existential risks...

[Transient]

The sun's still going to be around for a looooooong time. You really think we will be lacking in technology a billion years from now?

[bitWISE]

The sun's still going to be around for a looooooong time. You really think we will be lacking in technology a billion years from now?

I dont doubt that we will find/transform a new planet to live on. I'm just saying that until we do so, the death of the sun is still a risk that we need to mitigate.

Kindof like saying people shouldn't be conserving oil because we'll have technology that doesn't rely on it before it runs out.

[Transient]

Comparing a multi-decade timeframe to a billion year timeframe is a bit unfair.

But yes, ultimately I can't argue the truth of your statement.

[Grudge]

awesome paper

I'm amazed, goof actually posted a useful link

[Wizard .3]

awesome paper

I'm amazed, goof actually posted a useful link

at least Krackass held his true form.

[Grudge]

Yeah, he should try reading the paper before starting to sprout his naive BS. Or maybe he did, and simply didn't understand it.

[Guest]

I think I understood it better than you retards, I actualy picked at it. I know there's no way to prove any of what I said anymore then there's a way to prove what he's saying. My point simply is if you're going on if's, then you have to wonder about other if's, ands and buts. And the reality is that the human species is but one species on a small planet orbiting a sun in a sea of countless numbers of identical scenarios across the universe hence making the idea of life on other planets very realisitc. Since we've evolved to this state in mere fraction of the time the universe has been around it's and even more likely if than most scenarios on that list, not that it's not highly entertaining.

[MKJ]

that made sense and i applaud you for it, sir kracus

[Transient]

How about instead of defending yourself from oneliners, you respond to someone who actually made a detailed post, Kracus?

*cough*

[Guest]

Well... if it was a simulation, we would never know it was shut down even if it was.

That doesn't mean it can't still happen, thus it still belongs on his list. Just because we don't know what kills us doesn't mean it can't kill us.

As for the others, it's unlikely that we're the only intelligent life in the universe and if it were possible i'm certain an alien species would have already have been responsible for doing it since the universe has been around for so long and we've basicly evolved over a pretty short period of time. So the problem I'm having with his universal demise ideas is that they would have already happened by now from another species.

The same could then be said about the likelihood of the other intelligent life causing the problem. You're inviting a paradox; it has to start somewhere. Plus, you read wrong. He said "our part of the cosmos" and "that [it] would sweep through the galaxy and beyond at the speed of light," that doesn't mean the WHOLE universe.

Yeah I know he said part of our cosmos, but he's implying a chain reaction that originates from our planet onwards destroying everything. Take that into concideration everything is always proportionate to the size it's capable of attaining or understanding you could say and the same would hold true for the entire universe, meaning, if it were possible to destroy an entire galaxy by mistake, it's more than likely you could destroy multiple galaxy's and if you could do multiple you could probably do them all, it's all exponential and if it was possible it would have already happened by now assuming an eternal universe. So it might have to start somewhere like you say but I think it's naive to think it starts here, especialy again concidering the nature of an eternal universe.

As for the simulation bit.... I don't know it's difficult to say really, I know what you mean but I'm skeptical, and even if it is just a simulation then this simulation is our universe. I don't know I'll have to think about it.

[Transient]

While it could envelope the entire universe, it could also just be a localized catastrophe (galactic). On a side note, even if an explosion engulfed the entire universe, the blast could only expand at the speed of light, and even if it did expand that fast, the universe would still perpetually exist, wouldn't it? Assuming the universe is expanding, of course, and that it had a 15-odd billion year head start on the blast.

Oh, and when I said it had to start somewhere, I didn't necessarily mean by human hands. Just somewhere.

And why do you say it has to have happened by now assuming an eternal universe? I would think the opposite would be more likely. 15 billion is a really small number compared to infinity.

[Underpants?]

this is a good read...unless ur a moron...

http://www.nickbostrom.com/existential/risks.html

4.3 We’re living in a simulation and it gets shut down

hehe..

couple of good points by a self-important pretentious prick.
nickbostrom.com, lol what a fucking tool

[Guest]

While it could envelope the entire universe, it could also just be a localized catastrophe (galactic). On a side note, even if an explosion engulfed the entire universe, the blast could only expand at the speed of light, and even if it did expand that fast, the universe would still perpetually exist, wouldn't it? Assuming the universe is expanding, of course, and that it had a 15-odd billion year head start on the blast.

Oh, and when I said it had to start somewhere, I didn't necessarily mean by human hands. Just somewhere.

And why do you say it has to have happened by now assuming an eternal universe? I would think the opposite would be more likely. 15 billion is a really small number compared to infinity.

Well whatever is going to happen I figure will have time to happen in a billion years. so if 1 billion goes by and nothings happened and 15 more happened by I'm pretty sure we're good to go until perhaps the reason for all this (universe) is made apparent to us as a whole, somehow, which I'm skeptical about.

[bitWISE]

Comparing a multi-decade timeframe to a billion year timeframe is a bit unfair.

But yes, ultimately I can't argue the truth of your statement.

I agree with you, I'm just argueing my pointless stance

[Transient]

Well whatever is going to happen I figure will have time to happen in a billion years. so if 1 billion goes by and nothings happened and 15 more happened by I'm pretty sure we're good to go until perhaps the reason for all this (universe) is made apparent to us as a whole, somehow, which I'm skeptical about.

Just because it has time to happen doesn't mean it will. Earth is well overdue for a major asteroid impact by scientist's estimates, yet it hasn't happened. It's called probability. We shouldn't feel safe that because it hasn't happened, it can't hit us tomorrow. Who's to say some alien race doesn't evolve to intelligent status and blow themself up accidentally tomorrow? Or 15 billion years from today? Or maybe countless civilizations already blew their galaxies up over the last few billion years?

I fail to see the relevance of us learning the meaning of life or whatever you're eluding to. :icon6:
How does that play into the fact that some scientist somewhere could activate a device that unknowingly causes a chain reaction that obliterates our galaxy (or that another intelligent civilization could do the same thing)?

[Freakaloin]

fuck u...

[Transient]

:icon23:

[Guest]

Well whatever is going to happen I figure will have time to happen in a billion years. so if 1 billion goes by and nothings happened and 15 more happened by I'm pretty sure we're good to go until perhaps the reason for all this (universe) is made apparent to us as a whole, somehow, which I'm skeptical about.

Just because it has time to happen doesn't mean it will. Earth is well overdue for a major asteroid impact by scientist's estimates, yet it hasn't happened. It's called probability. We shouldn't feel safe that because it hasn't happened, it can't hit us tomorrow. Who's to say some alien race doesn't evolve to intelligent status and blow themself up accidentally tomorrow? Or 15 billion years from today? Or maybe countless civilizations already blew their galaxies up over the last few billion years?

I fail to see the relevance of us learning the meaning of life or whatever you're eluding to. :icon6:
How does that play into the fact that some scientist somewhere could activate a device that unknowingly causes a chain reaction that obliterates our galaxy (or that another intelligent civilization could do the same thing)?

So you think it might take a race of super intelligent beings 15 billion years to reasearch something that might potentialy cause a universal explosion? (it's impossible btw)

[Guest]

Hell now that I think about it, maybe that was the big bang lol :P

[Geebs]

END OF TEST

[Transient]

LOL, no.
Humans didn't start evolving from day one. Our race is like 200,000 years old. It was only the last few millenia that we really started getting smart. It took billions of years for the conditions to get just right for us to come into existence.

Same goes for other intelligent life. Their galaxy might be at a different state of getting 'just right'.

[Transient]

I think I understood it better than you retards, I actualy picked at it. I know there's no way to prove any of what I said anymore then there's a way to prove what he's saying.

So you think it might take a race of super intelligent beings 15 billion years to reasearch something that might potentialy cause a universal explosion? (it's impossible btw)

You're contradicting yourself. First you say there's no way to know one way or the other, then you claim to know he's wrong. When did you become a physicist?

[Guest]

You can't cause a universal explosion, the energy required would be too great. It's like trying to find the solution to pi.

[Transient]

Again, when did you become a physicist?

[Massive Quasars]

ugh...