Quote:
Originally Posted by Kullat Nunu
Yes, but this doesn't explain the Fermi paradox: if intelligent life is common, why they're not here?
|
I could really misinterpret that
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kullat Nunu
Assuming that none of the civilizations haven't decided to colonize the Milky Way over the billions of years when intelligent life has been possible is far-fetched. Interstellar distances and vast timespans are not a problem for a highly resilient or mechanical entities.
|
Maybe. But there are pretty severe limits to what we can "see" even in our neighborhood. Add to that the vast distances between galaxies and the vast number of galaxies... It's pretty danged unlikely that anyone is close enough for us to talk to.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kullat Nunu
Either they don't exist, or we understand the advanced civilizations fundamentally wrong. I suspect the latter. No doubt that our view of how advanced civilizations ought to operate is hopelessly naive.
|
Or maybe we just can't see them yet.
Let's be realistic about the sizes and distances and timeline that we are currently able to observe.
Right now, we can't even tell if there is life on Europa- and that's pretty close!
Over distances- we are looking back in time. Add to that, we may not see the machines or markers of an advanced civilization- even if it's only a few hundred light years away.
From Alpha Centuri, would an observer be able to tell if there was any life on Earth at all? Most likely not. We are tiny, our EM radiation barely significant if noticable-
Our machines in space would be as easy to spot as a molecule of oil in the ocean.