General Discussion

longship

(40,416 posts)

142. Yes, but there's still the problem of huge distances.

Fri Oct 30, 2015, 02:24 PM

Oct 2015

And in spite of some folks' Star Trek wet dreams, that is not going to change. What good is communication with a robotic probe that is light years away? Maybe many light years away, presuming one could even do that.

That is the answer to the Fermi paradox. Interstellar travel is a real bitch! And communication with an interstellar craft is near impossible. Then, there's time dilation if one is traveling a significant fraction of the speed of light, even if that is possible.

Myself, I prefer mathematician Ian Stewart's and biologist Jack Cohen's answer to the Fermi paradox. Nobody is transmitting because everybody is listening. There are no signals because they are all waiting for a signal. Kind of makes some silly sense.

BTW, Stewart and Cohen have collaborated on some science and science fiction works. I like how they think.

Edit history

Please sign in to view edit histories.

Recommendations

0 members have recommended this reply (displayed in chronological order):

181 replies

= new reply since forum marked as read

Highlight:

Will we find aliens first or will they find us? [View all] Renew Deal Oct 2015 OP

They already found us. Rex Oct 2015 #1

It's possible Renew Deal Oct 2015 #4

I was worried I should have put in the sarcasm emo. Rex Oct 2015 #7

Please. take a look at ANY major religion; bobalew Oct 2015 #158

This. They are among us. Observing. NT Ex Lurker Oct 2015 #90

But to what end? Rex Oct 2015 #96

Perhaps they view us as a SNL skit. I really can't imagine an advanced species having interest RKP5637 Oct 2015 #108

SO we are the "ouch my balls" reality TV of the galaxy? Rex Oct 2015 #114

Really? Scootaloo Oct 2015 #152

Time will tell, it could be interesting if they did. I do have to agree with what Stephen Hawking RKP5637 Oct 2015 #162

I find Hawking's fear of alien contact a little silly Scootaloo Oct 2015 #163

Interesting!!! Sadly, I doubt either of us will ever see anything happen in our lives, I guess. n/t RKP5637 Oct 2015 #167

I'm young enough to look forward to inheriting a Mad Max wasteland Scootaloo Oct 2015 #170

Yep! n/t RKP5637 Oct 2015 #172

I sincerely wish you the best of luck. I think you have been left a real mess. Many of us did not RKP5637 Oct 2015 #177

Science... It's all part of Observation and Research. Glassunion Oct 2015 #109

True, but by that token wouldn't the alien species want to go back to their past Rex Oct 2015 #111

That is basically what I was getting at. Glassunion Oct 2015 #115

That is fascinating, in that it could give them clues as to why they are like they are today. Rex Oct 2015 #116

It could be that we are both plentiful and tasty to them. hifiguy Oct 2015 #144

Hehe... Rex Oct 2015 #145

Careful eating the hippies, man... hifiguy Oct 2015 #148

Bring me the horn from the human known as Fry! Rex Oct 2015 #150

Couldn't find a short clip of that. hifiguy Oct 2015 #154

The Republican debates skepticscott Oct 2015 #98

Yep. Lizard people. No bout adoubt it. hifiguy Oct 2015 #146

I agree, they were on CNBC TV Wednesday night. LiberalArkie Oct 2015 #156

David Icke is right! TheSarcastinator Oct 2015 #165

No, we already found them. KamaAina Oct 2015 #173

Well you know what FDR said about TVEEs and the Internets! Rex Oct 2015 #174

they know we are here and want nothing to do with us? Skittles Oct 2015 #180

They have already found us Duckhunter935 Oct 2015 #2

Other. First off, interstellar travel is so resource intensive, that it would be a waste. onehandle Oct 2015 #3

Now it is Renew Deal Oct 2015 #5

Well, my good friend, the rocket equation is not likely to be overthrown any time soon. longship Oct 2015 #16

I doubt it is possible to ever visit other galaxy's. nt Logical Oct 2015 #27

Yup! And interstellar travel too. longship Oct 2015 #32

Maybe worm holes are real! :-) nt Logical Oct 2015 #36

Or possibly the Alcubierre warp drive. hifiguy Oct 2015 #175

You're thinking about it the wrong way - I don't know if humans will ever MillennialDem Oct 2015 #62

It's too bad we won't be able to conquer death in our lifetime. Deadshot Oct 2015 #70

Might for me. I'm 35 and have good longevity genes (most grand and great grandparents living into MillennialDem Oct 2015 #72

We don't have to totally concour death for it to benefit you. Hassin Bin Sober Oct 2015 #81

Yeah, that's true. MillennialDem Oct 2015 #83

Not only that.... Xithras Oct 2015 #102

The rocket equation... krispos42 Oct 2015 #31

Or just send the middle managers, hair dressers, and telephone sanitizers. longship Oct 2015 #33

I'll volunteer to smash the bottle of champagne on the bow of... krispos42 Oct 2015 #40

Or just send the middle managers, hair dressers, and telephone sanitizers. AlbertCat Oct 2015 #52

But we know the fate that befell the Gulgafrinshans. lumberjack_jeff Oct 2015 #65

Or this one quickesst Oct 2015 #56

Nuclear pulse is available now, if fusion doesn't pan out. MillennialDem Oct 2015 #64

While I am a big fan of science. ZX86 Oct 2015 #41

Agreed Travis_0004 Oct 2015 #46

You don't have to go a billion years. ZX86 Oct 2015 #50

Yep!!! Exactly!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! n/t RKP5637 Oct 2015 #112

Thinking too linearly forsaken mortal Oct 2015 #71

Maybe we can learn to... 3catwoman3 Oct 2015 #79

Well, the responses to the Alcubierre drive suggestion... longship Oct 2015 #84

No no...everything must be referenced through rockets! Rex Oct 2015 #126

Right. There are billions of star systems, billions of years ahead of us. onehandle Oct 2015 #78

From our point of view, it's expensive Shankapotomus Oct 2015 #85

Well, that's another matter altogether. longship Oct 2015 #86

Well, if we're looking for Shankapotomus Oct 2015 #87

Light sail! longship Oct 2015 #89

From a human POV, that sounds about right and is the only mindset we can imagine. Rex Oct 2015 #94

Well, the universe is governed by universal laws. longship Oct 2015 #100

Yet the way you type it, they seem set in stone and you know that is not true. Rex Oct 2015 #101

The universe is what it is. longship Oct 2015 #104

You must not like theoretical science much. Rex Oct 2015 #106

Well, that would be a straw man. longship Oct 2015 #110

Sorry did not mean you in particular. Rex Oct 2015 #113

Creativity in science does not mean making shit up. longship Oct 2015 #119

Who cares about warp drives? Geez is that all you got? Rex Oct 2015 #120

We know them all yet zipplewrath Oct 2015 #157

We would need stable wormholes Oneironaut Oct 2015 #121

Yup! That is my reading of the universe as well. longship Oct 2015 #123

Yw. If you used a warp drive that brought you even very close Oneironaut Oct 2015 #129

Don't forget time dilation. longship Oct 2015 #137

True. That would be hilariously pointless. Oneironaut Oct 2015 #139

We think. Rex Oct 2015 #124

If you have the resources of an entire solar system things start to look different Fumesucker Oct 2015 #138

Yes, but there's still the problem of huge distances. longship Oct 2015 #142

Distance is immaterial to immortal beings who can manipulate their sense of time at will Fumesucker Oct 2015 #155

True. In our current stage of understanding the universe, that makes sense. Glassunion Oct 2015 #149

Well, relativity kind of puts any such advancements aside. longship Oct 2015 #153

I don't know where you got the idea that I was implying that new scientific Glassunion Oct 2015 #160

Sadly for some it stopped with Einstein. Rex Oct 2015 #161

Interstellar travel. That's the thing here. longship Oct 2015 #166

Goldfish in a bowl. Glassunion Oct 2015 #168

Huh? nt longship Oct 2015 #169

98 to 99% Glassunion Oct 2015 #179

See? Stuck in another time period. Rex Oct 2015 #171

Indeed Glassunion Oct 2015 #181

Who's to say, maybe we're from another planet. B Calm Oct 2015 #6

With close to 7 billion people that we know of, it makes me wonder Rex Oct 2015 #9

Our creators were...we were built here .... nt fadedrose Oct 2015 #17

I know my next door neighbor has to be!! Kilgore Oct 2015 #38

I find it far more likely that we'll find evidence of an extraterrestrial civilization than that one Rond Vidar Oct 2015 #8

That makes sense Renew Deal Oct 2015 #10

It's unlikely we'll spot them through visual evidence. Radio emissions are much easier to detect. Rond Vidar Oct 2015 #11

Always thought they'd avoid us. JonathanRackham Oct 2015 #12

That will take patience. Renew Deal Oct 2015 #13

The aliens seeded the planet fadedrose Oct 2015 #14

"We are no accident." LuvNewcastle Oct 2015 #34

Who did this to you? tkmorris Oct 2015 #51

I am not a solid believer in anything I said fadedrose Oct 2015 #59

I saw your critical thinking flying around in a spaceship with aliens wheniwasincongress Oct 2015 #77

What's your critical thinking filled explanation of our origins? n/t prayin4rain Oct 2015 #97

Have you ever read any non-fiction by Carl Sagan? Shankapotomus Oct 2015 #91

Sigh. nt Codeine Oct 2015 #69

You forgot the sarcasm smilie. nt Curmudgeoness Oct 2015 #122

Message auto-removed Name removed Oct 2015 #140

No. Molten Core fadedrose Oct 2015 #147

Some astrophysicists make the argument that... krispos42 Oct 2015 #15

My guess is we find then first, and they are Yupster Oct 2015 #24

And then we keep them from evolving into an advanced life-form. krispos42 Oct 2015 #26

They ARE us. We just haven't figure it out yet. n/t Avalux Oct 2015 #18

Donald Trump has to be an alien, there's no other explanation! Initech Oct 2015 #19

I tend to believe we are under quarantine. roamer65 Oct 2015 #20

Now that makes sense. 2naSalit Oct 2015 #80

Well, as some have said ... RKP5637 Oct 2015 #117

We will find them in the end... Paulie Oct 2015 #21

They are all over the place. We're simply to dim witted to notice. hunter Oct 2015 #22

They found us terminally useless and moved on. alphafemale Oct 2015 #23

Actually, your answer is logically the best. Any species with the high-intelligence to travel the.. BlueJazz Oct 2015 #43

Thankfully we do not taste good. alphafemale Oct 2015 #47

They probably didn't want to take the chance they'd catch something. BlueJazz Oct 2015 #53

Not Necessarily forsaken mortal Oct 2015 #68

Ants are interesting. nt alphafemale Oct 2015 #74

No..I doubt that very seriously ( ew era ton essopsus ot klat tuoba taht !) BlueJazz Oct 2015 #76

Given the fact that we are in our technological childhood... longship Oct 2015 #25

Given how young our universe is compared to the others... Kalidurga Oct 2015 #28

They will come here to serve Man 6chars Oct 2015 #29

Well Played Kilgore Oct 2015 #37

Well, I for one won't be lining up for a rocket trip Art_from_Ark Oct 2015 #42

Yes. H2O Man Oct 2015 #30

Obvious simple answer, they just want to Serve Man Kilgore Oct 2015 #35

They're already here. ZX86 Oct 2015 #39

I think, as we are probably Shankapotomus Oct 2015 #93

History 2 Channel has some UFO stuff on now fadedrose Oct 2015 #44

It's very difficult to refute the evidence IMO that some really interesting, mysterious and RKP5637 Oct 2015 #127

It is mathematical impossible for there to be no other intelligent civilizations in our galaxy Half-Century Man Oct 2015 #45

Nope. Spider Jerusalem Oct 2015 #48

Life is a property of matter. L. Coyote Oct 2015 #49

I think Fermi Paradox makes for interesting reading Travis_0004 Oct 2015 #54

Already here.... peace13 Oct 2015 #55

They have already found us - and kept on going... LiberalElite Oct 2015 #57

Anyone who has ever had a premonition knows that thinking is the best way to travel. leveymg Oct 2015 #58

We'll find them... nonexistent. n/t lumberjack_jeff Oct 2015 #60

We first arrived on your Earth year 1967. Throd Oct 2015 #61

there was a gaggle of 'em in Boulder last night spanone Oct 2015 #63

A ton of energy is needed for space travel. Deadshot Oct 2015 #66

The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe... beevul Oct 2015 #67

Message auto-removed Name removed Oct 2015 #73

Have you read Carl Sagan's Contact? wheniwasincongress Oct 2015 #75

If we keep 2naSalit Oct 2015 #82

They came, took a look, and put us on a quarantine list. hobbit709 Oct 2015 #88

I agree, they were smart and left us alone. n/t Paper Roses Oct 2015 #92

they already found us then ran the other way. nt Javaman Oct 2015 #95

They'll Find Us First ProfessorGAC Oct 2015 #99

We are the Aliens and they are us... yuiyoshida Oct 2015 #103

aliens have already found us. n/t Scout Oct 2015 #105

Some estimates are they could be about two billion years more advanced than us. RKP5637 Oct 2015 #107

Thank you! Rex Oct 2015 #118

Also, here's a humbling thought: Oneironaut Oct 2015 #125

Unless you know how to bend space and time to make two points anywhere in the universe met. Rex Oct 2015 #128

Exactly. I can't claim to be an expert or even close. Oneironaut Oct 2015 #130

Agree...the more outrageous we get, the crazier it gets. Rex Oct 2015 #132

What kind? get the red out Oct 2015 #131

Maybe they already did and wisely decided to ignore us. Tierra_y_Libertad Oct 2015 #133

Or maybe we are so alien to them and them to us, that neither group even notices the other. Rex Oct 2015 #134

I think you may be right. Kind of like sponges studying ballerinas and vice-versa. Tierra_y_Libertad Oct 2015 #136

They're here: DFW Oct 2015 #135

That's Not My Picture! ProfessorGAC Oct 2015 #141

Hold on, I have others: DFW Oct 2015 #151

Given the luck the human race has had hifiguy Oct 2015 #143

Ranch dressing, human flavor? Rex Oct 2015 #159

there is NO intelligent life in Universe TheSarcastinator Oct 2015 #164

They've already found us. They are now waiting to see whether PatrickforO Oct 2015 #176

I think we will find basic lifeforms in our solar system Marrah_G Oct 2015 #178