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San Francisco, 12:38 AM
Sun Nov 22
10 posts in the last 24 hours

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    Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time

    Why Charles Stross Hates Scifi Television's Technogibberish

    Hugos 2009: The Fashion, The Fervor And The Suspense!

    Future Cities, The Steampunk Past, And Everything In Between

    The Science Fiction That Captured The Imaginations Of Charles Stross And Sonita Henry

    Sex Robots Who Kill: Is Anything Deadlier?

    Charles Stross Schools Your Instant-Gratification Cravings

    Paul Auster Finally Getting Recognition As A Science Fiction Author?

    Posthumans Go Hollywood! (Maybe.)

    Paul Krugman Does Charles Stross!
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    Dsmvwl  Admin  Promote to frontpage Approve user Ban user ×
    Image of Mark 2000 Mark 2000
    10/30/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    This is just odd. Why would aliens be sending meat puppets to earth and why wouldn't their sophisticated, FTL probes be smart enough to scan for habitable areas and not crash in the ocean? #space
     Reply
    Charlie Jane Anders promoted this comment Mark 2000 was starred Mark 2000 was unstarred
    Image of FrankN.Stein FrankN.Stein
    10/30/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    the whole question is rather pointless - humans have conqeuered just about EVERY habitat on earth, wether it's originally habitable for us or not. #space
     Reply
    Charlie Jane Anders promoted this comment FrankN.Stein was starred FrankN.Stein was unstarred
    Image of Marc Whipple Marc Whipple
    10/30/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    There is a quote in _Have_Spacesuit,_Will_Travel - which is, of course, a novel about a supergenius teenager attempting to refurbish a derelict surplus spacesuit - where, when after reading about all the different environmental factors which must be controlled in precise limits to allow the wearer to live, the hero comments, "By the time I got through reading that list, I didn't see how anybody could stay alive anywhere at all, much less in a spacesuit."

    That has always summed up the problem nicely for me. #space
     Reply
    Charlie Jane Anders promoted this comment 92BuickLeSabre approved this comment Marc Whipple was starred Marc Whipple was unstarred
    Image of daveNYC daveNYC
    10/30/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    The problem is 'mindless'. Humans aren't, which is why we've managed to spread all over the place. #space
     Reply
    daveNYC was starred daveNYC was unstarred
    Image of artiofab artiofab
    10/30/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    (cough) [books.google.ca]
    It's been done in book format. By authors who didn't say "H. Sapiens Sapiens". (if anyone out there can point out the three ways that is bad taxonomy and annoys me, you win an internet cookie)

    But anyway the blog sets up a straw man argument that I don't think anyone who is actually serious about human extraterrestrial colonization considers: that we are looking for planets we can just throw a nude human onto.

    2001 had guys in spacesuits. Moon has a guy (...kinda) in a spacesuit. Babylon 5? Guys (and Vorlons, and Gaim...) in spacesuits.

    So basically this is akin to Columbus going to Ferdinand and Isabella asking for funding to go find a western route to the East Indies ...and being asked for a way to get there without using a boat. #space
     Reply
    Charlie Jane Anders promoted this comment artiofab was starred artiofab was unstarred
    Image of twophrasebark twophrasebark
    10/29/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    Well...

    99 percent of all the species that have ever lived on this planet are extinct.

    Planets evolve. Life evolves.

    Currently on this planet nature is looking for:

    Wanted: Do you like to eat plastics? Are you able to digest polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinyl chloride, polypropylene or polystyrene? If so, we have the job for you! Benefits include almost limitless food and an exclusive ecosystem. Contact: Gaia. Please no phone calls.
     Reply
    Edited by twophrasebark at 10/29/09 4:47 PM twophrasebark was starred twophrasebark was unstarred
    Image of fxsoap fxsoap
    10/30/09

    @twophrasebark: that's kinda goofy. nice one #space
     Reply
    twophrasebark promoted this comment fxsoap was starred fxsoap was unstarred
    Image of Dr Emilio Lizardo Dr Emilio Lizardo
    10/29/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    Why do we have to assume the meat probe lands randomly? If a civilization has the ability to launch the meat probe, couldn't said probe evaluate the target for an appropriate landing site. Sure, you still ahve to arrive at the right time, but you can avoid landing on Antartica.

    "Launch the Meat Probe" would be a great name for a band. #space
     Reply
    Dr Emilio Lizardo was starred Dr Emilio Lizardo was unstarred
    Image of Roklimber Roklimber
    10/29/09

    @Dr Emilio Lizardo:

    ""Launch the Meat Probe" would be a great name for a band"

    Or for a sex act... #space
     Reply
    Roklimber was starred Roklimber was unstarred
    Image of Dr Emilio Lizardo Dr Emilio Lizardo
    10/30/09

    @Roklimber: I challenge you to name one sex act that wouldn't be a good band name. #space
     Reply
    Dr Emilio Lizardo was starred Dr Emilio Lizardo was unstarred
    Image of Roklimber Roklimber
    10/30/09

    @Dr Emilio Lizardo: Very true. #space
     Reply
    Roklimber was starred Roklimber was unstarred
    Image of Anekanta - former space marine Anekanta - former space marine
    10/29/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    But if we can send robots to other solar systems in a timely fashion, surely we can build habitats on these new worlds, to support us until we can live freely on the surface?
     Reply
    Edited by Anekanta - former space marine at 10/29/09 3:08 PM Anekanta - former space marine was starred Anekanta - former space marine was unstarred
    Image of brentbent: C.O.C.K.R.O.A.C.H. )for all the queer super villians out there( brentbent: C.O.C.K.R.O.A.C.H. )for all the queer super villians out there(
    10/29/09

    @Anekanta: Come on, surface living is so gauche. Super massive solar orbitals a la The Culture is the way to go. #space
     Reply
    Anekanta promoted this comment brentbent: C.O.C.K.R.O.A.C.H. )for all the queer super villians out there( was starred brentbent: C.O.C.K.R.O.A.C.H. )for all the queer super villians out there( was unstarred
    Image of Anekanta - former space marine Anekanta - former space marine
    10/29/09

    @brentbent: C.O.C.K.R.O.A.C.H. )for all the queer super villians out there(: Ideally, that's true. I just don't know which technology will come first: the engineering skills required to make gigantic orbitals, or the physics knowledge to make faster than light drives. #space
     Reply
    Anekanta - former space marine was starred Anekanta - former space marine was unstarred
    Image of brentbent: C.O.C.K.R.O.A.C.H. )for all the queer super villians out there( brentbent: C.O.C.K.R.O.A.C.H. )for all the queer super villians out there(
    10/30/09

    @Anekanta: Hopefully we'll get find out the answer to that question. We just have to survive long enough to when consciousness uploading becomes available. #space
     Reply
    brentbent: C.O.C.K.R.O.A.C.H. )for all the queer super villians out there( was starred brentbent: C.O.C.K.R.O.A.C.H. )for all the queer super villians out there( was unstarred
    Image of Dirk Anger Dirk Anger
    10/29/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    On the other hand, if that "meat machine" is a fish, specifically an arctic fish... #space
     Reply
    Dirk Anger was starred Dirk Anger was unstarred
    Image of firstofnormalin firstofnormalin
    10/29/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    Sure--if there's one and only one way to build a human and make it survive for all of time, the odds are pretty low that'll happen. It's the same as the Unintelligent Design addicts claim that human life must be designed because random formation is impossible: they specify it must be made by a long string of DNA forming instantaneously and what about THAT, huh? #space
     Reply
    Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H. promoted this comment firstofnormalin was starred firstofnormalin was unstarred
    Image of galerant galerant
    10/29/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    By that logic, literally every species in the entire history of Earth but for anaerobic bacteria would have a survivability of only a few percent, not just humans by a long shot. I guess Earth isn't really habitable at all then.

    (Seriously why would you need to take into account the full time scale of Earth. Geographic distribution in a specific time I can understand, but geographic distribution over all time?)
     Reply
    Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H. promoted this comment Chip Overclock approved this comment galerant was starred galerant was unstarred
    Image of Dr.Quatermass Dr.Quatermass
    10/29/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    I have to do it.

    It seems that Mr. Stross is just trying to keep us safe from #spacerape
     Reply
    Dr.Quatermass was starred Dr.Quatermass was unstarred
    Image of Dr.Quatermass Dr.Quatermass
    10/29/09

    @Dr.Quatermass: Also. If we don't move out of Mama's House soon, all the other galactic creatures are going to think we are weirdos. #space
     Reply
    Dr.Quatermass was starred Dr.Quatermass was unstarred
    Image of Roklimber Roklimber
    10/29/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    "we couldn't even breathe the air for the vast majority of the planet's history."

    And that's different from today's Los Angeles how, exactly? #space
     Reply
    Roklimber was starred Roklimber was unstarred
    Image of ThisDudeRufus ThisDudeRufus
    10/29/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    Well, people've been spitting on the ground long enough that I'd say we're even. Truce, Earth? #space
     Reply
    ThisDudeRufus was starred ThisDudeRufus was unstarred
    Image of leicester leicester
    10/29/09

    In reply to Our Own Planet Would Kill Us Most Of The Time
    Bill Bryson also discusses the extremely long odds of human existence in 'A Short History of Nearly Everything' -

    Additionally, there is genetic and geological evidence that an eruption of Mt. Toba, Indonesia approximately 70,000 years ago may have reduced the modern human population to as low as 2,000 individuals.

    [www.bradshawfoundation.com] #space
     Reply
    leicester was starred leicester was unstarred
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