– If we ever recieved an alien signal/message, how would we even begin trying to translate and understand it?

Question

I’m speaking very hypothetically here, but if we happened to recieve a voyager disc style message from another planet, which contained numbers and writing in their language, how does the process of translation begin?

It still blows my mind that at some point, two people from the same planet that spoke very different languages (chinese and engish for example), started the process of learning each others languages and worked out what each other were saying. So how would this work for a completely new, unknown language with completely new characters, digits and language features?

In: Other

Answer 1

. 1
.. 2
… 3
…. 4
….. 5
…… 6

1 = 1
2 = 2
2 + 3 = 5
1 + 4 = 5
5 – 3 = 2
6 – 3 = 3
2 x 3 = 6
1 x 4 = 4
6 / 2 = 3
4 / 2 = 2

I just taught you eleven symbols in my own mathematical language: the first six Arabic numerals, the equals sign, and the four basic arithmetical operations. All you have to do is count the dots and make the simple assumption that I’m *trying to teach you* my language.

If we intercepted a transmission that was not *meant* for us or any other new species, then it would indeed be difficult. If it’s just a loose radio signal that wasn’t intended for outside comprehension, or a communication between two points that we just happened to hear, then the message would be intended to be understood only by people who already understood the language. This was highlighted in *Contact* when the first message received by aliens was a television broadcast of Hitler opening the Berlin Olympics, and everyone freaked out…in reality, the aliens had no idea who Hitler was, they just bounced back whatever they got as a way of letting us know we were there.

When we intentionally send messages that are supposed to be meant for aliens, we include whatever instructions we can to help them along. Attempts like the [Pioneer plaque](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_plaque), the [Voyager Golden Record](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voyager_Golden_Record) and the [Arecibo message](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arecibo_message) use basic, universal concepts to explain things about our lives that are unique to us, like the length of a second or a centimeter…aliens don’t have seconds, but they do know how long it takes a particular atom to vibrate, so if we show that atom, show it vibrating, and give a number of vibrations, they can figure out how long a second is, and from there a year.