What would an alien look like?  Of course there's the stereotypical image of little green men, or the ET-like creature with a long skinny neck and bulbous head.  I don't think that's what they would look like.  Many people have suggested that aliens would look like James Carville, or that he is in fact an alien, but I don't think so.  Well, on second thought?  Nah, that's not right, either.

Most popular representations of aliens from outer space represent them as some sort of humanoid -- that is a creature that has human-like characteristics.  They have a head, arms, legs, and some sort of body.  But that's too convenient.  If somehow another living creature is out there, it would have developed under completely different circumstances and most likely wouldn't resemble a person.

How big would it be?  I think it would be either much bigger or much smaller than a person by several orders of magnitude.  It would probably be small, maybe some sort of bacteria or single-celled creature.  Even though it's not very exciting to consider, it's probably the most reasonable possibility.  But maybe it's huge, and not a creature at all, but instead it's an aura that permeates large areas of space with a coordinated sense of purpose.  Picture an explorer battling the elements as he travels across Antarctica.  While we know the harsh conditions are just part of nature, imagine if the environment itself was mindful of Mr. Explorer's presence, and it had the ability to intentionally make things more difficult for him.  I would classify that as an intelligent being.

When the Mars Rovers landed several years ago on the Red Planet and sent back those first images of the desolate landscape, I was hoping we'd see some curious creature poke his head in front of the camera to investigate what this alien device was doing in his backyard.  He'd stare at it for a few seconds, then, with a final innocent look in his cute little eyes, the video feed would turn to static.  Even though we would never know exactly what had happened, the little guy would just chalk it up to another piece of space junk he has to clear out of his vegetable garden.  He'd be thinking, "Man, what I'd give for a thicker atmosphere!"

Imagine what the consequences of that would be on Earth!  Do you think we would still be worried about healthcare or global warming or whether Jon Gosselin will ever make it in show business again?  I don't think so.  With one peak-a-boo by a little alien, the whole world's priorities would change instantly.  No matter how complex or dire our own world seems to be at a given time, one single event sometimes has the power to make it all insignificant.  That could be good, or that could be bad.  But either way, it's certainly intriguing. 

Just to be on the safe side, the next time you see James Carville on one of the Sunday morning talk shows, check and make sure that when he blinks, his eyelids don't close from the sides.  You can never be too careful!