Prof Stephen Hawking thinks that, rather than actively trying to communicate with extra-terrestrials, humans should do everything possible to avoid contact. He explained: "We only have to look at ourselves to see how intelligent life might develop into something we wouldn’t want to meet."
Hawking’s vision of an alien encounter is more like the attack scene from Independence Day:
In all seriousness, Hawking’s declaration has serious political implications. Funding for space exploration is already a hot issue, and who wants to be the president that champions the program that leads to the ultimate destruction of the human race?
