Questions To Ask An Alien

sphenisc said:
http://mathworld.wolfram.com/search/index.cgi?num=&q=Conjecture&start=10

This lists 571 mathematical conjectures, many of which appear to be unproved or in some cases there is doubt about the proof. I guess any of these would do.
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This sort of answer has always annoyed me. Why would you expect them to know proofs to these things, just because they are aliens? And would knowing such things prove they are alien? It could just be the person you're talking to has finally found a long-sought after solution, no aliens needed.

If I was looking for something to prove it's an alien, I'd first ask how it got here. If the answer is any version of FTL, then I'd ask them to predict the next major Supernova or gamma ray burster, which there's no way someone on Earth could accurately predict.

If it's something other than FTL, I might ask them to do something really dramatic out in space, just to show they're actually there. Nuke Mars, or something....
 
Since we're assuming that the alien would be brighter than the rest of us, perhaps ask them how quickly they can solve a 5 dimensional Rubik's Cube. (Believe it or not, 3 people already solved it in the first few months it was out. :eye-poppi)
 
Question Time?

I'm afraid the earthling might be saying, "Wait, please--I'm sentient like you--I have feelings! No--help!"

And the visitor from space hears, "Squeak, squeak!"
 
toddjh said:
Or here.
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I'd ask them about their technological advances. Immortality, ways to make myself many orders of magnitude smarter etc. Surely, if they can get here they'd have figured that stuff out long ago.
I'd ask them about their history, where they're from and the question that De Bunk beat me to asking.
 
Have you come back to collect the Indigo children you dropped off in my house cos they're REALLY starting to annoy me.
 
HidariMak said:
Since we're assuming that the alien would be brighter than the rest of us...
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Wrong. We would be assuming that the alien knows more than the rest of us; the alien could well be less intelligent than the rest of us. Greater knowledge and accomplishments do not inherently imply greater intelligence; they may result solely from greater experience and opportunity. Call this the "Forrest Gump Postulation."

So, what would you ask Forrest Gump, to find out whether he was from another world?
 
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How about asking for a simple undiscovered theory or idea. One idea that came in the 1960s was chaos theory.

A good one would be to ask for some advanced technology. Or some DNA.
 
Beady said:
So, what would you ask Forrest Gump, to find out whether he was from another world?
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That makes it very difficult. The alien that arrives here might not have a clue as to how their spaceship works, 'home' might be where the autopilot will direct the spaceship if you hit the orange pentagonal button and he was never very good at math in school, either.

Maybe the average ailien just carries around some neat techuical gadget that would at least be very convincing evidence.
 
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