UFO Proliferation

[Churchill]

It'll be the new UCAV they're testing at Boscombe.

Move along, there's nothing to see here.

[Diver]

It's swamp gas

[HairyArsedBloke]

You know what do, don't you...

I keep telling ya. They are not coming; they are going home. Just like Elvis, the Dolphins and now the Bees.

[ace00]

Fermi paradox

[QUOTE=Board Game Geek;571813]
As an aside, I do believe in other life in the known universe. It's statistically impossible for there not to be life.
[QUOTE]

Anyone familiar with the Fermi paradox ?
( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fermi_paradox )

Particular interest of mine.
Basically says that if there is other life out there, where is it?
Universe is about 14 bill yrs. Earth about 4. Stable universe, what 10 bill yrs? So 6 bill yrs for life to arise, expand at sublight speed and be existing or evidenced in our galaxy.
Secondly, life on Earth arose very quickly, Earth is not an exceptional planet (water, iron, etc).
So like you say, statistics say we should be in contact with Alien life.

Fermi's tentative conclusion (and mine too) - there is life, but expansionist tool building aggressive "civilization" is not only extremely rare, but also not an evolutionary advantage and in fact carries the seeds of it's own destruction.

[HairyArsedBloke]

Life is probably everywhere. As we have seen on Earth, it’s gets everywhere including where we don’t want it to be. Plant and non-sentient animals probably abound too. Tool making (not just a human trait) and sentient like early or current/recent nomadic humans is probably very rare.

Life that is capable of figuring out what the universe is made of and becomes capable of engineering it to it own needs and has a desire to leave it’s home world – incredibly rare indeed. Given that the Universe/Galaxy is still pretty young it may mean that humans are the first. Someone has to be the first to achieve that level it may be humans.

[TimberWolf]

Anyone familiar with the Fermi paradox ?
( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fermi_paradox )

Particular interest of mine.
Basically says that if there is other life out there, where is it?
Universe is about 14 bill yrs. Earth about 4. Stable universe, what 10 bill yrs? So 6 bill yrs for life to arise, expand at sublight speed and be existing or evidenced in our galaxy.
Secondly, life on Earth arose very quickly, Earth is not an exceptional planet (water, iron, etc).
So like you say, statistics say we should be in contact with Alien life.

Fermi's tentative conclusion (and mine too) - there is life, but expansionist tool building aggressive "civilization" is not only extremely rare, but also not an evolutionary advantage and in fact carries the seeds of it's own destruction.

We may be one of the first though? Since as you note life arose quickly on Earth - about as quickly as is possible. For example to obtain the elements required for our type of life, the Universe had to be as old as it was (needed a Super Nova to form carbon atoms etc, and our solar system to be formed from these remnants).

[TheBigYinJames]

Life that is capable of figuring out what the universe is made of and becomes capable of engineering it to it own needs and has a desire to leave it’s home world – incredibly rare indeed. Given that the Universe/Galaxy is still pretty young it may mean that humans are the first. Someone has to be the first to achieve that level it may be humans.

There is another theory that any technological society will eventually harvest 100% of the energy from their host star, by building a huge Dyson sphere around it. There may be civilisations around but we just can't see them. If you couple that with ther sheer effort required to travel interstellar distances within a reasonable time. We could be teeming with life and not know it.

[Marina]

The apparent absence of aliens is called the Fermi Paradox, summed up by the title of a fascinating 300 page book, well worth reading, called "If the Universe is Teeming with Aliens, Where is Everybody" by S. Webb (Praxis, 2002).

The author is a scientist, and covers literally dozens of scenarios and ifs and buts. I won't tell you his conclusions though, but I have an ecopy if anyone is interested and doesn't feel guilty about not buying it.

[Churchill]

The apparent absence of aliens is called the Fermi Paradox, summed up by the title of a fascinating 300 page book, well worth reading, called "If the Universe is Teeming with Aliens, Where is Everybody" by S. Webb (Praxis, 2002).

The author is a scientist, and covers literally dozens of scenarios and ifs and buts. I won't tell you his conclusions though, but I have an ecopy if anyone is interested and doesn't feel guilty about not buying it.

Guilt is for permies...

I'll have a copy please.

PM Sent.

[Diver]

You'd all better hope it's and not ...

You know what do, don't you...

Stoppit! You'll get Sas all exited