Jury is still out if the humanoid form really is such an evolutionary advantage. Sharks exist for already at least 450 million years, predating trees by about 90 million years.
Yet in that time, they didn’t figure out how to build spaceships. Two legs seems optimal for getting through tight spaces. Being able to sweat allows us to run for hours and exhaust our prey. Hands with opposable thumbs make is able to build and wield anything. Our brain folds make it so we can plan and recall. Our brains are actually really good at locational memory, which is less relevant with GPS, but can be hacked for massive memorization abilities. Sharks sense a mass of life that smells fishy and eat it. It matters how you define success. Is it just survival in place or advancing science, exploration, the arts, etc.?
Jury is still out if the humanoid form really is such an evolutionary advantage. Sharks exist for already at least 450 million years, predating trees by about 90 million years.
Yet in that time, they didn’t figure out how to build spaceships. Two legs seems optimal for getting through tight spaces. Being able to sweat allows us to run for hours and exhaust our prey. Hands with opposable thumbs make is able to build and wield anything. Our brain folds make it so we can plan and recall. Our brains are actually really good at locational memory, which is less relevant with GPS, but can be hacked for massive memorization abilities. Sharks sense a mass of life that smells fishy and eat it. It matters how you define success. Is it just survival in place or advancing science, exploration, the arts, etc.?
Animals that live in water will never develop technology, as they can’t make fire, so that’s an evolutionary dead end.
Also, you need a way to manipulate material, so hands and arms/appendages are also going to be a prerequisite.
My bet is that the first advanced alien species discovered will be giant land crabs with hands instead of pincers.