Fermi Paradox and Life Filters

JimBowie1958

Old Fogey
Sep 25, 2011
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A couple of short videos about the whole thing here.





They speak of theories to explain the Fermi Paradox.

Which makes more sense to you and why?
 
I do think we are probably the only technologically advanced species in the galaxy.

I don't think we are. Think the explanation for all the local 'dead air' is different inhabited planets have different enviroments and not the same needs we do here. We invented many things out of a need. Other planets will have different needs and likely not invent the same technologies despite having technologies. Things everyone needs everyone will invent. But if not everyone needa radio transmissters for example not everyone's gonna invent it. Everyone needs wheels so that'll occur everywhere. But there other ways to communicate over distance than radio.
 
I don't think we are alone. I don't doubt we are the smartest, but I don't see how their couldn't be other life. Maybe the reason we cant find other life is because we only know how to look for carbon life..
I mean, they have found bacteria on an asteroid that was supposedly from Mars.. if that doesn't open your mind a little, IDK what to tell ya..
 
I don't think we are alone. I don't doubt we are the smartest, but I don't see how their couldn't be other life. Maybe the reason we cant find other life is because we only know how to look for carbon life..
I mean, they have found bacteria on an asteroid that was supposedly from Mars.. if that doesn't open your mind a little, IDK what to tell ya..

How would the smartest life in the universe reside on a planet only about a third the age of the universe? Shouldn't the smartest be in the oldest part?
 
I don't think we are alone. I don't doubt we are the smartest, but I don't see how their couldn't be other life. Maybe the reason we cant find other life is because we only know how to look for carbon life..
I mean, they have found bacteria on an asteroid that was supposedly from Mars.. if that doesn't open your mind a little, IDK what to tell ya..

How would the smartest life in the universe reside on a planet only about a third the age of the universe? Shouldn't the smartest be in the oldest part?
That is assuming different forms of life evolve at the same rate. What if that life isn't carbon, and takes a longer time to evolve? Too many questions and we basically don't know shit.. lol
 
Great posts, but I was kind of hoping some folks would speculate on the filter concept and name a few, so I am going to give it the first shot.

Filters that have concluded and we survived them
1. Extinction by predators. We faced the Saber Toothed tigers, and won. PETA can kiss my ass.

2. Starvation and drought are now a distant threat due to modern farming techniques and GMO food. Eating something that might give you cancer over the next thirty to fifty years is better than starving.

3. The Nuclear Age seems to have its threat in our rear view mirror. No one wants to send humanity back into the Stone Age with nukes allover the planet.

Filters mankind has survived till now
1. large asteroid strikes. We are still vulnerable to this and will stay vulnerable until we have a fleet of drones in interplanetary space that can intercept and guid such rocks into the Sun.

2. Major plagues have been survived and with the development of modern science and mecicine, I think we have gotten just about through this filter.

3. Run away AI robotics we are just now starting to deal with. Hopefully we can handle this as well as we did nuclear weaponry.

4. Gray Ooze, is similar to number 3, but this is nanites I am talking about and the plausible problem with some of them being designed to have 2/3rds replicate and one third dismantle everything around them. Atom by atom.

Major filters yet to come?

1. Terroist groups being able to make WMDs as technology matures and things get easier and easier to make over time.


That is about it for me as of now. I look forward to any added input to this list.
 
I would like to say that if we started searching for extraterrestrial intelligence through radio waves 40 years ago, then we have only looked as far as 40 light years. That is not a lot of star systems, considering that the nearest star is already 4 light years away.
 
I don't think we are alone. I don't doubt we are the smartest, but I don't see how their couldn't be other life. Maybe the reason we cant find other life is because we only know how to look for carbon life..
I mean, they have found bacteria on an asteroid that was supposedly from Mars.. if that doesn't open your mind a little, IDK what to tell ya..

We look for carbon life, simply because carbon woks better in organic chemistry than other group 14 elements do, despite similar electron configurations. Life might work in a silicon based chemistry, but it works easier in a carbon based chemistry. Nature looks for simple solutions.
 

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