71–80 of 226 posts
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The fermi paradox does convey this.
Not well. It makes the assumptions that all of the problems with space travel are logistically possible.
What's staggering to me is that with the new Voyager discoveries lately it feels like we're a bunch of stellar savages who just managed to release a buoy far enough into the ocean to feel the currents. Let alone recognize another savage on a different continent who might be doing the same experiment.
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This very instant? I suspect not well. But conceptually? Yes. If we made a space based telescope that could do IR-visible-UV spectroscopy with decent resolution/sensitivity we would be able to get some information about the chemical make up of the gasses on planets transiting their stars. Much like the kerfluffle about phosphine on Venus, there are some compounds you just wouldn't expect from strictly geologic proces…
My hypothesis is that, if given a (simulated) spectroscopical observation of Earth's atmosphere from a distance, astrophysicists would come up with plausible non-biological, non-industrial explanations for it.
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Not well. It makes the assumptions that all of the problems with space travel are logistically possible.
Given the age of the Milky Way, a civilization using even slow sub light travel with generation ships or autonomous probes could have colonized the entire galaxy many times over. Why has no one done that? Hence the paradox.
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The only logical path is to download our brains onto computers, which will happen before that point. Once that technology exists, that's the only form of life that will dominate. Robots, nano-machines and hyper-intelligences will blow easily damaged flesh with finite lifespans. Habitable regions would be massively expanded.
When you can figure out how to physically attach consciousness to a machine, get back to me
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Not well. It makes the assumptions that all of the problems with space travel are logistically possible.
Given the age of the Milky Way, a civilization using even slow sub light travel with generation ships or autonomous probes could have colonized the entire galaxy many times over. Why has no one done that? Hence the paradox.
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I remember reading somewhere that due to the differing pace of evolution and technology advancements, any intelligent living aliens we meet are almost certainly going to be gods or cavemen. I can't find the reference.
It's from Arthur C. Clarke: "If one considers the millions of years of pre-history, and the rapid technological advancement occurring now, if you apply that to a hypothetical alien race, one can figure the probabilities of how advanced the explorers will find them. The conclusion is we will find apes or angels, but not humans." [0] http://www.projectrho.com/public_html/rocket/alientech.php
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When you can figure out how to physically attach consciousness to a machine, get back to me
the only thing that matters is for it to look like the consciousness has been attached.
A consciousness might awake in the machine, but it won't be my consciousness.
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It may be even worse, that different continent is on a different planet. Space(time) is absolutely, mind-boggling massive. Everyone knows it's big but it hard to comprehend how big and why there could be many alien civilizations out there capable of broadcasting or detecting but never intersect in any way because the detection windows of any 2 civilizations don't line up. The Milky Way alone is ~150000-200000 light y…
While interstellar travel would be impossible using conventional thrust in a straight line, could you overcome the distance by bending space time?[0] [0] https://www.nasa.gov/centers/glenn/technology/warp/gravstat....
Bending spacetime enough to make a difference — even just to the time taken between here and Alpha Centauri — is beyond any known mechanism humans could build, even in principle, using the total resources of our entire solar system.
(Using unknown mechanisms: perhaps, but they’re unknown)
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Habitable planets are the ultimate scarce resource. Once the earth is full we’ll have to find a way to move and there’s less than 5 good options in this solar system. In time they’ll be full too.
The only logical path is to download our brains onto computers, which will happen before that point. Once that technology exists, that's the only form of life that will dominate. Robots, nano-machines and hyper-intelligences will blow easily damaged flesh with finite lifespans. Habitable regions would be massively expanded.