Why do people assume Alien lifeforms are smarter than us?

I've never seem to grasp the idea that alien life forms are smarter than humans. How can we say they are when we don't have any conclusive evidence that they do exist? And maybe the UFO's and USO's (unidentified submergable objects) are capable at going places and reaching speeds we have not yet been able to achieve. But it's very possible that we can do thing they can't.

I agree with most of what you're saying. If there are aliens, there are only really 3 possible things that will come from it. We are smarter and far more advanced then them. They are smarter then us. Or we went through the same type of 'coincidence', or whatever made life around the same time, and we are relatively in about the same point in intelligence. I don't see the third one happening though.

If there is life out there, i think it would only be in form of particles or very small organisms...I may be wrong to, this is just a hypothesis. Although they've found signs of water on mars. Humans...we have to investigate everything, curious bi**** :-D

if an alien species gets to us, they are, assumibly, smarter/about as smart as we are, try telling a dolphin to build a rocket ship or something

I don't think they will be, Only if we find them though. I do believe in alien

If they made it all the way here to earth, then yes their technology is far more advanced than ours, and they are most likely smarter.

Whatever aliens exist, exist in the universal conditions as we do. Going through space will be difficult for an ant or a human or a silicon based lifeform that lives many lightyears away. Space is space, man. No lifeform has evolved to live "in" space. We haven't the tech to get to "them", whoever they are: if we assume that they can get to, or already have gotten to, us, then they've conquered an frontier that we failed to; they've developed technology that's ahead of us. They know something we don't.

Undoubtedly, we sure could have some advantage over them.

If aliens exist, we will either find them in due time, or they will find us. If they do come about earth, it is obvious that they are at some level of high intellect. As Sid said, try making a species with low intellect build a rocket and travel far distances. But I feel the idea of them being smarter than us would have formed from the theories of space ships, therefore assuming what I said previously.

But it could really go both ways, and we will never know for sure until we actually come in contact with an alien life form.

I totally agree with you OP. They haven't come to us yet, maybe they're waiting for us to make the first move.

I would say that it's more likely that an alien species is more advanced than us. Sure it's entirely possible that they aren't but based on time gone by, they would have an advantage over us. Earth itself isn't an old planet, and humans are a young species on the Earth as is. We haven't had the time to grow into a truly advanced species yet.

This doesn't mean that I think aliens have come to visit us as people love to think, only that they may have the ability.