> To... what? Study a civilization and do nothing with the data? Arguments like this neglect the relative inscrutability of even human motivations, with which

> To... what? Study a civilization and do nothing with the data? Arguments like this neglect the relative inscrutability of even human motivations, with which we ought to be intimately familiar, yet can nevertheless perplex us. Humans undertake spectacular projects as jokes, religious activities, and as art. There's really no speculating about equivalent, befuddling alien motivations, and certainly nothing to rule out autonomous devices that travel unfathomable distances, and then play hide and seek when approached directly.