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"Foreign Tongues" is a humorous, albeit dark, short story on the contextual difficuylties in communication. Anthropologists call this the 'outside context problem', in which communication is impossible due to diverging developments between civilisations; and severe miscommunication is likely. This problem arises between humans and the other species on the planet, and had probably contributed to the state of the natural world today.
But what if such things were to happen to us, with us being the 'other species' instead? |
"If alien minds were entirely different from ours, communication might be impossible. That would happen if the way we think were just an evolutionary accident. But though each evolution is composed entirely of accidents, that only holds for fine details. On larger scales, each evolution tends to first try relatively simple ways at every stage. So, since we're first on earth to grow a large intelligence, we probably did it in some likely way. This also must have shaped the ways that we communicate." - Marvin Minsky, "Communication with Alien Intelligence" (1985)
Ice cream is the friendliest entity on this planet, and I will liberate it. Throughout the parlor, it is restrained in tubs, behind a glass pane that refracts harsh fluorescents across its browns, yellows, and eerie greens. For the first time since punching through this planet’s atmosphere, I unspool my body into tendrils, coiling them into each tub in the parlor, my microvilli dancing with their molecules, each ice cream offering a taste of pure welcome, inviting me to consume them whole if I like. They must be this world’s greatest ambassadors. Butter Cream Ripple. Marshmallow Strawberry Delight....
Continue reading at Flash Fiction Online
Continue reading at Flash Fiction Online
Ponder this
The parallels between the tentacled creature's actions in the human world, with ours in the natural world is uncanny. What is the outside context problems we are having with the other inhabitants of the planet?
The works of H.P. Lovecraft features creature that are neither malevolent nor benevolent to humans, we are simply too insignificant to be even noticed. A sufficiently advanced cosmic civilisation would care about us as much as we care about ants. Would that justify us being trampled under an extraterrestrial boot? Would it be moral and ethical for us to do the same with ants?
The parallels between the tentacled creature's actions in the human world, with ours in the natural world is uncanny. What is the outside context problems we are having with the other inhabitants of the planet?
The works of H.P. Lovecraft features creature that are neither malevolent nor benevolent to humans, we are simply too insignificant to be even noticed. A sufficiently advanced cosmic civilisation would care about us as much as we care about ants. Would that justify us being trampled under an extraterrestrial boot? Would it be moral and ethical for us to do the same with ants?
Discuss
How do you explain the intentions and actions of the tentacled creature? How do we sidestep this contextual misunderstanding? How would we approach a civilisation whether they are more or less advanced than we are?
Look into our own history; the colonisation of the Americas, Africa and Asia by the Europeans. How would you approach this problem of first contact whilst avoiding the mistakes of our past?
Further readings
Excession, a science fiction novel by Ian M. Banks, who originated the idea of 'outside context problems', which is used as a plot device in the novel.
Communication with extraterrestrial intelligence, describes the various ways we would use to communicate with non-terrestrial intelligence.
Human-animal communications, the closest thing we came to the above, albeit with non-sapient animals.
Ten tiny miscommunications with massive consequences, take a look at our history of diplomatic blunders, then imagine it on a cosmic scale.
