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327 ing like our most hopeful visions of ourselves, or acting the way we do at our worst. Consider this example. One of the most frequently suggested legal and ethical concepts in this debate is the Principle of Noninterference, letting other cultures evolve without help or other influences from outsiders (“Star Trek” fans will recognize this as the Prime Directive). To strictly maintain the less powerful civilization’s cultural integrity, that society would have to be isolated; the mere knowledge that a more advanced civilization existed would amount to interference. If we were the “superior” species in a contact situation, what would we do? Dole and Asimov, writing before “Star Trek,” argued that contacts with alien intelligence should be made most circumspectly, not only as insurance against unknown factors but also to avoid any disruptive effects on the local population produced by encountering a vastly different cul- tural system. After prolonged study of the situation, a decision would have to be made whether to make overt contact or to depart without giving the inhabitants any evidence of the visitation.* What would be our duties to aliens? As technologist Robert Freitas asked rhetorically, are we trustees, educators, partners, friends, or colonizers?? Should we avoid interference as much as possible so as to not damage their culture, observing them invisibly from orbit without letting them know of our presence? Or should we intervene to help them progress? At what point do we decide that an “inferior” culture has matured enough to stand the shock of contact with a “superior” one? Is cultural quarantine desirable? Could we assure that all humans would abide by the rules, placing ethics above other motives? Alien societies might face similar questions. It could be useful to sys- tematically work through reciprocal mirror images about this issue, as well as others related to contact. More than 40 years ago, the Brookings study recognized that the conse- quences of a discovery are presently unpredictable because of our limited knowledge of behavior under even an approximation of such circumstances. That report recommended continuing studies to determine emotional and intellectual understanding and attitudes regarding the consequences of discovering extraterrestrial life. It also called for historical and empirical studies of the behavior of peoples and their leaders when confronted with dramatic and unfamiliar events and social pressures."” Regrettably, this useful advice has not been followed in any systematic way. Physical scientists have continued to dominate discussions about the consequences of contact; few social scientists have ventured into this field. The Social Science Dimension The Social Science Dimension