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Swedish Scientist Suggests That There Is Only One Earth (blastingnews.com)
MarkWhittington writes: The conventional wisdom has been among scientists is that a myriad of Earth-like planets exist in the universe, some of which have to be the abode of life, even intelligent life. However, Astrophysicist Erik Zackrisson from Uppsala University in Sweden has run a computer simulation of the universe, incorporating what we know about exoplanets thanks to the Kepler Space Telescope, the laws of physics, and the state of the early universe. The computer simulation came up with exactly one Earth, which is to say the one we live on. Every other planet in the universe does not have the conditions necessary to sustain life. Indeed, strictly speaking, Earth itself should not exist, according to the computer model, according to the story in Discover Magazine.
I read it in a book
`Oh dear,' says God, `I hadn't thought of that,' and promptly disappears in a puff of logic.
This is a computer model. It's, like, science bro. You can't argue with a computer model, that's some ironclad stuff that a consensus of scientists have already ruled on. You must be in the pockets of "Big Life" or something.
There may be life, Jim, but not as we know it.
Sensor scans are inconclusive. I recommend an away team investigate more closely.
...according to the computer model.
Says something about the model, then, doesn't it?
Yeah. Since it was created on Earth, it shouldn't exist either. But I'm not really telling you this.
Does that mean Earth can exist, but it would be in poor taste if it does?
Michael Crichton once gave a long talk on global warming being caused by aliens. He had ... difficulties with the scientific community. Mostly this comes from stuff like the Drake Equation having dozens of different, unknown, unknowable, unpredictable, and barely-definable variables to say, "If we make a bunch of shit up to fill in here, we get infinite or zero aliens coming to visit us ever!" The same kinds of mathematical models are used for global warming and nuclear winters--claiming that so much volcanic output, so many nukes, such yield of nukes, some positioning, the anger of the Yellowstone Caldera, and so forth would lead to so much ash in the air, which, given some arbitrary behaviors of air currents, would lead to a reduction of insolation, leading to some years of freezing.
We're looking at more of these models here. The scientists are saying, "Based on unknown, unknowable, unmeasured variables which we jammed into a very sound equation and then filled with made-up data, there are some number of life-sustaining planets out there!" They're putting in "reasonable guesses" and declaring results.
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He's from the Climatology School of Modeling.
If I recall correctly, we don't yet have the capability to detect Earth sized planets.
That's not true. You can walk outside any morning right now and detect Venus yourself.
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