> self-replicating technological mechanisms undermine this hypothesis The problem is observed reality contradicts this hypothesis, so far there are no observed

> self-replicating technological mechanisms undermine this hypothesis The problem is observed reality contradicts this hypothesis, so far there are no observed techno-signatures. Some call this a paradox because they're very attracted to their hypothesis, but it's not a paradox if the explanation for not seeing anything is there being nothing to see. I expect there to be gnomes in my garden, but I don't see any gnomes in my garden. Is that a paradox? Maybe I'm just wrong about gnomes. As for recon probes, maybe. But we wouldn't see them would we? If a recon probe is looking for threats to the civilization that created it, it wouldn't do to have the recon probe seen. Recon is about seeing while not being seen. Disassembling other star systems? It's a neat idea, but there's no evidence for it. Maybe it's not such an obvious idea to the sort of civilization that might be capable of it and it only seems obvious to primitive apes who can't do it anyway. Or maybe there are no such capable civilizations in our neighborhood at all.