# Voyager 1 - Did anyone argue against the info disc? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 6, 2012, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622 "2012-08-06T15:59:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![BlinkingDuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eada6e/32.png) [@BlinkingDuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlinkingDuck)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/61 "2012-08-09T20:37:59Z")
I think what people underestimate is the value of just having an inhabitable planet. Inhabitable planets are most likely pretty rare in the cosmos and multicelled life that does exist probably ‘likes’ much the same things…water, oxygen atmosphere, carbon based, etc etc and probably likes about the same tempatures. An Earth might look tasty to them just because it is inhabitable. ---
**Author:** ![Kenm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bc79bd/32.png) [@Kenm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kenm)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/62 "2012-08-09T22:28:07Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > It was pointed out a decade or two ago that if the earth exploded, only 3 names would survive - written on a plaque on the moon are “we came in peace for all mankind - Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and president Richard M. Nixon”. Oh, and on that Voyager disc there’s a recording of UN’s Kurt Waldheim identifying himself and inviting aliens to come visit us… > > That’s our legacy to aliens. Great. Richard Nixon and a Nazi. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/63 "2012-08-10T03:26:38Z")
> [@Kenm](#): > > Great. Richard Nixon and a Nazi. If they can somehow decode our TV transmissions then \*Adolf Hitler \*will be the first human they see. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/64 "2012-08-10T14:26:26Z")
> [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](#): > > In the unlikely event the Voyagers are intercepted, it will almost certainly be millions, or even billions of years from now, by which time human concerns will be either nonexistent or very, very different. True, but suppose it just happens to crash on the moon of some planet and is later discovered by the equivalent of our 1960’s space exploration program (perhaps without hyper-paranoid government involvement). Yeah, aerobic life may be entirely extinct on Earth by that time, but someone will know for damn sure that ET life is not just a very valid hypothesis–it’s a certainty. Could be inspiring. Ridiculously long odds is a very generous assessment, obviously, but the only way we could affect such a civilization more predictably would be to send nothing at all. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/65 "2012-08-10T15:17:37Z")
> [@Inigo\_Montoya](#): > > Yeah, aerobic life may be entirely extinct on Earth by that time, but someone will know for damn sure that ET life is not just a very valid hypothesis–it’s a certainty. Could be inspiring. I agree. I think sending the disk was a good thing. My argument is with people who think it’s a near-term danger. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/66 "2012-08-10T16:46:44Z")
> [@](#): > > I think what people underestimate is the value of just having an inhabitable planet. Inhabitable planets are most likely pretty rare in the cosmos and multicelled life that does exist probably ‘likes’ much the same things…water, oxygen atmosphere, carbon based, etc etc and probably likes about the same tempatures. An Earth might look tasty to them just because it is inhabitable. More likely, they’d notice that a fifth of our atmosphere is made up of one of the most corrosive substances known, and permanently write off Earth as insanely inhospitable for Life as They Know it, possibly with the occasional sample taken for study of the bizarre extremophile organisms that manage to survive it. ---
**Author:** ![BlinkingDuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eada6e/32.png) [@BlinkingDuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlinkingDuck)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/67 "2012-08-13T15:59:33Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > More likely, they’d notice that a fifth of our atmosphere is made up of one of the most corrosive substances known, and permanently write off Earth as insanely inhospitable for Life as They Know it, possibly with the occasional sample taken for study of the bizarre extremophile organisms that manage to survive it. And what would this extraterrestrial breathe? ---
**Author:** ![AndrewL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@AndrewL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndrewL)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/68 "2012-08-13T16:34:42Z")
> [@BlinkingDuck](#): > > And what would this extraterrestrial breathe? Helium, of course. It’s a safe, non-reactive gas to carry away the waste heat from the radioisotopes that power their metabolism. ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/69 "2012-08-13T16:39:49Z")
> [@BlinkingDuck](#): > > And what would this extraterrestrial breathe? This is a good question. Sure, many organisms, maybe even most if you went by weight\*, don’t like Oxygen, but are there any examples of multicellular animals that don’t use Oxygen? I’d expect intelligent animals to be much much more likely to use Oxygen than typical life. - I have no real clue. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/70 "2012-08-13T17:29:27Z")
Are the songs from Voyager available on CD, BTW, just as they were recorded on the golden record? I’d love to have a copy. ---
**Author:** ![standingwave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@standingwave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/standingwave)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/71 "2012-08-13T17:41:27Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Are the songs from Voyager available on CD, BTW, just as they were recorded on the golden record? I’d love to have a copy. The audio was included as a [CD-ROM companion to the book, Murmurs from Earth](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voyager_Golden_Record#Publications). ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/72 "2012-08-13T18:19:21Z")
Little known fact\* At the last minute the intended content of the disk was replaced with snippets of cheap 50’s alien monster movies and songs about killing aliens. - Complete lie. ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/73 "2012-08-13T18:29:12Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > Little known fact\* At the last minute the intended content of the disk was replaced with snippets of cheap 50’s alien monster movies and songs about killing aliens. > > - Complete lie. Didn’t Rick Astley record “Never Gonna Give You Up” just for the occasion? ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/74 "2012-08-13T18:44:03Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > More likely, they’d notice that a fifth of our atmosphere is made up of one of the most corrosive substances known, and permanently write off Earth as insanely inhospitable for Life as They Know it, possibly with the occasional sample taken for study of the bizarre extremophile organisms that manage to survive it. Not to mention, in addition, that this toxic planet we call home is bathed in that uber-nasty DHMO stuff. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/75 "2012-08-13T20:38:10Z")
> [@Inigo\_Montoya](#): > > True, but suppose it just happens to crash on the moon of some planet and is later discovered by the equivalent of our 1960’s space exploration program (perhaps without hyper-paranoid government involvement). Yeah, aerobic life may be entirely extinct on Earth by that time, but someone will know for damn sure that ET life is not just a very valid hypothesis–it’s a certainty. Could be inspiring. > > Ridiculously long odds is a very generous assessment, obviously, but the only way we could affect such a civilization more predictably would be to send nothing at all. This is also the most likely scenario for humanity to become aware of an extraterrestrial civiliation. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/76 "2012-08-13T21:17:18Z")
No, the odds of it surviving any multi-million year voyage in any kind of recognizable condition and landing where a sentient race could find it, then being traced to…_anywhere_, then having recognizable humans being contacted by whatever species find it. Are _ **astronomical** _😛 ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2012, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/77 "2012-08-14T01:14:35Z")
> [@standingwave](#): > > The audio was included as a [CD-ROM companion to the book, Murmurs from Earth](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voyager_Golden_Record#Publications). Hmm, thanks - I’ll look for that. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2012, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/78 "2012-08-14T01:24:23Z")
> [@Captain\_Morgan](#): > > According to astronomer Frank Drake, there were many negative reactions to the plaque because the human beings were displayed naked." Would those people have been happier if the man was wearing a white flared disco suit? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2012, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/79 "2012-08-14T01:35:38Z")
> [@Frodo](#): > > Intelligent life forms?, perhaps they need slave labor to work in their interplanetary sweatshop chain? Or the stamplicking colonies. ---
**Author:** ![standingwave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@standingwave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/standingwave)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2012, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622/80 "2012-08-14T02:18:45Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Hmm, thanks - I’ll look for that. It also contains 116 encoded images [which can be seen here](http://webodysseum.com/art/116-images-of-the-voyager-golden-record/). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/voyager-1-did-anyone-argue-against-the-info-disc/630622.md?page=5)