How smart are SETI@homers?

When a reasonable person fails to attain his
goal, he either abandons the goal or tries
a different method of attaining the goal.
An idiot is usually defined as someone who
responds to failure by doubling his efforts.

NASA is an ossified bureaucracy, but they are
not idiots. When their big SETI program failed,
they abandoned it. SETI@homers ignore their
failures and have little if any interest in
modifying their search method. Worse yet, they
seem to believe that some extraterrestrial
civilizations have been sending powerful
microwave beams toward the Earth for millions
of years. Why would the extraterrestrial tax
payers support such an effort? If we ever
receive their message it will say something
like: "Life is absurd. Have a happy suicide."

In semi-infinite wisdom Andrew Nowicki answered:
When a reasonable person fails to attain his
goal, he either abandons the goal or tries
a different method of attaining the goal.
An idiot is usually defined as someone who
responds to failure by doubling his efforts.

NASA is an ossified bureaucracy, but they are
not idiots. When their big SETI program failed,
they abandoned it.

No, congress told them to stop spending money
on SETI. NASA would spend trillions on SETI if
they had the funds. NASA cannot even account
for where their current funds go, after a GAO
audit.

SETI@homers ignore their
failures and have little if any interest in
modifying their search method.

What failures? SETI@home is an open research
project. Some expect it to work, but many,
myself included, think even negative evidence
worth having. We'll know what ain't there at
least.

Worse yet, they
seem to believe that some extraterrestrial
civilizations have been sending powerful
microwave beams toward the Earth for millions
of years.

I don't recall any search for extragalactic
sources. I think it's more of a 'what-if'
question that's being asked, and answered
mostly with voluntary computer power and
a hitched ride on Arecibo. Seems quite
acceptable to me. No one's being lied to,
unless they are being told that the Drake
equation is proof of ET civilizations (it
does seem a religion to many).

Why would the extraterrestrial tax
payers support such an effort?

I'm reminded of a quote by Woody Allen in
Without Feathers...

To you I'm an athiest, to god I'm the loyal opposition.

If we ever
receive their message it will say something
like: "Life is absurd. Have a happy suicide."

So I take it you're just trolling.

Have a nice day.

Rich

In semi-infinite wisdom Andrew Nowicki answered:
When a reasonable person fails to attain his
goal, he either abandons the goal or tries
a different method of attaining the goal.
An idiot is usually defined as someone who
responds to failure by doubling his efforts.

NASA is an ossified bureaucracy, but they are
not idiots. When their big SETI program failed,
they abandoned it.

No, congress told them to stop spending money
on SETI. NASA would spend trillions on SETI if
they had the funds. NASA cannot even account
for where their current funds go, after a GAO
audit.

SETI@homers ignore their
failures and have little if any interest in
modifying their search method.

What failures? SETI@home is an open research
project. Some expect it to work, but many,
myself included, think even negative evidence
worth having. We'll know what ain't there at
least.

Worse yet, they
seem to believe that some extraterrestrial
civilizations have been sending powerful
microwave beams toward the Earth for millions
of years.

I don't recall any search for extragalactic
sources. I think it's more of a 'what-if'
question that's being asked, and answered
mostly with voluntary computer power and
a hitched ride on Arecibo. Seems quite
acceptable to me. No one's being lied to,
unless they are being told that the Drake
equation is proof of ET civilizations (it
does seem a religion to many).

Why would the extraterrestrial tax
payers support such an effort?

I'm reminded of a quote by Woody Allen in
Without Feathers...

To you I'm an athiest, to god I'm the loyal opposition.

If we ever
receive their message it will say something
like: "Life is absurd. Have a happy suicide."

So I take it you're just trolling.

Have a nice day.

Rich

Andrew Nowicki wrote:

When a reasonable person fails to attain his
goal, he either abandons the goal or tries
a different method of attaining the goal.
An idiot is usually defined as someone who
responds to failure by doubling his efforts.

NASA is an ossified bureaucracy, but they are
not idiots. When their big SETI program failed,
they abandoned it. SETI@homers ignore their
failures and have little if any interest in
modifying their search method. Worse yet, they
seem to believe that some extraterrestrial
civilizations have been sending powerful
microwave beams toward the Earth for millions
of years. Why would the extraterrestrial tax
payers support such an effort? If we ever
receive their message it will say something
like: "Life is absurd. Have a happy suicide."


WOW ($1)


--
It Came From C. L. Smith's Unclaimed Mysteries.
http://www.unclaimedmysteries.net

"Bill Funk" said in rec.photo.digital: "Is this
actually part of your plan? To use tag lines to show your contempt,
while showing that you really have so little understanding?"

Andrew Nowicki wrote:

When a reasonable person fails to attain his
goal, he either abandons the goal or tries
a different method of attaining the goal.
An idiot is usually defined as someone who
responds to failure by doubling his efforts.

NASA is an ossified bureaucracy, but they are
not idiots. When their big SETI program failed,
they abandoned it. SETI@homers ignore their
failures and have little if any interest in
modifying their search method. Worse yet, they
seem to believe that some extraterrestrial
civilizations have been sending powerful
microwave beams toward the Earth for millions
of years. Why would the extraterrestrial tax
payers support such an effort? If we ever
receive their message it will say something
like: "Life is absurd. Have a happy suicide."


WOW ($1)


--
It Came From C. L. Smith's Unclaimed Mysteries.
http://www.unclaimedmysteries.net

"Bill Funk" said in rec.photo.digital: "Is this
actually part of your plan? To use tag lines to show your contempt,
while showing that you really have so little understanding?"

Andrew Nowicki wrote:
When a reasonable person fails to attain his
goal, he either abandons the goal or tries
a different method of attaining the goal.
An idiot is usually defined as someone who
responds to failure by doubling his efforts.

NASA is an ossified bureaucracy, but they are
not idiots. When their big SETI program failed,
they abandoned it. SETI@homers ignore their
failures and have little if any interest in
modifying their search method. Worse yet, they
seem to believe that some extraterrestrial
civilizations have been sending powerful
microwave beams toward the Earth for millions
of years. Why would the extraterrestrial tax
payers support such an effort? If we ever
receive their message it will say something
like: "Life is absurd. Have a happy suicide."

Why would you post something like that here? And if you was smart you
will know something like Seti will take a long time to reshach. Where is
a post in this news group can not remember what it is called but it
explains why we should not stop. And why and how long it may take. Maybe
someone could tell me where it is and I could but a google link to it.

Andrew Nowicki wrote:
When a reasonable person fails to attain his
goal, he either abandons the goal or tries
a different method of attaining the goal.
An idiot is usually defined as someone who
responds to failure by doubling his efforts.

NASA is an ossified bureaucracy, but they are
not idiots. When their big SETI program failed,
they abandoned it. SETI@homers ignore their
failures and have little if any interest in
modifying their search method. Worse yet, they
seem to believe that some extraterrestrial
civilizations have been sending powerful
microwave beams toward the Earth for millions
of years. Why would the extraterrestrial tax
payers support such an effort? If we ever
receive their message it will say something
like: "Life is absurd. Have a happy suicide."

Why would you post something like that here? And if you was smart you
will know something like Seti will take a long time to reshach. Where is
a post in this news group can not remember what it is called but it
explains why we should not stop. And why and how long it may take. Maybe
someone could tell me where it is and I could but a google link to it.

In sci.space.policy Rich wrote:


In semi-infinite wisdom Andrew Nowicki answered:
When a reasonable person fails to attain his
goal, he either abandons the goal or tries
a different method of attaining the goal.
An idiot is usually defined as someone who
responds to failure by doubling his efforts.

NASA is an ossified bureaucracy, but they are
not idiots. When their big SETI program failed,
they abandoned it.

No, congress told them to stop spending money
on SETI. NASA would spend trillions on SETI if
they had the funds. NASA cannot even account
for where their current funds go, after a GAO
audit.

Yes, but that was not the reason of that funding cut.


SETI@homers ignore their
failures and have little if any interest in
modifying their search method.

What failures? SETI@home is an open research
project. Some expect it to work, but many,
myself included, think even negative evidence
worth having. We'll know what ain't there at
least.


More correctly, we know what wasn't where some time
ago. Remember, radio signals move at a finite speed,
so instead of "now" it is always looking at the past.

A positive result depends on there having been a
civilisation that was a strong radio source emitter
k years ago at the distance of k lightyears. This
is where Drake equation comes into play and why you
need not pay attention to whetever it then goes off
to conquer the stars or not.

The chance of detecting a signal from stars that are
say 5000 - 10000 lightyears awy depends on the chance
of there having been a civbilsation in the radio noise
phase among that relatively largis amount of stars
during teh past 5000-10000 years ago (though to be
sure about outermost stars, we have to listen for 5000
more years). Its an odd kind of archeology ;-)


Rich


--
Sander

+++ Out of cheese error +++

In sci.space.policy Rich wrote:


In semi-infinite wisdom Andrew Nowicki answered:
When a reasonable person fails to attain his
goal, he either abandons the goal or tries
a different method of attaining the goal.
An idiot is usually defined as someone who
responds to failure by doubling his efforts.

NASA is an ossified bureaucracy, but they are
not idiots. When their big SETI program failed,
they abandoned it.

No, congress told them to stop spending money
on SETI. NASA would spend trillions on SETI if
they had the funds. NASA cannot even account
for where their current funds go, after a GAO
audit.

Yes, but that was not the reason of that funding cut.


SETI@homers ignore their
failures and have little if any interest in
modifying their search method.

What failures? SETI@home is an open research
project. Some expect it to work, but many,
myself included, think even negative evidence
worth having. We'll know what ain't there at
least.


More correctly, we know what wasn't where some time
ago. Remember, radio signals move at a finite speed,
so instead of "now" it is always looking at the past.

A positive result depends on there having been a
civilisation that was a strong radio source emitter
k years ago at the distance of k lightyears. This
is where Drake equation comes into play and why you
need not pay attention to whetever it then goes off
to conquer the stars or not.

The chance of detecting a signal from stars that are
say 5000 - 10000 lightyears awy depends on the chance
of there having been a civbilsation in the radio noise
phase among that relatively largis amount of stars
during teh past 5000-10000 years ago (though to be
sure about outermost stars, we have to listen for 5000
more years). Its an odd kind of archeology ;-)


Rich


--
Sander

+++ Out of cheese error +++

I thought it was 'To Serve Man".

--
Mike Bader
Join our International team
http://www.setiathome.us
http://www.boinc.us

No of SETI units returned: 27139
Processing time: 48 years, 240 days, 18 hours.
(Total hours: 426258)

"CeeBee" wrote in message
. 6.74...
Andrew Nowicki wrote in sci.astro.seti:

If we ever
receive their message it will say something
like: "Life is absurd. Have a happy suicide."

The last message I received from them was: "we mean no harm to you
earthlings".

Sometimes I wonder why.

--
CeeBee


EMH Mark I: "Stop breathing down my neck."
EMH Mark II: "My breath is merely a simulation."
EMH Mark I: "So is my neck. Stop it anyway."