OK..I kind of want to deal with a pet peeve of mine.

People often are found of quoting Arthur C. Clarkes quote on technologically advanced societies appearing to have magic to less advanced societies.

Arthur C. Clarke was often spot on with things.. but hes not infallible. Its a quote..not a law of nature.

And (no stoning me please) on this issue Arthur C. Clarke is likely wrong. It depends on WHERE the encounter occured of course. But the premise relies on on a societies underlying assumptions.

Aliens demonstrating fantastic levels of tech in uneducated areas will undoubtedly appear as wizards.

But in modern educated societies, the inhabitants (while no less awed or afraid) would probably understand it as a tech difference.. we know, we think about, we see in movies all the time..
Anything from teleportation to shape changing.. we would most likely think was science.. not magic..

Ok. Just wanted to get that off my chest. Lol.

Logical.

I think you are right in todays times for most people, but I suspect there would still be many who would opt for the magic option.
And in the past I certainly think that it would have been considered magic, or god. We must have some frame of reference to properly understand something. In biblical times there was very little. So any "Alien" that landed could easily have been mistaken for a god.
But I agree this is much less likely in modern times, I think very little surprises us now in science. Amazing technology is becoming part of everyday life.

I know you have often appeared pretty skeptical about many things

But here is a what if for you... What if esp is real, but not something mystical, simply a medium of communication not currently measurable by science. It may come to pass that in the future you could go in for something akin to a CT scan but detect your ability to communicate in this manner by some measurable brain waves. What I am getting at is, there may be no magic at all. Perhaps those areas of the paranormal may one day have some grounding in science.

I totally agree with you...its kind of another aspect of what Im talking about. We wouldnt consider it magic because most of us dont believe in magic, but we know science can do marvelous things. Even at TODAYS tech..most people have no idea how most things really work. But our instinct is to say "science".

If ESP were found to exist, I agree..it wouldnt be "magic" it would be part of the natural world.

And, yeah, I agree there are people who would turn to a magic/religious explanation.. if they are of that.. disposition or cultural value. But again, in areas with modern education, I think we (especially guys) would be in tech envy. Awe. Fear.

Could any advanced species of aliens appear magical or god-like to us? Perhaps for some.
Think of the some most outragous advanced alien species of Sci-fi, if we were to encounter a similar species most of us would not be primatively awed by it. We understand the difference time and knowledge can make for a species and what is magical about that?...nothing.

Consider if Jesus showed up and started performing miricles. You could cry technology, but if you couldn't find even a clue about how, what could you prove?

Or Q from Star Trek. an omnipitent being. Cant find his tech, so where is it?

It's not that it could be technology producing the results. It is just the technology is totally hidden, so how could you tell?

Clarke said indistinguishable from magic, he did not say that the witness would necessarily assume that the technology was magic. I watched him on the television being interviewed about 10 years ago over his book 3001: The Final Odyssey in which the plot revolves around the astronaut Frank Poole, who was killed by HAL in 2001, being resurrected after drifting in space for one thousand years. Clarke mentioned in the interview that he wrote the book from the viewpoint that humanity is at such a state that no future technology would, should we witness it in operation, stretch us to the point of disbelief, no matter how advanced.

Clarke said indistinguishable from magic, he did not say that the witness would necessarily assume that the technology was magic.

Agreed. Seeing something I don't understand, my first guess would not be magic. Of course the average skeptic argument would be that you just imagined it, unless you have physical proof.

So without physical proof it is. Advanced technology, magic, or your imagination.

I choose technology by common sense. The skeptic chooses imagination because anything else requires faith in what has no proof. Don't think anyone chooses magic.

Thanks Andrew for the correction on the quote..and it actually just makes the point further actually..

If you travel to rural Peru..yes..the people might think magic. I like to think, and maybe Im being grossly over optimistic, that the same level of tech showing up in Atlanta..would have people assuming its tech that is just far beyond us.

EVEN IF we have no sign of how that tech is working we dont assume its magic. When I go to Vegas and see a magic show.. generally I have NO IDEA how that guy does that..but I dont start to think "Hm..maybe it IS magic". I assume there is a rational explanation.

mabe its just magic until it is solved,all magicians and illusionist know the tricks,so to them it is technology,to us their secrets are magica mysteries.so i think its just down to lack of knowledge.l