The Impossibility of Colonizing the Galaxy

OriginalArlen writes "The science fiction writer Charlie Stross has written an excellent and comprehensive explanation of why, thousands of SF books, movies, and games notwithstanding, human colonization of other star systems is impossible. Although interstellar colonization seems common-sensical to many, Charlie makes a clear-headed and unarguable case, so far as I can see, that it ain't gonna happen without a 'magic wand' or two. Nevertheless it would be interesting to see reasoned responses from the community who believe that colonization is not merely possible, but inevitable — and even, as Hawking has said, vital for the survival of the species. So, who's right — Hawking or Stross?"

Comments

This guy has no imagination!

[r_jensen11]

This guy clearly has no imagination! Honestly, how are we going to be able to colonize the galaxy if we have guys like him who only think inside the box? What we need is someone with a vision! Like L. Ron Hubbard!

Who scored this insightful???

[mario_grgic]

What has Slashdot come to.

Re:Both right?

[QuantumG]

consider a highly advanced race of beings (not us...yet) that is in no way limited by lack of understanding, incompetence, or inability to comprehend, but rather solely by the laws of physics (i.e. the universe) as we now understand them according to body of our accumulated scientific knowledge. And that's why your argument is retarded. We don't know shit about the universe. We're beginners.

. If you do believe that our current understanding (not lack of current know how mind you, but understanding of the laws of physics) is seriously flawed, then the burden is upon you to prove that our current body of experimental evidence and theories are all bunk before we just throw out the bulk of the last few hundred years of science. No-one said they were bunk.. but every physicist knows that they're not playing with a full deck.

Accepting Reality's Exceptions 6/18/2007

[ImitationEnergy]

Accepting reality parent? A galactic necessity!
Add one hardhead, stir.

Accept that {present} reality has exceptions and then, that it is the exceptions to present reality that will be tomorrow's present reality, and probably-hopefully better than what we see today. We have been living in Industrial Age 2 since June 2003 when a completed air + steam solution to Dr. Abraham Hertzberg's slightly-flawed 1997 working prototype was presented to the world > http://www.newpath4.com/enginewow.htm {one example of Imitation Energy}.

And one picture is worth a thousand words except when the picture is 1,000 words! A lot of reading, but that's what a hardhead is expected to do, especially one who has solved Tesla's flying machine + solved Tesla's hydroelectric system for providing worldwide electric power.

The world doesn't want another Tesla or Edison, esp. one carries a Bible and exposes the system for what it is really geared to be >>> a fleece-the-generations machine {see the big picture now?}. The world wants non-descript inventors organized in controlled beehives {corporate think tanks} for full control of what is produced and piecemealed out to the Public. It's fairer that way, charging each successive generation with an improved version of Windows 95.

I have terrible News for you guys on SlashDot > the Future is here & the Present does not want it til it figures out how to tax it, how to profit from it and how to control it. The buggy whip manufacturers are in control of which technology can be allowed we humans to have next, which is no News to anyone reading this Bible text at Revelation 18:3 (businessmen have gotten used to being wealthy and addicted to owning thousands of hourly slaves to raise their obelisks). A changeover system could be engineered so that the stocks & wealth of people owning buggy whips would be transferred into replacement technologies but I guess that would take too many neurons away from the pools at Las Vegas.