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That was my first thought. Sounds close but is unimaginably far away. I keep flipping back to the difficulties for stone-age man to cross the english channel,

by brc 16y ago

That was my first thought. Sounds close but is unimaginably far away. I keep flipping back to the difficulties for stone-age man to cross the english channel, and the exponential speed of technological progress, and yet I still can't see it happening for a long, long time. But 100 years ago we couldn't fly the length of a football field, now we do it as a matter of routine. Thus my mind is a flip-flopping mess of 'can't be done', 'you never know', 'can't be done'... you ge the picture. Then I start worrying about technological progress being lost through war/politics/religion and having a library of Alexandria moment and having to start all over again.

Keyframe 16y ago
We just need to wait out a bit for YC to fund Zephram Cochrane's warp drive startup.
hugh3 16y ago
I think it's not technologically unimaginable -- we know basically what we'd need in order to get there. With a nuclear pulse design, plus sufficient life extension to make people willing to go on 200-year voyages, no reason why the Gliese 581 system can't be our second home. (Hopefully we'll think of a catchier name by then). Taking a really long-term view, Gliese 581g has certain advantages over Earth. Its M-class sun will still be burning many many billions of years after our fuel-hungry sun has burned itself out.
russell 16y ago
English Channel: until about 9000 years ago you could walk across. Stone age people had boats too.No historical analogy can come close to interstellar distances.
- brc 16y ago
  Fine ; Atlantic Ocean to stone age man. In hindsight, sure, boat development was coming along and it was only a matter of time. But you take the average stone age man, and tell him that you can sail (or fly) across the ocean one day to another land - that's the sort of leap of faith we require now to believe in interstellar travel. Sure the distances are bigger than any analogy, but distances are just a function of speed. At the moment, it can't be done, so we have to rely on some nebulous concept of 'in the future the technology will be developed'. I want to say 'can't be done' but such challenges continually get overcome by the relentless march of technology. So I have to say 'can't say can't'. Thus it messes with my head.

by brc 16y ago

Keyframe 16y ago

We just need to wait out a bit for YC to fund Zephram Cochrane's warp drive startup.

hugh3 16y ago

I think it's not technologically unimaginable -- we know basically what we'd need in order to get there. With a nuclear pulse design, plus sufficient life extension to make people willing to go on 200-year voyages, no reason why the Gliese 581 system can't be our second home. (Hopefully we'll think of a catchier name by then). Taking a really long-term view, Gliese 581g has certain advantages over Earth. Its M-class sun will still be burning many many billions of years after our fuel-hungry sun has burned itself out.

russell 16y ago

English Channel: until about 9000 years ago you could walk across. Stone age people had boats too.No historical analogy can come close to interstellar distances.

brc 16y ago
Fine ; Atlantic Ocean to stone age man. In hindsight, sure, boat development was coming along and it was only a matter of time. But you take the average stone age man, and tell him that you can sail (or fly) across the ocean one day to another land - that's the sort of leap of faith we require now to believe in interstellar travel. Sure the distances are bigger than any analogy, but distances are just a function of speed. At the moment, it can't be done, so we have to rely on some nebulous concept of 'in the future the technology will be developed'. I want to say 'can't be done' but such challenges continually get overcome by the relentless march of technology. So I have to say 'can't say can't'. Thus it messes with my head.