Jun. 4th, 2009

chris_gerrib: (Default)
So, via , I find a link to an article suggesting a fatal flaw of Fermi's Paradox. Basically, Fermi's Paradox asks, "if there are other intelligent species in the galaxy, why aren't they here?" An analysis of the paradox suggests that, even with slower than light travel, a civilization could fill the galaxy in about 100 million years.

Except there is a flaw. This assumes that the aliens would have continuous and exponential growth.

When you look at our civilization (all caveats about sample size of 1 apply) the more advanced we get technologically, the less our population grows. A large part of that in our case is, that as technology advances, children transition from useful if unskilled labor to long-term burdens. This pushes birth rates down.

So, maybe the reasons the aliens aren't here is that their population isn't growing.

Profile

chris_gerrib: (Default)
chris_gerrib

August 2025

S M T W T F S
      12
3456789
10 111213141516
17181920212223
24252627282930
31      

Most Popular Tags

Style Credit

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags
Page generated Aug. 11th, 2025 07:22 pm
Powered by Dreamwidth Studios