So it makes sense that we should be able to see some similarly 'dirty' object in space just radiating enormous amounts of radio noise.
Oooooh! I like this!
Home | So it makes sense that we should be able to see some similarly 'dirty' object in space just radiating enormous amounts of radio noise.
Oooooh! I like this!
Sure we are at a terrrific level , but we still are far behind. Can we begin to mimick the grace and naturalness of mother nature.
Our robots that try are not even close, Mother nature has abilities and senses that we can't touch.
He was also the one who said that "any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic!"Originally posted by Mediocrates
Arthur C. Clarke once pointed out the problem is not reaching 10% of c, the problem is that under Newtonian physics the kinetic energy of a moving body is k=1/2(m(v^2)) so if you need a unit of fuel energy e to accelerate to .1c then, because of Newton's 2nd law you would need e^2 fuel just to stop from that speed. In other words you would need the square of your fuel to stop and then you would have zero to move again.
Originally posted by Mr. Pumps
Sure we are at a terrrific level , but we still are far behind. Can we begin to mimick the grace and naturalness of mother nature.
Our robots that try are not even close, Mother nature has abilities and senses that we can't touch.
Well, Mother Nature has been at it 4.5 Billion years, on this planet alone. We have only just begun - 100,000 years since Homo Erectus (I think...)
Homo erectus was wandering around on our planet up to around 1.8 million years ago. No energy shortage then.
There are many factors that make this planet hospitable to life. It’s not enough to find a planet somewhere in space and assume that it would be able to sustain life. Distance from star is a factor, tilt of planet on its axis, speed of rotation, atmosphere, water, etc. and even the moon play an important in the development of life.
I doubt that intergalactic travel will ever leave the pages of science fiction and become a reality.
Species evolve but they also become extinct. Other than humans I can name no other species of life form that have asked for or is asking for termination.
Meddling with creation of life is a dangerous even bordering insanity. Recently a simple virus was created in the lab. What comes next? Mankind destroyed by an insignificant spec that’s only visible with an electron microscope.
I can imagine a kid getting a do it yourself virus manufacturing kit far into the future for his/her birthday. Oops I screwed up a bit here!
In another 25-50 years Africa will be devoid of inhabitants due to HIV. It’s already reaching alarming figures and has been rising steadily through the last decade. Viruses do have the capability of killing the host.
Maybe I’m just being a pessimist but I don’t really think so.
Sorry, I apparently meant Homo Ergastus (they still called them Homo Erectus in my college days!) and 400,000 years instead of 100,000 years (there's no excuse for that one: I just forgot...
).
They have found plenty of planets out there. Hundreds of them by now, but that's not the point.
Could we go extinct? Sure, we could. Plenty of species have gone extinct, and most of the ones currently alive have only evolved relatively recently. However, survival is not about some sort of karma or whatever: it's about the efficacy of the survival mechanisms available to the species, and their adaptability to changing environment. By any objective standards, humans have done quite well in both of those departments so far.
The Black Plague killed off 1/3 of all the European population in the 14th century, plus additional death toll from Asia. It actually killed over 25,000,000 people! This is mind-boggling! Yet we were able to come out of it, and even learned how to control this scourge.
To tie all this "free-association" back to the original intent of this thread, globalization IMO is nothing more nor less than part of our survival strategy. It's the way we as human beings, adapt to changing environment and assure the survival of our species. Space exploration will become more and more essential as more of our species survive - therefore, it will be attempted at least. It is imperative that globalization occurs, because our next adventures will require the resources of the whole humanity, and will benefit all of us.
But if this planet is ruined enough, would Space really provide a answer?
To survive at least a couple million people would need to be blasted into orbit. More resources than what we have.
Let me put it this way: we should fervently hope that Space would provide the answer. It seems like there is a good chance that it could.Originally posted by Mr. Pumps
But if this planet is ruined enough, would Space really provide a answer?
To survive at least a couple million people would need to be blasted into orbit. More resources than what we have.
The resources required for as many of us as possible to survive are indeed huge, that's the main reason we need globalization! Globalization results in pooling of the resources, which allows for more efficient use of them, when done wisely.
I am not saying that we should lay off the attempts to save the Earth and focus exclusively on space exloration. What I am saying is that space exploration should be done in tandem with the efforts to save the Earth - because many of the solutions may well be Out There!
I think you are correct. I don't know much about what will happen when what scientists say that the earth will die - meaning if we let tons of garbage and waste collect, and it dies or explodes or whatever (I don't take astronomy until next year :P). When it explodes, what will become of the garbage? Won't most of it dicinigrate? I'm not sure, but I believe it's our job to save the Earth G-d gave us to the best of out ability.Originally posted by elke
Let me put it this way: we should fervently hope that Space would provide the answer. It seems like there is a good chance that it could.
The resources required for as many of us as possible to survive are indeed huge, that's the main reason we need globalization! Globalization results in pooling of the resources, which allows for more efficient use of them, when done wisely.
I am not saying that we should lay off the attempts to save the Earth and focus exclusively on space exloration. What I am saying is that space exploration should be done in tandem with the efforts to save the Earth - because many of the solutions may well be Out There!
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/08/20/sc...th/20POPU.html
Aug. 20, 2002
Experts Scale Back Estimates of World Population Growth
By BARBARA CROSSETTE
=======Demography has never been an exact science. Ever since social thinkers began trying to predict the pace of population growth a century or two ago, the people being counted have been surprising the experts and confounding projections. Today, it is happening again as stunned demographers watch birthrates plunge in ways they never expected.
Only a few years ago, some experts argued that economic development and education for women were necessary precursors for declines in population growth. Today, village women and slum families in some of the poorest countries are beginning to prove them wrong, as fertility rates drop faster than predicted toward the replacement level — 2.1 children for the average mother, one baby to replace each parent, plus a fraction to compensate for unexpected deaths in the overall population.
A few decades ago in certain countries like Brazil, Egypt, India and Mexico fertility rates were as high as five or six.
As a result, United Nations demographers who once predicted the earth's population would peak at 12 billion over the next century or two are scaling back their estimates. Instead, they cautiously predict, the world's population will peak at 10 billion before 2200, when it may begin declining. . . .
The article basically says that demographers' predictions have a long history of being wrong.
As for the ethical implications of how many children a particular family should have, I have mixed feelings. Lots of arguments on all sides of that issue.
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