Dear Standfast,
Great questions!
No, I wouldn't design us differently because how we function is not so much how it is, but how we do it. The blueprint of our physical body is not physical at all. The DNA is not the final blueprint of our body, but an expression of it. Take the I-consciousness out of the body and the DNA break up and ceases to have a purpose. We call it death. During the the era of Lemuria and Atlantis our consciousness vibrated at a higher frequency allowing us to consciously derive knowledge and energy from our higher aspects of self. This created a physical blueprint (DNA) that operated with many more DNA strands than we are today. Hence we lived much longer, up to 800-1000 years, and the ability to keep the body young, healthy and vital was considered natural. By contrast, due to the limitations of self-awareness today's physiologies are more dense and compact and subject to the harsh effects of the elements. Hence, they don't last very long, they wear out easily. Although we are in the process of transition to bring the higher aspects of our own divine source nature into the three dimensional human experience, we have not managed as yet bring about that crucial major shift in the world as a whole that will permit us to rejuvenate our bodies an the same we we did before. This is not regression, although it appears that way. During the time of Atlantis, we lacked something very profound in our intentionality that we already have begin to develop this time around. So, the way we are today is a product of our consciousness. Our highest consciousness contains the seeds of all life forms. It it one with everything, a unified field, without time and space. Is is the omnipresent, unmanifest part of us that everything is made of. The manifested parts, such as the physcial body, arise through a sequence of complex processes of creation. As we know through quantum physics, what appeeas to be matter is not matter at all, but energy, directed to move in a certain way through vibration or sound. There is nothing in the physycal world that is not preceeded by vibration or sound. How the subatomic particles assemble to form the atoms that make up the molecules, cells ,tissues, and organs of the body is organized and directed by the infinite intelligence that makes up the core essence of every being, big and small, vegetation, grain of sand, the elements, nature beings,angelic beings (which are the "angles" of light and energ permeating every layer of matter and organizing all processes. We are that core, and everyone else is is too. The degree of consciously creating our body depends on how much we identifiy with that core. The blueprint we use to translate our consciousness into assembling the atoms and molecules in such a way that it becomes a physical body is composed of information derived from all our multidimensional levels of existence, including those that contain what we call different time lines or lifetimes, although the notion of lifetimes is not real because time is not a linear reality, but all time and simulataneous.
We never lost the blueprints, but ignored them. They are still there, ready to be rediscovered. By rediscovering them, we will recognize ourselves being one with everything that exists. Rediscovering them within ourselves will make us conscious creators versus unsconscious creators (most of us). We needed to forget who we are because we didn't know how it is to be ignorant. Being ignorant first and then becoming self-realized, is a major step up in the process of evolution than being born self-realized.
It is more difficult to describe life forms on other planets due ot the limations of mind preception. Even on this planet, there are entire civilazations the average person doesn't even know they exist, including the Inner Earth Beings. They don't exist for us because we cannot see them with our physical eyes. This doesn't mean they are not there. They vibrate at a higher frequency than it allows us to see them. It is like sounds that dogs and elephants hear, but we cannot. Still, these sounds exist. Our physiologies are just too dense to perceive these, although this is gradually changing. So when NASA is sending spacecraft to Mars in the hope of finding evidence of life, they are missing the point. There are entire civilizations on Mars, Saturn, Venus, the moon and far away stars and star systems. We cannot even see their space craft (what we call UFO's). These space ships are living beings, unlike our airplanes, capable of passing in and out of energy fields without being limited by space and time. Occasionally, they make themselves perceivable to human eyes and cameras by lowering their energetic frequency. Since we humans on Earth generally cannot communicate with these beings, we do it when we leave the density of the physical body during our sleep state. Most people live other lives they are not aware of, although their dreams sometimes bring memories of such realities. The problem is that the human brain colors and distorts the real extra-terrestial experiences with what it know about human life. The experiences outside the body rarely fit into the knowledge, beliefs and concepts of the human mind, so dreams rarely reflect the true nature of the out-of body experiences. They carry symbolic meanings, through, which can sometimes help people remember interactions with different beings and dimensions, as well as as one's own past lives.
The beings on other planets are usually very highly evolved and superior in technology and mind. Mind power is the key to most of their abilities. Since they are not bound by the density of a 3D body, they have not the same restrictions to achieve their desires and goals as we have. In reality, though, there is no one being superior than another. Our "advantage" is that on the planet we learn about the value power and gift of human emotion, something that has eluded these other beings. When humans incarnate on Earth and return to their star system or planet where they orginate from, they bring their experiences with them, which helps these civlizations enormously. Everything that we go through here, serves a greater purpose elsewhere. Having human feelings is now the most throught-after experience throughout the omniverses. Humans don't orginate on planet earth, they came from other places, although many have reincarnated here very frequently. They are considered to be "wise ones," with plentitudes of knowledge and wisdom to share with those that haven't and never will. And so yes, they can return to their true families and paradise, if desire to.
We have the problem of accepting truths that exists outside our normal experience and perception. If confronted with the reality of aliens living among us, many people get scared. For this to change will take perhaps 30 more years at which time it will be completley natural to see space ships landing and taking of, like airplanes now. All life forms in the universe will eventually be pereceived as one huge family, just like the different races on Earht will be.
Blessings,
Andreas