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We would, but we are technologically advanced. Scientists would come in, we'd bring in our instruments, collect data etc. That's a positive outcome, because an
by XorNot 3y ago
We would, but we are technologically advanced. Scientists would come in, we'd bring in our instruments, collect data etc.
That's a positive outcome, because anyone with a radiological sensing system would then figure out what it is.
- binary132 3y agoYou can’t imagine an energetic waste source beyond the detection capabilities of modern humanity? This seems like the precise sort of ignorant hubris that this thought experiment is exploring.
- XorNot 3y agoUnless the laws of physics are fundamentally different in a way we currently do not have any experience with, then no, I cannot. Because to cause physical damage to physical beings, you need to interact with them physically in an energetic fashion. Even primitive people, with the right knowledge, can construct a test for the presence of a hazardous waste source (i.e. literal canaries in coal mines). There are a number of methods available to 18th century technology which would be able to infer the existence of an energetic hazard even without fully understanding what it is, provided they were somewhat aware of the underlying principles.
- Ferret7446 3y agoWe know for a fact that our understanding of physics is fundamentally flawed somehow due to "dark matter" (aka fudging our equations because they don't balance based on experimental observations). We simply don't know what we don't know.
- binary132 3y agomaybe the canaries don’t die until a year later of total DNA collapse :^)