You are making assumptions that are without evidence, which make them less valuable than those assumptions that are evidenced. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/54 "2021-01-23T18:48:55Z")
The Harvard astronomer is [Avi Leob](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avi_Loeb). His upcoming book is [Extraterrestrial: The First Sign of Intelligent Life Beyond Earth](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extraterrestrial:_The_First_Sign_of_Intelligent_Life_Beyond_Earth). He does not actually assert that [Ź»Oumuamua](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CA%BBOumuamua) is artificial. He just says that there is not enough evidence to rule it out. The really strange aspect of the thing is its movement. As it got closer to the Sun, it seemed to experience a mysterious force, which accelerated it away from the Sun. They found no evidence of gas in its vicinity, so they do not believe that comet outgassing is responsible. The hypothesis is that it is due to solar radiation (a light sail). This fits the data on its trajectory, but requires it to be much less massive than the original estimate. One explanation is that it is solid, but hollow (which gives people hope that it could be artificial). Another explanation is that it is made of stuff with a very low density (in one astronomerā€™s words, ā€œa cosmic dust-bunnyā€). Sadly, I am inclined to favor the second explanation. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/55 "2021-01-23T18:57:48Z")
I hadnā€™t seen anything that positively ruled out outgassing; do you have a source for that? ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/56 "2021-01-23T19:02:59Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > No, it is obviously a gauge field force, mediated by gauge bosons which are commonly referred to as ā€œmoronsā€. So, it was a Pakled probe. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/57 "2021-01-23T19:04:17Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > I hadnā€™t seen anything that positively ruled out outgassing; do you have a source for that? Just a TV interview with Dr. Loeb. He didnā€™t give any details. ---
**Author:** ![gnarator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gnarator/32/8266_2.png) [@gnarator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnarator)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/58 "2021-01-23T20:24:55Z")
Would you stop here? ---
**Author:** ![Galactus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galactus/32/3581_2.png) [@Galactus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Galactus)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/59 "2021-01-23T21:55:36Z")
Theyā€™ve come to chat with the whales. ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/60 "2021-01-23T22:00:03Z")
> [@mbh](#): > > He does not actually assert that [Ź»Oumuamua](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CA%BBOumuamua) is artificial. He just says that there is not enough evidence to rule it out. I have a little dustball in the corner of my office that keeps avoiding the Roomba. Iā€™m not saying that itā€™s sentient, but until I figure out a way of communicating with it, Iā€™m not ruling it out. šŸ™‚ ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237/61 "2021-01-23T22:35:46Z")
You must kill it immediately! Otherwise, its offspring will inherit the Roomba-avoidance gene and suddenly weā€™ll be overrun with a new breed of super dust-bunnies and itā€™ll be the end of civilization as we know it. Wanders off to buy stock in Swifferā€¦ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/found-space-object-proves-we-are-not-alone-nothing-is-proven/931237.md?page=4)