The Fermi paradox - infographic

[Altair]

The Fermi paradox.

Fullsize image: https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/h...x_fullsize.jpg



Previously:

Equations that changed the world - photo
Einstein explaining his famous formula e=mc2 - GIF
Chaos theory demonstration - GIF
Woke physics - image
Physicist risking life to demonstrate laws of physics - GIF

[Hoosiersmoker]

Or maybe we've been surveilled and other life sees how we treat each other and the planet and figure we're doomed anyway - going back to natural selection on a galactic scale.

[nova_robotics]

I've thought about this a lot.

There's the classic argument that space is vast, but time is vast too. The universe is 13.7 billion years old. If a civilization only lasts 500 years before it blows itself up with nuclear war or nanobots, there's a very low probability that two civilizations will exist simultaneously. If you fast forward a view of the universe you might only see civilizations blinking into and then out of existence but never co-existing. This is a highly likely explanation.

I have a different theory. Look at the trajectory of our culture, particularly over the last 20 years. There is a dramatic decrease in value of things that are real. Instagram, Facebook, Twitch, whatever. Fake has become equal to real, and in a lot of cases surpassed it. For example, younger generations will spend all day watching OTHER PEOPLE PLAY VIDEO GAMES in lieu of watching real sporting events. It makes sense. If you remove the bias of real inherently having more value than fake, things that are fake or synthetic will always out compete and be far more interesting and entertaining. It's already happening and we can see it happening in young people. So my theory is that as a civilization progresses, it just sinks into its own false reality and stops exploring.

Edit: As a perfect example, this forum. It's all us old farts building stuff. We have a bias that if something is real and tangible it has value, and fake is worthless. Why are there very few young people here making things? They're building stuff in Minecraft. That bias is gone.

[Hoosiersmoker]

Did I see this here or somewhere else? Interesting depiction of time here:

[mwmkravchenko]

The more planets that are found, the more unique this one is found to be. Our Earth may be it. Playing the numbers game seldom works. If you would have life by sheer numbers its like winning the lottery and finding earth like planets. So basically double lottery odds.

We may be it!

Mark

[mklotz]

Some thoughts on the subject...

We need to distinguish between finding life and finding intelligent life. Finding the latter would be astounding but frightening. Do we really want to make ourselves known to creatures of unknown intentions and abilities?

Detecting simple life from a distance would be easier. The stromatolites that once covered earth would be detectable by virtue of their color and outgassing - both things that can be determined by telescopic observation from great distances.

Don't underestimate the impact of finding even simple life. Many earthly religions rely on creation myths that say that we are the unique product of some deity. Extraterrestrial slime will destroy that idea. I wonder if earthly religions are preparing for that possibility; probably not.

It took a long time (roughly 2.5 billion years) here on earth for slime to evolve into multicellular life. If evolution occurs the same way on other planets (and we have no way of knowing if it does), we're more likely to find slime than thinking creatures.

The argument that societies bloom and quickly destroy themselves may be valid based on our own actions but it's not necessarily true everywhere. Given the right form of evolution, cooperative life forms like ants or termites might evolve into intelligent creatures and maintain their concepts of cooperative society. Of course, evolution may always depend on conflict as the energizing agent so a cooperative society may be impossible.

[mwmkravchenko]

Some thoughts on the subject...

We need to distinguish between finding life and finding intelligent life. Finding the latter would be astounding but frightening. Do we really want to make ourselves known to creatures of unknown intentions and abilities?

Detecting simple life from a distance would be easier. The stromatolites that once covered earth would be detectable by virtue of their color and outgassing - both things that can be determined by telescopic observation from great distances.

Don't underestimate the impact of finding even simple life. Many earthly religions rely on creation myths that say that we are the unique product of some deity. Extraterrestrial slime will destroy that idea. I wonder if earthly religions are preparing for that possibility; probably not.

It took a long time (roughly 2.5 billion years) here on earth for slime to evolve into multicellular life. If evolution occurs the same way on other planets (and we have no way of knowing if it does), we're more likely to find slime than thinking creatures.

The argument that societies bloom and quickly destroy themselves may be valid based on our own actions but it's not necessarily true everywhere. Given the right form of evolution, cooperative life forms like ants or termites might evolve into intelligent creatures and maintain their concepts of cooperative society. Of course, evolution may always depend on conflict as the energizing agent so a cooperative society may be impossible.

And happily those statements take as much hope in themselves as anything else that has been thought out or written. We simply do not know as of now.

Totally agree if life is found elsewhere that opens up a whole new can of worms.

Mark

[Frank S]

What makes humans the supreme authority on determining if a life form is intelligent or not? I'm not even convinced that the majority of the human race could even be classed as being self-aware anymore.