If aliens arrived tomorrow, what’s the first thing you’d ask them?
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Well, when strangers come, the first assumption is that they probably don’t speak the language.
So, the first priority would be figuring out a way to communicate.
While the universal translator that can decipher any language hasn’t been invented yet, most mobile phones have a translator app; but it only works for the languages programmed into it. And last I heard alien languages from space aren’t on the list.
Pictographs and some form of sign language work fairly well.
There is an episode of “Star Trek: The Next Generation” where a negotiator who is deaf loses his interpreters. And before he can broker peace after a war, he must first teach the parties HOW to communicate with each other.
The same would be needed for any alien encounters.
The first thing required in any encounter would be to inquire about language skills – do they even have a clue about languages on Earth? If not, how can we communicate with each other???
I have a friend who is a dancer and many years ago he went to China. He doesn’t speak Chinese and the child he encountered while exploring did not speak English. They communicated by drawing in the sand.
As much as I would love to learn about the new visitors’ culture and music; my first question would have to be about how we can communicate with each other so that I can learn these things.