Will humans *ever* colonize another star system?

[datalink7]

Originally posted by: MacBaine

Originally posted by: FFMCobalt

Originally posted by: datalink7

Originally posted by: FFMCobalt

Originally posted by: WinkOsmosis

Originally posted by: FFMCobalt
Religious fundamentalism is going to kill us? Right.

It's been known to cause problems...

Right... and it's going to be the end of mankind...

It's got a decent chance I suppose... say some muslim fanatic organization gets a hold of nukes and starts using them?

Oh, right! What was I thinking!! The Muslims are actually closer to nuking the planet than SOVERIGN NATIONS or TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS are, aren't they!

some muslim fanatic organization

==

TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS

Did you fail to make the connection?

Yah, I'm not really sure how you could miss that FFM...

 

[DrPizza]

I think that once fusion becomes viable way of generating the power we need, we would have the capability of actually sending out a large spaceship full of people, sort of like a biodome that's self-sufficient. Instead of the sun providing the energy, the necessary energy could be harnessed from fusion. It's possible we could send out such a ship with no intention of it being capable of returning to the earth. Who knows what might happen to it once it left Earth. Perhaps one day, generations from now, it could crash into another planet, killing all aboard, but releasing the bacteria that one day the people on that planet would question "how did life ever arise on this planet?"

 

[Descartes]

Originally posted by: DrPizza
I think that once fusion becomes viable way of generating the power we need, we would have the capability of actually sending out a large spaceship full of people, sort of like a biodome that's self-sufficient. Instead of the sun providing the energy, the necessary energy could be harnessed from fusion. It's possible we could send out such a ship with no intention of it being capable of returning to the earth. Who knows what might happen to it once it left Earth. Perhaps one day, generations from now, it could crash into another planet, killing all aboard, but releasing the bacteria that one day the people on that planet would question "how did life ever arise on this planet?"

The closest extrasolar planetary system orbits the star 55 Cancri, and that is a little less than 41 light years away. The fastest space ships today travel at about 0.00004% the speed of light, so I'm not optimistic. I highlighted 55 Cancri in my astronomy software here.

 

[bigdog1218]

Originally posted by: DrPizza
I think that once fusion becomes viable way of generating the power we need, we would have the capability of actually sending out a large spaceship full of people, sort of like a biodome that's self-sufficient. Instead of the sun providing the energy, the necessary energy could be harnessed from fusion. It's possible we could send out such a ship with no intention of it being capable of returning to the earth. Who knows what might happen to it once it left Earth. Perhaps one day, generations from now, it could crash into another planet, killing all aboard, but releasing the bacteria that one day the people on that planet would question "how did life ever arise on this planet?"

bacteria doesn't have to evolve into intelligent life.

 

[NikPreviousAcct]

Originally posted by: datalink7

Originally posted by: MacBaine

Originally posted by: FFMCobalt

Originally posted by: datalink7

Originally posted by: FFMCobalt

Originally posted by: WinkOsmosis

Originally posted by: FFMCobalt
Religious fundamentalism is going to kill us? Right.

It's been known to cause problems...

Right... and it's going to be the end of mankind...

It's got a decent chance I suppose... say some muslim fanatic organization gets a hold of nukes and starts using them?

Oh, right! What was I thinking!! The Muslims are actually closer to nuking the planet than SOVERIGN NATIONS or TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS are, aren't they!

some muslim fanatic organization

==

TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS

Did you fail to make the connection?

Yah, I'm not really sure how you could miss that FFM...

Generalization and stereotypes are bad, mkay?

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

How the hell did this get turned into a religion thread?

 

[Kadarin]

Originally posted by: WinstonSmith
How the hell did this get turned into a religion thread?

Because religion is one of (if not the) the largest factors in holding back the kind of progress needed to accomplish such a goal.

 

[Cuda1447]

Originally posted by: WinstonSmith
How the hell did this get turned into a religion thread?

You didn't read the original post did you?

 

[fredtam]

Originally posted by: FFMCobalt

Originally posted by: datalink7

Originally posted by: MacBaine

Originally posted by: FFMCobalt

Originally posted by: datalink7

Originally posted by: FFMCobalt

Originally posted by: WinkOsmosis

Originally posted by: FFMCobalt
Religious fundamentalism is going to kill us? Right.

It's been known to cause problems...

Right... and it's going to be the end of mankind...

It's got a decent chance I suppose... say some muslim fanatic organization gets a hold of nukes and starts using them?

Oh, right! What was I thinking!! The Muslims are actually closer to nuking the planet than SOVERIGN NATIONS or TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS are, aren't they!

some muslim fanatic organization

==

TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS

Did you fail to make the connection?

Yah, I'm not really sure how you could miss that FFM...

Generalization and stereotypes are bad, mkay?

Ignoring the fact that most are based in truth out of a misguided since of political correctness is far worse.

 

[Chaotic42]

Edit: Never mind, I get it.

My answer is yes. We will eventually. Even if we travel at .1c for 40 years, we can make it to the nearest star system. Maybe there are planets there...

Maybe not.

 

[MustangSVT]

we are virueses of universe muhahaha.

 

[ultimatebob]

Let's face it... The "space race" ended when Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon, and NASA has been going downhill ever since. I just hope that China puts some pressure on our space program to innovate, because they haven't tried anything truly ambitious in years.

 

[Shawn]

Originally posted by: AvesPKS
We already have. You just don't know it yet. SG teams have scouted out worlds to colonize that are safe from the Goa'uld and Jaffa threat, and have set up colonies.

Haha, we could only wish. I love stargate sg-1.

 

[tcsenter]

The closest extrasolar planetary system orbits the star 55 Cancri, and that is a little less than 41 light years away. The fastest space ships today travel at about 0.00004% the speed of light, so I'm not optimistic. I highlighted 55 Cancri in my astronomy software here.

And that is presuming there is anything remotely inhabitable there. What are the odds of hitting pay-dirt on the first shot? This isn't as simple as getting back on the highway and moving on to the next town in the event there are no vacancies at the Travel Lodge. Even @ 10x current speed of space travel....pretty dim prospects.

Thank you for the 'injection' of cold hard reality. Either there will have to be some huge leaps in our technological capabilities, the kind of discoveries that would stun even today's most brilliant physicists, or we're all going to die here on this rock.

 

[Chaotic42]

Originally posted by: Descartes
The closest extrasolar planetary system orbits the star 55 Cancri, and that is a little less than 41 light years away. The fastest space ships today travel at about 0.00004% the speed of light, so I'm not optimistic. I highlighted 55 Cancri in my astronomy software here.

Whooooooooa...

What software is that!?

 

[UNCjigga]

The only feasible scenario for this is if we as a species are threatened by some extinction level event and have already developed some capability of interstellar space travel. Otherwise there's no need to do this. One has to realize that the premise for 'Star Trek' makes a LOT of assumptions on society's development--for example the abolishment of all monetary systems and any social constructs based on wealth.

 

[MiniDoom]

Originally posted by: Maleficus
No we'll kill ourselves/become extinct long before we have the chance.

sad but true...

 

[Chaotic42]

Originally posted by: Jigga
The only feasible scenario for this is if we as a species are threatened by some extinction level event and have already developed some capability of interstellar space travel. Otherwise there's no need to do this. One has to realize that the premise for 'Star Trek' makes a LOT of assumptions on society's development--for example the abolishment of all monetary systems and any social constructs based on wealth.

I thought they had money in Star Trek, just not in the millitary. I think is called gold pressed platinum or something like that.

<--Star Trek novice

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Originally posted by: Astaroth33

Originally posted by: WinstonSmith
How the hell did this get turned into a religion thread?

Because religion is one of (if not the) the largest factors in holding back the kind of progress needed to accomplish such a goal.

Umm, I know many religious people, and not one of them is holding back anything along these lines. What is holding us back is physics and the fact that humans dont want to plan beyond the next fiscal quarter much less a hundred thousand year project. If something gets to another star from this planet, it will know about humans from the fossil records.

 

[flxnimprtmscl]

Originally posted by: Astaroth33

Originally posted by: WinstonSmith
How the hell did this get turned into a religion thread?

Because religion is one of (if not the) the largest factors in holding back the kind of progress needed to accomplish such a goal.

Huh?... Religion is holding us back from space travel. Please do explain. This should be interesting

 

[Wallydraigle]

Originally posted by: flxnimprtmscl

Originally posted by: Astaroth33

Originally posted by: WinstonSmith
How the hell did this get turned into a religion thread?

Because religion is one of (if not the) the largest factors in holding back the kind of progress needed to accomplish such a goal.

Huh?... Religion is holding us back from space travel. Please do explain. This should be interesting

Yeah, are they smashing telescopes, throwing rocks at the space shuttle, what?

 

[Kadarin]

Originally posted by: flxnimprtmscl

Originally posted by: Astaroth33

Originally posted by: WinstonSmith
How the hell did this get turned into a religion thread?

Because religion is one of (if not the) the largest factors in holding back the kind of progress needed to accomplish such a goal.

Huh?... Religion is holding us back from space travel. Please do explain. This should be interesting

It is the general idea that progress happens in spite of religion, not because of it, and that religion is an inhibition to that progress. Think of fundamentalism, and of the Dark Ages, and of the entire freaking Islamic world. Note that I use "religion" in the context of an organized social force, not in the context of personal spirituality.

 

[Fingolfin269]

How about we just ask if humans will ever colonize another planet in general. Would that alter any of your responses?

 

[flxnimprtmscl]

Originally posted by: Astaroth33

Originally posted by: flxnimprtmscl

Originally posted by: Astaroth33

Originally posted by: WinstonSmith
How the hell did this get turned into a religion thread?

Because religion is one of (if not the) the largest factors in holding back the kind of progress needed to accomplish such a goal.

Huh?... Religion is holding us back from space travel. Please do explain. This should be interesting

It is the general idea that progress happens in spite of religion, not because of it, and that religion is an inhibition to that progress. Think of fundamentalism, and of the Dark Ages, and of the entire freaking Islamic world. Note that I use "religion" in the context of an organized social force, not in the context of personal spirituality.

That was an answer? Those were examples? Well:

a) The fundies are too busy trying to get gays to quit marrying to care what the hell happens with the space program
b) the dark ages are long gone. they ceased to be a viable excuse quite some time ago.
c) the middle east has never been a hot bed of scientific discovery as far as I know. I doubt we're really missing much from that region of the world.

You know what I think inhibits progress? Gravity. I mean, think how much farther along we'd be in the space program if not for gravity. We wouldn't have had to spend all that time designing rockets powerful enough to boost a shuttle. Gravity is really keeping us down

Give it a rest man Religion hasn't interfered with science in any meaningful way for quite some time.

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Originally posted by: Fingolfin269
How about we just ask if humans will ever colonize another planet in general. Would that alter any of your responses?

To that I would say Mars in a less than a thousand years, assuming we don't kill ourselves first, which seems more likely all the time.