One would be hard pressed to find a single resident of this big, blue, and terrifying sphere we call a home, who has not raised their eyes to the night sky, taken in the darkness, a darkness sprinkled with specks of the brightest light one could ever see, and become entirely wrapped up in an overwhelming sense of romance, mysticism, some great cosmic belonging, etc. Much of this feeling has to do with the wonder that humans are inclined to feel when confronted with the unknown. There is something beautiful about the image of earth as a single blue dot lost in a sea of darkness, transforming Earth into somewhat of a cosmic oasis or paradise. But, does this mean that scientific discovery might ultimately lead to the death of this shared human sentiment? Might the accumulation of knowledge on a cosmic level remove this earthly sentimentality? It is not likely.
I believe, that part of what makes this feeling such a common thread strung through humanity through the ages, is the shared feeling of significance that the “tiny blue marble” idea gives to all thing Earth and life on Earth. Discovering and gaining comprehension of the true scale of the universe, and the probable “alien” life that exists out there, might make some feel less important, and feel that meaning has been stripped from living a good life. This however, should not be the emotions that arrive with future scientific discovery, especially when speaking of discovery in the cosmic realm. Yes, the discovery of life on other worlds could hypothetically make one feel like one of many rather than one of a very, unique, few; But, when one considers that all of this other, extraterrestrial, life we may find will be made up of all the same, incomprehensibly small, subatomic particles that every existing piece of matter in the universe is made up of, there will be plenty of true beauty and romance found in that too. And, as far as life seeming less meaningful goes, a shared universal existence with other life should make humanity feel exponentially more meaningful, in no way less. Instead of life on Earth seeming inconsequential because of the infinite existence that it will now only be able to consider itself a very small piece of, everyday interaction should be viewed as sublimely important, cosmically important in fact. Life in general can only be seen as more valuable, and the Earthly connection will still be alive and well, but will have company in the form of a much larger, limitless, universal connection.
If being a part, any part, of an infinitely expanding world in which life is fruitful, a universe in which feeling, hope, shared experience, can all be broadcast on a universal scale, is not beautiful, then I can’t tell you what is.
