In a recent interview with the activist group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson explained that if humanity ever discovers a species more intelligent than itself, they would not think very highly of how we’re “gnawing on each other’s ribs” for energy.

He ultimately suggests that as human ethics continue to evolve, the practice of eating animals will come to appear more and more primitive, especially as science learns about the true mental faculties of ostensibly dumb beasts.