Chapter 39: The Dark Universe
Well, the question is back to the explosion of the Earth.
If it is really the Noah civilization that destroyed the earth because of various conspiracies, according to Rimbaud's logic, it is really possible that human civilization has passed through the big filter and is a rare civilization in the universe......
But what civilization has destroyed the earth, it is clear that the scientists here have no answer.
Scientists have analyzed the explosion of the earth for a long time, and they only know that it is likely that the destruction of the earth was caused by an alien civilization, not some natural phenomenon.
As for what civilization destroyed the earth, it can only be said that I don't know, human beings have never even seen a living extraterrestrial civilization......
For a while, the whole venue fell silent, and everyone didn't know what to say for a while. People's understanding of the universe is really too little and too little.
"Alright...... Ladies and gentlemen, let's not think about the explosion of the Earth for a moment. I'll talk about the rest of the big filter theory. Haigl was the first to break the silence, "And these are the ones that we humans have not crossed for the time being. If one of them is true, then this terrible big filter is still ahead of us......"
The optimistic Rimbaud has finished his opinion, and it is the turn of the pessimists to play, and Yu Yifeng is also quietly waiting.
"First, the difficulty of interstellar navigation technology is likely to be beyond human imagination."
"Interstellar travel, first of all, to accelerate the spacecraft to the sub-light level, which requires a lot of energy, and controlled nuclear fusion technology is only the first step. Only controlled nuclear fusion technology can provide so much energy.
Secondly, the spacecraft itself requires a large number of new materials with excellent performance, and the long voyage time also requires large hibernation chamber technology, etc. Perhaps, some of the technologies here are extremely difficult......"
"Because the various technologies of interstellar navigation are very difficult, all civilizations are trapped on their own planets. Just like us humans, we will never be able to cross beyond the solar system...... This one, I think, is a possibility of a big filter. ”
The silence was slightly broken, and the scientists whispered a discussion. For humans, almost all interstellar navigation technologies, including engines, materials, energy, etc., are not up to standard.
If science and technology have a barrier, and almost all civilizations are blocked by this barrier, then the possibility of interstellar navigation is greatly reduced.
"No, Professor Heigl, I have a different opinion!"
It was Dr. Rimbaud, who jumped out again: "In addition to sub-light spaceships, different civilizations can also send electromagnetic waves, or send unmanned detectors and other means. These things will not disappear in the universe for millions of years, can't civilizations communicate with each other in this way? ”
"Why have we never found out? Can you explain? ”
Heigl thought for a moment, gestured with his hand and said, "If you want to ask why people haven't received extraterrestrial electromagnetic waves?" I think it has something to do with the nature of electromagnetic waves. ”
"Regardless of the power of the emitting source, the intensity of the electromagnetic wave attenuates with distance, which is probably inversely proportional. Moreover, the universe is filled with a large amount of electromagnetic radiation, and extraterrestrial electromagnetic waves are likely to be interfered with so much that human instruments cannot distinguish them.
I think that our human civilization has probably received electromagnetic wave greetings from extraterrestrial civilizations, but because these electromagnetic waves are too chaotic, or the intensity is too weak, these opportunities have been missed. ”
"After all, electromagnetic waves are still not suitable for long-distance transmission. Unless they emit electromagnetic waves at the same power as a star, which is impossible. ”
This explanation is quite reasonable. Light is also a kind of electromagnetic wave, even if it is a powerful star, there are only so many stars on the earth, not to mention that the power of the instrument is only a few kilowatts, even if the power of these instruments is magnified by 10,000 times, it may not be able to receive it.
"So, what about unmanned detectors? Unmanned detectors do not weaken, how should it be explained? Rimbaud asked, unconvinced.
Haigl thought for a moment and said, "Unmanned detectors like you said have similar problems. It flies slowly and can take millions or even tens of millions of years to fly to another star. ”
"But the number of such unmanned probes launched by humans is too small, I haven't counted the specifics, but I think there are only a few hundred in total."
"After millions of years of sailing, these unmanned probes have long run out of power, and they can only rely on inertia to drift in the universe, maybe they collided with meteorites, or they fell into an ordinary planet, and all kinds of accidents are possible.
Even if it is extremely lucky, it happens to pass through a living planet, because it is a dead thing without electricity, it may be regarded as space junk or a comet, and it will be ignored directly......"
"Therefore, there is only a very low probability that each probe will be captured by an extraterrestrial civilization, one in a billion or one in a billion, or less?"
"If all civilizations, like us humans, aimlessly launch hundreds of probes, then there is indeed a very low probability that our earth civilization will be able to receive these probes.
Of course, if they launch hundreds of millions of probes every year, there is a high probability that they will be discovered by humans. However, launching hundreds of millions of probes per year is almost impossible from an economic point of view. ”
"That's my interpretation." After Haigl finished speaking, he looked at Rimbaud quietly.
Rimbaud thought for a long time, then finally sighed and sat down heavily. For a moment, he had nothing to refute. This argument should also be reasonable.
Hearing Haigel's words, Yu Yifeng felt a little out of breath.
It would be too tragic and cruel if there were many civilizations in the galaxy that had evolved intelligence, but because they were too far away, they were trapped on their own planets and could never communicate with each other......
The universe is really cold......
Yu Yifeng suddenly thought of that pitch-black space, the dim starlight that represented human beings, was really too small, too weak, and couldn't help it......
The insignificance of civilization compared to the vastness of the universe is really shocking and desperate. Fortunately, Professor Haigel's statement is only conjecture and not necessarily true.
While everyone was silent, Professor Heigl spoke again: "This is the first possibility I mentioned, technical barriers. There is a second possibility: devastating technology. ”
"The ocean of truth is endless, and we humans are like children picking up shells on the beach. For the sake of imagery, I divide shells into three categories: 1. white shells, which represent technologies that are beneficial to human beings;
2. The red shell represents the technology that has the potential to destroy mankind;
3. The black shell represents the technology with a high probability of extinction. ”
"While we all want to pick up white shells, the process is random and completely uncontrollable. So far, most of the shells we humans have picked up are white, but we have also picked up red shells in the past. ”
"This red shell is a nuclear weapon!
Nuclear bombs, it has the ability to destroy human civilization, but fortunately, we humans are still relatively restrained and have not been completely destroyed. So, it's just a red shell. ”
"But what if, we pick up black shells? In the face of this black shell, where do we humans go? Will we be destroyed? ”
"Perhaps, most of the more developed intelligent civilizations have been destroyed by black shells. So, this is also a possible ...... of a big filter"
Haigel's series of questions made Yu Yifeng a little creepy, what the hell, the universe is too dangerous, it is really a crisis step by step, it is not too much to say that it is a sea of swords and fires, and even the protector of mankind, "technology", may backfire at any time!
But what Haigl said is really not too logically flawed, and it is reasonable......
So, what is a black shell? Is it possible for humans to bypass them?
Some people speculate that it is a biochemical virus or bacteria, a disease that no one is immune to. It could be a zombie virus, or it could mutate HIV, etc...... It sounds a little mysterious, but it's all possible......
There is also speculation that it is artificial intelligence.
The danger of artificial intelligence lies in its complete uncontrollability and unpredictability. There are many people who believe that once the kind of artificial intelligence that can really think appears, it will bring great disasters to mankind, and they can wipe out mankind in minutes.
There is also speculation that it is nanobots. A nanobot capable of self-replication, if left unchecked, will reproduce itself in an exponentially growing form. And then...... They will deplete the entire planet's resources in a matter of days!