It'll be hard to learn to use, not very effective, and some bored lawmaker somewhere will take up the cries from those frustrated by it as another reason to make more laws that protect children in "cyberspace". The media will latch on to it in the increasing numbers of obscure article references noting it as some sort of truism; and it'll set records for the largest and longest recorded redundancy orgy in history; although that won't be known for centuries. Meanwhile the effects will resonate thru our Global Village for centuries until we are finally enslaved by the Kzinti because the only scientists out there who knew how to advance laser technology were working for the hardware media companies who were still trying to make their pseudo-reality closer to real reality but kept it under deadly NDA, and meanwhile the best brain enclaves on the planet had transcended already, and kicked the Rich Ones out of the High Beyond. A revolution was coming, but few knew it....
Life is starting to sound like a bad science fiction plot.
Yawn.
Somebody wake me from my cold beer sleep when the human race gets a clue.;)
If you think of it in terms of psychological warfare, then yes, they have.
Seeing even the denial of terroristic sabotage in an article about the failure of a US intelligence satellite is just another part of the confirmation...
I won't even get into how foolish our government (and media, and most citizens) behavior is making us look to the rest of the world...
Half of winning any war is convincing your enemy that he is more or less helpless against your threat, forcing him to take foolish, insane measures to avoid it... no?
Unless they found some more advanced form of mass detection at large distances, it'd be pretty hard to have a stellar system faring civilization without radar (or lidar). Think about it.
If they've found some more advanced way to detect and track masses over long distances, they won't likely be communicating in any "band" we know how to detect - not yet, anyway.
But if they are using radar or laser communications across solar system size distances, those emissions would be powerful enough to be picked up by the array that's talked about in the TFA. Within maybe a score light years.
Think of the current SETI projects as a narrowband filter on the possibilities of communication. As far as detecting interstellar communications goes, we're just barely at the level of Marconi.
I'd like to note that any civ with a well-developed space program is likely to be using more numerous and more powerful radars than we are, spread thruout their solar system, as well. Since at least some of those radars would be longrange and focused "outward" that would increase our chances of detecting them.
That was my thought also, and I'm pretty sure it (HW) wasn't the first use of the concept in SF either, although I can't remember the title of the story I'm thinking of...
Well. Therefore I, for one, welcome our new sewer-crawling overlords. Obviously their evolution has been underway for a while already, even if this part of their PR efforts looks like it's slashdotted;-)
While I appreciate your sense of loyalty, I think you should lighten up some. Self-deprecating humor is part of what separates a fanatic from someone with wisdom, and can make an intolerable situation a whole helluva lot more tolerable.
In other words, "If you can't take a joke, you shouldn't have joined up."
Thank you for explaining that so eloquently, that's exactly what I was thinking...
In fact, given the dismal state of education in the US, it's an even more important point than it was even five years ago; and it's a matter of survival, just as in your analogy.
I actually like the Canadian model myself. I'd be perfectly willing to put some of my tax money towards paying for access to as much content as I have time to look at:=)
Slashdot Mirror
That when the rootkit, undid me
The warning box, I did not see
OK I clicked on, I spent freely
then My Ruin passed on, gleefully.
--A user's lament
snarkth
Trust.
It'll be hard to learn to use, not very effective, and some bored lawmaker somewhere will take up the cries from those frustrated by it as another reason to make more laws that protect children in "cyberspace". The media will latch on to it in the increasing numbers of obscure article references noting it as some sort of truism; and it'll set records for the largest and longest recorded redundancy orgy in history; although that won't be known for centuries. Meanwhile the effects will resonate thru our Global Village for centuries until we are finally enslaved by the Kzinti because the only scientists out there who knew how to advance laser technology were working for the hardware media companies who were still trying to make their pseudo-reality closer to real reality but kept it under deadly NDA, and meanwhile the best brain enclaves on the planet had transcended already, and kicked the Rich Ones out of the High Beyond. A revolution was coming, but few knew it. ...
;)
Life is starting to sound like a bad science fiction plot.
Yawn.
Somebody wake me from my cold beer sleep when the human race gets a clue.
If you think of it in terms of psychological warfare, then yes, they have.
Seeing even the denial of terroristic sabotage in an article about the failure of a US intelligence satellite is just another part of the confirmation...
I won't even get into how foolish our government (and media, and most citizens) behavior is making us look to the rest of the world...
Half of winning any war is convincing your enemy that he is more or less helpless against your threat, forcing him to take foolish, insane measures to avoid it... no?
snarkth
Unless they found some more advanced form of mass detection at large distances, it'd be pretty hard to have a stellar system faring civilization without radar (or lidar). Think about it.
If they've found some more advanced way to detect and track masses over long distances, they won't likely be communicating in any "band" we know how to detect - not yet, anyway.
But if they are using radar or laser communications across solar system size distances, those emissions would be powerful enough to be picked up by the array that's talked about in the TFA. Within maybe a score light years.
Think of the current SETI projects as a narrowband filter on the possibilities of communication. As far as detecting interstellar communications goes, we're just barely at the level of Marconi.
snarkth
I'd like to note that any civ with a well-developed space program is likely to be using more numerous and more powerful radars than we are, spread thruout their solar system, as well. Since at least some of those radars would be longrange and focused "outward" that would increase our chances of detecting them.
snarkth
No, no. What it really means is:
:)
The oxen are slow, but the earth is patient.
See?
snarkth
That was my thought also, and I'm pretty sure it (HW) wasn't the first use of the concept in SF either, although I can't remember the title of the story I'm thinking of...
snarkth
Plus, the crews are all combat veterans now rather than mostly unblooded newbies.
snarkth
If we had a full-scale Orion*, we would could do a whole colony in one shot.
* or if laser-triggered fusion ever scales down
snarkth
One can identify them, one just needs the proper RFID reader.
s
Well. Therefore I, for one, welcome our new sewer-crawling overlords. Obviously their evolution has been underway for a while already, even if this part of their PR efforts looks like it's slashdotted ;-)
snarkth
How the Sentinels got their start.
snarkth
Yeah, but that was before Lucas bought the rights to a remake ;-)
So which one was the best?
You wouldn't *believe* how shitty the job market for 1985 grads is in 3006.
Beating Procrastination with Self-Imposed Deadlines
Duh?
I for one would support groaning our funny overlords...
All Cats belong to the set of Schrodinger.
snarkth
No matter what he does, it would hurt the GOP.
;-)
I have the feeling that's going to be his legacy no matter what he does in this respect
snarkth
So, have you been a victim yet?
snarkth
While I appreciate your sense of loyalty, I think you should lighten up some. Self-deprecating humor is part of what separates a fanatic from someone with wisdom, and can make an intolerable situation a whole helluva lot more tolerable.
In other words, "If you can't take a joke, you shouldn't have joined up."
snarkth
s/pure/
snarkth
Yes, thank you. That's about what I thought when I read the summary. Uh,... who? Oh, whatever... :-)
snarkth
Thank you for explaining that so eloquently, that's exactly what I was thinking...
:=)
In fact, given the dismal state of education in the US, it's an even more important point than it was even five years ago; and it's a matter of survival, just as in your analogy.
I actually like the Canadian model myself. I'd be perfectly willing to put some of my tax money towards paying for access to as much content as I have time to look at
Cheers!
snarkth