What would you do if you saw an alien?

[Piatzin]

Title says it all.

However, elaborate on what type of alien/what the situation is. E.g, 'what would you do if you saw a vaguely alien-like UFO in the distance,' or 'what would you do if you saw an alien ship land in your backyard.' Etc.

Personally, if I saw a UFO, but never found out what it actually was, I'd most likely live in a tormented state of desperate curiosity for the rest of my life. If I saw an actual alien while alone in the forest, or, say, in my room, then I'd probably end up running away screaming. If it was in a public place, with other people around, then I might actually gather the courage to approach. Hopefully

(The above photo was edited in GIMP. Sadly, the UFO is not real  *sad face*)

[NSEP]

Take a photograph with an actual camera (not a potato). Also, if i saw a UFO, i would have to think about on what it should be, UFO's aren't just aliens and secret aircraft, UFO's can also be birds, but you just can't exactly identify what it is because you are too far away.

If i saw an actual alien, i would photograph and film it. If i could i would kill it and call the police so they can research it, but i don't know what would happend afterwards.

If i was the alien myself on another planet, i would offer the natives resources like salt, metal, and tools.

[Nikolai]

Assuming that it was a close encounter of the third kind (face-to-whatever contact), and assuming that I had the wherewithal to think clearly, I'd ask for evidence that I could take with me that he/she/it/they was an interstellar visitor.  It wouldn't have to be any kind of super-technological artifact, even -- I'd be content with a rock with no evidence of meteoric heating that unambiguously dated to eight billion years old, for example.

I have to admit that it would be relatively easy for me to dismiss close encounters of the first and second kinds as tricks played on me by my senses.

[Piatzin]

15 minutes ago, NSEP said:

If i could i would kill it and call the police so they can research it, but i don't know what would happend afterwards.

Kill it?

[Nuke]

have a bbq

[NSEP]

29 minutes ago, Earthlinger said:

Kill it?

If there was a way to just temporarily it shut down i would prefer that rather than to kill it. But if there was a thing right in front of me that could me pretty much everything, that suddenly appeared, i would want to have a break and think of a plan.

[A Soviet Tank]

I'd say "heyups mate" and if it tried to attack me i'd just run away. If it was friendly we'd have a cracking time. 

[kerbiloid]

1 hour ago, Earthlinger said:

what would you do if you saw a vaguely alien-like UFO in the distance

First time when this happened I stayed on the home roof till the morning trying to watch it again with binoculars.
It was an orange round spot with a plane-like silouette inside, keeping more or less same position for a while.  Not a plane.

Second time it was a milky-white rounded triangle which quickly passed above our heads, so I just silently looked how it flies away, then went down from the balcony to take my things and go to the train station, as it was the very end of my working shift.

If 20 years ago there were smartphones, I would try to make a photo.

1 hour ago, Earthlinger said:

if you saw an alien ship land in your backyard

I would expressively say bad words to repair my Courage parameter and clean the voice.

1 hour ago, Earthlinger said:

The above photo was edited in GIMP.

That's obvious. The Moon looks too strange, probably it was photoshopped into the photo.

1 hour ago, Earthlinger said:

Kill it?

Of course, this is a private property. No trespassing.
First shoot, then begin drawing that Pythagoras theoreme, planet system and other stuff.

 

P.S.
I was playing Spore, including its Space phase. Terraforming, species kidnapping, so on.
So I clearly see what freaks are driving the flying saucers, and what are those idiotic jokes with crop circles and tractor beams.

[Piatzin]

14 minutes ago, kerbiloid said:

That's obvious. The Moon looks too strange, probably it was photoshopped into the photo.

Lol

I'm actually quite proud of the original photo. (Just imagine it without the UFO). None of it is colour corrected, or edited in any way. The UFO is the single alteration

[Red Shirt]

I would assume an actual alien that traveled through space and time to visit would not be packing a "To Serve Man" cookbook. Though possible as a researcher, probing and tagging might not be entirely out of the picture, I wouldn't be too concerned. I would not run towards the ship or crew. I've seen Fire In The Sky. Running towards is a bad idea. I probably would quietly sit out in the open and observe, while waiting for the alien to notice and initiate contact. Unlike the rest of you I would not take a picture as I don't know how to use my phone for pictures. Maybe I should learn - just in case.

Edited November 27, 2017 by Red Shirt

[adsii1970]

Simple. I'd ask them if I could go with them, providing...

52 minutes ago, Red Shirt said:

I would assume an actual alien that traveled through space and time to visit would not be packing a "To Serve Man" cookbook.

[Edited by adsii1970]

 

[KSK]

For a face-to-face meeting?

Pick my jaw off the floor, try to dial back the goofy grin a bit and then welcome them to Planet Earth.  Hoping to goodness they've studied our body language and social gestures in advance so that, for example, an offer to shake hands doesn't inadvertently cause an interstellar war.

Making First Contact would be just incredible. I subscribe to the notion that any species advanced enough to pay us a visit in person is most likely going to be friendly (and if they're not, a species capable of interstellar travel is going to  kerbstomp us anyway if it comes to a stand-up fight), so yeah - I'd be more afraid of goofing up than anything else.

[DAL59]

Clap the prime numbers!

[kerbiloid]

11 minutes ago, KSK said:

for example, an offer to shake hands doesn't inadvertently cause an interstellar war.

Of course, it doesn't. It's a universal (in any sence) gesture of piece and friendship.
It means: "Let's rip off our right tentacles and cook a ritual lunch eating each other's one".
Oh, btw, they can regenerate tentacles, so there is nothing violent in this cute ritual. So, it's very profane and ignorant to reject.

Edited November 27, 2017 by kerbiloid

[DarkOwl57]

Well, if this creature isn't trying to destroy me, then I'd probably head outside and chat. Hopefully, it would go something like this:

 

Me: "Uh.... hi? Who are you?"

Alien: *Incomprehensible gibberish noises*

Me: "Uh.. Cool I guess? I'm a human from the Planet Earth, which you happen to be inhabiting. You're in a small town in an area called the Rolling Plains in West Texas. It's really hot here, except in the winters when it's really cold. Like.. Freeze your a-.... Oh wait you don't have those.. Well never mind; Welcome to Earth! I'm sorry, but I don't really have any coffee or sodas or anything of the sort; Mom's kinda against that... You want some Grape Juice and Beef Jerky?"

 

TL;DR: Basically I'd just try to make him/her/it my friend and hope for the best

[Piatzin]

20 minutes ago, KSK said:

I subscribe to the notion that any species advanced enough to pay us a visit in person is most likely going to be friendly (and if they're not, a species capable of interstellar travel is going to  kerbstomp us anyway if it comes to a stand-up fight

If the aliens are hostile, I doubt they would waste time on formalities like 'Oh hi, we're here to destroy you. Have fun!'

Most likely, we'd never even see them. If they ever appear in person, then it would probably be out of a desire to talk and interact. Hopefully

[cratercracker]

I would probably kill him in burst of fear and disgust.

Yes, I have xenophobia.

[Delay]

I'd probably try and get as far away as possible in any scenario. I'm not the kind of person that's skilled enough for/willing to make first contact.

[munlander1]

6 hours ago, NSEP said:

If i could i would kill it

That"s a little extreme... "oh, cool, earth being...why are you trying to kill mmmmeeee!'

 

[HebaruSan]

I'd gather as much good data as I could before my time on the next-gen super-telescope ran out, celebrate with a few trusted colleagues, then publish a paper that would make me famous for a long time. But then, I'm not an astronomer, so every part of that is very unlikely.

EDIT: If I really was that person, I think I would also want to take a quick media training course to be able to communicate the discovery clearly. So many scientists end up putting their feet in their mouths at interviews or press conferences or being completely arcane and unclear, and for something this momentous it would be worth it to prepare.

Edited November 27, 2017 by HebaruSan

[cubinator]

Face to face with an alien creature, I would leave them some math. The numbers in base ten, some basic operations, pi, i...Then I would indicate that they should write down their response. Language is probably a no-go for the first conversation, but math is universal.

Maybe I would offer them a Rubik's Cube as a gift and demonstration of what humans are like. "We didn't have enough problems, so we made our own!"

Edited November 28, 2017 by cubinator

[Bill Phil]

2 minutes ago, cubinator said:

Face to face with an alien creature, I would leave them some math. The numbers in base ten, some basic operations, pi, i...Then I would indicate that they should write down their response. Language is probably a no-go for the first conversation, but math is universal.

Math may be universal, but not notation...

[cubinator]

Just now, Bill Phil said:

Math may be universal, but not notation...

Which is why I would be clarifying our notation. Then they would hopefully show me theirs and we could find a common ground for communicating mathematically.

[Bill Phil]

Just now, cubinator said:

Which is why I would be clarifying our notation. Then they would hopefully show me theirs and we could find a common ground for communicating mathematically.

Sure, but without language that would be very difficult. And that's assuming that we can even communicate with them at all. 

How can you explain an integration symbol without language? Heck, what if the alien is an adolescent and doesn't even understand calculus notation in their own, native, notation? Now, calculus may not show up in the "conversation", but there is the possibility that the alien you've met isn't really good at math. Like some of us humans.

[YNM]

Do nothing. Hopefully they'll do the same.