What Are the Implications of Being the First Intelligent Life in the Galaxy?

  • Context: Graduate 
  • Thread starter Thread starter marcus
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Idea
Click For Summary

Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the implications of humanity potentially being the first intelligent life in the galaxy. Participants explore various theories regarding the existence of other intelligent life forms, the possibility of colonization, and the factors that may influence these outcomes. The conversation touches on speculative ideas, scientific reasoning, and philosophical considerations related to Fermi's question and the Drake equation.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Speculative reasoning

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants propose that humanity may be the first intelligent species to mature in the galaxy, suggesting potential for colonization, but caution that self-destruction could hinder this progress.
  • Others argue that we might be quarantined or observed by other civilizations until deemed safe, presenting a more pessimistic view of our status in the galaxy.
  • Several participants express skepticism about the likelihood of being the first, suggesting that other civilizations may have existed or may still exist but remain undetected.
  • Some contributions highlight the limitations of our current understanding of the galaxy and the potential for undiscovered planets that could harbor life.
  • There are discussions about the implications of the Andromeda-Milky Way collision and its potential effects on life and colonization efforts.
  • One participant speculates that if intelligent life is common, it may struggle to overcome significant barriers to colonization, such as technological limitations or societal collapse.
  • Another viewpoint questions the validity of the Drake equation and suggests that the evolution of intelligent life may be exceedingly rare due to numerous coincidental factors.
  • Some participants express a belief that if intelligent life exists, it may not have developed the capability to break the light barrier, limiting interstellar travel.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a range of views, with no clear consensus on whether humanity is the first intelligent life in the galaxy. Multiple competing theories and uncertainties remain, reflecting differing opinions on the existence of other civilizations and the feasibility of colonization.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include the speculative nature of many claims, the dependence on definitions of intelligence and civilization, and unresolved questions about the conditions necessary for life to evolve and thrive in the galaxy.

Are we the first species with the itch and ability to colonize this galaxy?

  • we are the first potential colonizers to mature, let's go for it

    Votes: 6 18.8%

  • we don't have the potential, or maybe don't really want to

    Votes: 1 3.1%

  • we aren't the first, colonization by others has begun but is not detected

    Votes: 11 34.4%

  • a different possibility is more likely

    Votes: 14 43.8%
  • Total voters
    32
  • #31
WarrenPlatts said:
One hundred years ago, the fastest thing we had could maybe go 100 miles per hour (about .03 miles per second). 50 years ago we broke the sound barrier, (about .2 miles per second).
We have had the technology to accelerate small objects to speeds faster than the speed of sound for a whole lot longer than 50 years. Around the time of the American Civil War, Jules Verne wrote a novel in which this technology was used to fly people to the Moon.
 
Astronomy news on Phys.org
  • #32
Quite true, but I was thinking of manned vehicles mainly. Granted, we haven't constructed a manned craft that is as fast as Ulysses, but it could be done with today's technology.
 
  • #33
The effects of acceleration on the crew is another consideration. 1g would obviously be tolerable. I think a constant acceleration of 3g would surely be intolerable. 2g might be marginally tolerable for a very fit crew. This would also apply to the braking phase of the journey. I haven't crunched the numbers [which is not terribly difficult], but am guessing we might be talking on the order of a century to reach alpha century.
 
  • #34
What i'd like to know is how do we know the requirements here on Earth (when life did begin) aren't the same ones needed for life to begin elsewhere in our galaxy or any other?
 
  • #35
Just open up a can of Cambell's prebiotic soup and zap it in the microwave.

The problem is that while it is easy to get life started, it is much more difficult to evolve human-level intelligence.
 
  • #36
Chronos said:
The effects of acceleration on the crew is another consideration. 1g would obviously be tolerable. I think a constant acceleration of 3g would surely be intolerable. 2g might be marginally tolerable for a very fit crew. This would also apply to the braking phase of the journey. I haven't crunched the numbers [which is not terribly difficult], but am guessing we might be talking on the order of a century to reach alpha century.
If the astronauts were underwater in some sort of tank with the right density, they could withstand at least 10-20+ g's.
 
  • #37
That is just plain wrong, Warren. The water also succumbs to g-forces. You still get squashed against the sides of the vessel. Inertia is an unforgiving mistress.
 
  • #38
Chronos said:
That is just plain wrong, Warren. The water also succumbs to g-forces. You still get squashed against the sides of the vessel. Inertia is an unforgiving mistress.
Are you sure? I came across this idea in an Arthur C. Clarke novel, and he usually knows his stuff.

It's like that old homework problem: if you're making a left turn in an automobile, in which direction will a helium balloon move? (It moves to the left.) If the density was too high, you would be forced to the surface, and if it was too low, you would get squashed on the bottom. But if the density was just right, you wouldn't get squashed--you would just float. Granted, the pressure would increase, and might require some decompression time to avoid the bends.

So, a 30-g acceleration would be the equivalent of being 1,000 feet underwater. Humans have free-dived down to 1-km of ocean. That would be the equivalent of a wopping 100-g acceleration.
 
Last edited:
  • #39
Sorry Chronos.

What water does is balancing the pressure on the body against the blood pressure. So if there is a high g load in the vertical axis, the blood wants to drain into the legs, whilst lowering the pressure in the head. Now, the surrounding water reacts the same way, increasing the pressure in the lower parts, balancing the pressure on the body and countering the tendency of the blood to sink.

So yes, in the water the effect of g-force is less indeed. There are water-filled g-suits.
 
  • #40
So, at 100 g's, and ignoring relativity, one could get to .9 c after a 76 hour burn. Thus, one could get to Alpha centauri in about 5 or 6 Earth years, but for the astronauts, it would only seem like 2-3 years.
 

Similar threads

Graduate "The 7 Strangest Coincidences in the Laws of Nature" (S. Hossenfelder)
  • · Replies 62 ·
3
Replies
62
Views
11K
Death, Nothingness and Subjectivity
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
5K
A suggestion for dolphin communication.
  • · Replies 6 ·
Replies
6
Views
6K