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What if earth isn't special, but the time frame when which life flourishes is extremely small on a cosmological scale? This seems to be the most difficult part
by deelowe 12y ago
What if earth isn't special, but the time frame when which life flourishes is extremely small on a cosmological scale? This seems to be the most difficult part for me. Everywhere we look, the universe seems to be a fairly violent place. It may just be that life is common, but short lived. So, due to the distances involved, the chances of life existing in two places at once and being able to observe each other is near 0.
- lovemenot 12y agoFrom known data, I don't believe your hypothesis is likely to be correct: 1) 13.8 - Age of Universe (Billion years) 2) 4.5 - Age of Earth 3) 3.5 - (minimum) Age of life on Earth Our ancestors have already been alive here for at least 25% of the duration of the universe. To me, the most fascinating number is the small gap between 2) and 3). Suggesting that life here, at least, was almost inevitable. Whether through panspermia or ab initio, it appears difficult neither for life to get started nor to keep hanging around. I read last year about a hypothesis that iirc 100,000 years after the big bang, as the entire Universe was cooling, for some duration it was lukewarm in patches all over. Ideal for the first iteration of life and perhaps for an initial panspermia event that seeded all parts of the expanding universe.
- deelowe 12y agoInteresting. Thanks!