"Joseph Lazio" wrote in message
...
Catching up on my email I found the following. Seems I have some
sci-fi reading to do as well.

Paper: astro-ph/0408521
Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2004 10:40:52 GMT (617kb)

Title: "Permanence" - An Adaptationist Solution to Fermi's Paradox?
Authors: Milan M. Cirkovic
Comments: 23 pages, 2 figures

A new solution of Fermi's paradox sketched by SF writer Karl Schroeder
in his 2002. novel "Permanence" is critically investigated. It is
argued that this solution is tightly connected with adaptationism - a
widely discussed working hypothesis in evolutionary
biology. Schroeder's hypothesis has important ramifications for
astrobiology, SETI projects, and future studies. Its weaknesses should
be explored without succumbing to the emotional reactions often
accompanying adaptationist explanations.

( http://arXiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0408521 , 617kb)

Interesting read, but:

"Intelligence, conciousness, is no more important than the color on a
butterfly's wings" !!
Naw, I don't think so! ...

The level of intelligence will (does) vary greatly, but I don't think it is
going to go away anytime soon!
Even if we regress to a stone age culture, intelligence will still figure
out how to beat the saber tooth tiger or equivalent, and other preditors (as
long as they are not more intelligent :-). Technology will rise again.

If we die off completely from a deadly virus for example, then perhaps we're
gone forever. But if we're "lucky" and we keep learning we can beat even
this problem! I'm proactive about life and intelligence, because I suspect
it is behind (somehow, someway) the universe itself ... if we and science
survive long enough (and why not!) then we'll figure this problem out too.
Perhaps we'll invent our own universe. Who the heck knows how far we can go.
I don't think there are limits!

I think it is far too early to worry so much about the Fermi Question (it is
not paradox ... not yet anyway, or may be ever!).
Al





--
Lt. Lazio, HTML police | e-mail:
No means no, stop rape. | http://patriot.net/%7Ejlazio/
sci.astro FAQ at http://sciastro.astronomy.net/sci.astro.html