According to Corbett, aliens are difficult to detect because their technologies may not significantly outpace ours. He claims that they have not discovered new physical laws, which makes them less advanced than one might assume. As noted by Hightech+, his idea is that extraterrestrial civilizations may exist in our Milky Way, but with technologies similar to ours.
In a recent article published in the Guardian, Corbett proposes a scenario based on the concept of "radical mundanity." This approach rejects the notion of highly advanced aliens actively exploring the universe and instead suggests that they may be only slightly more advanced than we are. "It's like comparing an iPhone 42 to an iPhone 17," he explains, emphasizing that such a version seems more plausible and natural.
In his hypothesis, Corbett considers various explanations for the Fermi paradox, including theories that aliens may be too advanced to be noticed or that Earth is a "cosmic zoo" left by them. Many of these ideas seemed overly complicated to him.
The SETI project, which is engaged in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, attempts to find "technosignatures" — signs of the existence of advanced civilizations. However, according to the principle of radical mundanity, aliens have reached a technological level close to ours and do not have the means to travel faster than light or the ability to pass through wormholes. They have not discovered any new laws of physics.
If this is the case, then extraterrestrial civilizations will find it extremely difficult to launch laser beacons or travel between planets in search of intelligent beings. Exploring the galaxy with automated probes may be a routine task for them, which in turn could lead to a loss of interest in space exploration.
Arthur C. Clarke, the renowned science fiction writer, once remarked: "There are two possibilities: either we are alone in the universe, or we are not. And both are equally frightening." Corbett suggests that the truth may lie somewhere in between, in a more familiar and therefore less daunting universe. He adds that a possible contact with aliens could leave us feeling disappointed.
