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That's what the great filter theory means when they talk about it being behind us -- we don't see life in other places because developing to where we are now is
by TremendousJudge 6y ago
That's what the great filter theory means when they talk about it being behind us -- we don't see life in other places because developing to where we are now is almost impossible.
I don't buy it though -- we're in an average planet on an average star, nothing about our environment seems to be particularly rare.
- majkinetor 6y agoLets start with Oscam Razor then: its wast universe. Even on Earth, there are untouched places. All other theories compared to this one, which is easy to understand and also already known to be in effect on this planet, are as close to the truth as theory that great filter are evil pink elephants in the center of the galaxy.
- s1artibartfast 6y agoI think the statement that we are on an average planet deserves more scrutiny. We have yet to observe another planet like ours. There are a number of Earth's attributes that we don't understand and have poor extra-solar data on. Particularly, the following: Technically active plates after 4.5 Byrs. Effective magnetic core after 4.5 Byrs. Large amounts of surface water, presumably from our late heavy bombardment. Small enough to leave with a chemical rocket while meeting the above.
- majkinetor 6y agoAll those 'limitations' are too much anthropomorphic for my taste - life can probably exist in far more niches. Also, at our current tech level, planets are very hard to even observe for existence, let alone their geographical features.
- s1artibartfast 6y agoI tend to agree with both your points, but was addressing the specific claim that Earth-like conditions are average, or at least not particularly rare. We simply don’t have data to support that claim, and the parameters required to make earth habitable for life (as we know it) are vastly more numerous than most people acknowledge.