Re: planets

Ummm, I'm just wondering what makes us assume that ANY higher animal
showing "intelligence" is not sentient (octopii, chimpanzees, dolphins,etc.)
It seems presumptuous that because humans cannot discern / decipher
language, social patterns, culture or thought processes (all of which
would naturally be alien to ours) to make any such assumptions.  If
lasting mark upon the planet, or development of higher technology (which
is not really necessary for survival) were the standard of measure (as
some claim), then 95% of human cultures would not reveal that WE are
indeed sentient. Neither is it reasonable to assume that one sentient
species would necessarily seek to connect with other sentients, or
"dominate" non-sentients even on the same planet, as human cultural
variation can also attest.  One thing cultural anthropology and the
history of science teach us is that even "objective" science is fraught
with -and hindered by- subjective assumptions :)


fo taiacmoi-
.yasmin.