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I really wish that I could remember the article/movie/show which I read/watched but it was talking about creating a universal language. This would be not just

I really wish that I could remember the article/movie/show which I read/watched but it was talking about creating a universal language. This would be not just for people living on Earth but also life outside of our Solar System. It would make sense that if there was a universal language that it would be based around some mathematical form. At least something which should be constant through the universe.

shalmanese 14y ago
Contact?
sp332 14y ago
Was it the video of Richard Feynman explaining to a general TV audience how to communicate what "counter-clockwise" meant to aliens?
deleted 14y ago
[deleted]
lubutu 14y ago
The problem is that such a language may have a mathematical basis but that alone wouldn't be able to convey anything besides mathematics. It can demonstrate intelligence, as used in Carl Sagan's novel Contact by broadcasting a sequence of prime numbers — but that doesn't exactly constitute a language.
- Retric 14y ago
  You could probably move from math to chemistry/physics. Of course all the 'constants' are arbitrary numbers based on the measuring system used, but going from elements to DNA to cloning to emotion should at least in theory be possible if you had enough time and intelligence.
  - palmtree3000 14y ago
    This is, in fact, solvable; you can use plank units, which result from setting universal constants to 1. As an example, setting the speed of light to 1 means that time can now be measured in meters. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planck_units https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planck_units
    - trout 14y ago
      You still have the challenge of choosing a base system. Remember we are base 10 simply because of biology. Our alien friends may be on a different number base because they have 7 fingers.
      - simcop2387 14y ago
        It ought to be possible to deal with that by enumerating each possible digit. And then showing a representation of some kind of fundamental concept like PI/TAU that's easy to make a diagram of. Each side shows their digits and their representation and at that point we can determine conversions between the bases.
etrain 14y ago
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_plaque http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_plaque Was it in regard to this?
- pavel_lishin 14y ago
  I misread that as "Pioneer Plague", and envisioned a universe dominated by von Neumann probes launched by intelligences who want to contact someone, but die off before their probes can report back.

shalmanese 14y ago

Contact?

sp332 14y ago

Was it the video of Richard Feynman explaining to a general TV audience how to communicate what "counter-clockwise" meant to aliens?

deleted 14y ago

[deleted]

lubutu 14y ago

The problem is that such a language may have a mathematical basis but that alone wouldn't be able to convey anything besides mathematics. It can demonstrate intelligence, as used in Carl Sagan's novel Contact by broadcasting a sequence of prime numbers — but that doesn't exactly constitute a language.

Retric 14y ago
You could probably move from math to chemistry/physics. Of course all the 'constants' are arbitrary numbers based on the measuring system used, but going from elements to DNA to cloning to emotion should at least in theory be possible if you had enough time and intelligence.
- palmtree3000 14y ago
  This is, in fact, solvable; you can use plank units, which result from setting universal constants to 1. As an example, setting the speed of light to 1 means that time can now be measured in meters. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planck_units https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planck_units
  - trout 14y ago
    You still have the challenge of choosing a base system. Remember we are base 10 simply because of biology. Our alien friends may be on a different number base because they have 7 fingers.
    - simcop2387 14y ago
      It ought to be possible to deal with that by enumerating each possible digit. And then showing a representation of some kind of fundamental concept like PI/TAU that's easy to make a diagram of. Each side shows their digits and their representation and at that point we can determine conversions between the bases.

etrain 14y ago

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_plaque http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_plaque Was it in regard to this?

pavel_lishin 14y ago
I misread that as "Pioneer Plague", and envisioned a universe dominated by von Neumann probes launched by intelligences who want to contact someone, but die off before their probes can report back.