Science

Fumesucker

(45,851 posts)

4. Or perhaps sufficiently advanced technology may only be detectable with magical means?

Fri Dec 16, 2011, 08:04 PM

Dec 2011

What is detectable of civilization seems to me to be mostly waste energy that is radiated off into space in one form or another.

As technology becomes more advanced then efficiency becomes higher and higher, eventually efficiency becomes high enough that waste energy is very nearly nil, there's minimal energy to detect.

In space even a remarkably powerful laser beam would be largely undetectable unless you were directly in it.

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Darwin's Extraterrestrials [View all] Swede Dec 2011 OP

That's what I would do. Camouflage myself. mainer Dec 2011 #1

This message was self-deleted by its author guyton Dec 2011 #2

We're already doing that... ElboRuum Dec 2011 #7

Well, assuming we all agree about the big bang as the starting point MarkCharles Dec 2011 #3

Big Bang, plus a few billion years for many first generation stars to nova... Orsino Dec 2011 #19

Or perhaps sufficiently advanced technology may only be detectable with magical means? Fumesucker Dec 2011 #4

Not to mention interference... Humanist_Activist Dec 2011 #6

And compression and encryption make signals look like noise. nt bananas Dec 2011 #10

Or maybe they found some other way to communicate Confusious Dec 2011 #11

Certainly possible... Humanist_Activist Dec 2011 #13

My thinking also Confusious Dec 2011 #14

That's my take on it Dead_Parrot Dec 2011 #15

A good book on the subject pokerfan Dec 2011 #5

Sounds good. I just ordered it. n/t krispos42 Dec 2011 #8

Where is Everybody...Really? frogmarch Dec 2011 #9

Considering a Large portion of the population of this planet Confusious Dec 2011 #12

It is also possible that interstellar travel is harder than we think it is Motown_Johnny Dec 2011 #16

I suspect we're already being observed. If a civilization were sufficienty advanced, Phoonzang Dec 2011 #17

Nonsense. Orsino Dec 2011 #18