

He was famous for his cognitive abilities. There was an African Grey Parrot named Alex. Soon this rainforest may be as silent as the rest of the universe. Hundreds of years ago, my kind was so plentiful that the Rio Abajo forest resounded with our voices. If they’re correct, then the hush of the night sky is the silence of a graveyard. Some humans theorize that intelligent species go extinct before they can expand into outer space. The universe ought to be a cacophony of voices, but instead it’s disconcertingly quiet. The Fermi paradox is sometimes known as the Great Silence. It makes sense to remain quiet and avoid attracting attention. Speaking as a member of a species that has been driven nearly to extinction by humans, I can attest that this is a wise strategy. One proposed solution to the Fermi paradox is that intelligent species actively try to conceal their presence, to avoid being targeted by hostile invaders.

Yet there is no sign of life anywhere except on Earth. The universe is also so old that even one technological species would have had time to expand and fill the galaxy. The universe is so vast that intelligent life must surely have arisen many times. Aren’t we exactly what humans are looking for? We’re a non- human species capable of communicating with them. Why aren’t they interested in listening to our voices? Their desire to make a connection is so strong that they’ve created an ear capable of hearing across the universe.īut I and my fellow parrots are right here. The humans use Arecibo to look for extraterrestrial intelligence.
