Provided that if there is life out there, and if it's intelligent, said life can understand any of our languages, or would care to take the time to figure out what it meant.
I think there's an easy answer to that: Wouldn't we try? Don't we already search for it? Haven't we tried coming up with ways to make understanding easier [1][2][3]?
If there is intelligent life out there, it will surely look nothing like us and most likely think in wholly different ways. But whatever they do, if they have ever gone to the length to discover radio, don't you think that one of the prerequisites to that is trying to find out why you can't send on a particular frequency as well as on others, because it's blocked by another, albeit weak, signal?
Of course, if they don't exist, or can't receive or even can't understand it after all, what have we lost by sending it in the first place?
Just recently I was reading a book about data structures and algorithms in Java, and it was very funny the loops people have to jump to create a simple linked list or stack... because Java is *not* done for that...
Funny loops?
public class Stack {
class StackElem { public StackElem prev; public T val; }
StackElem root, top;
public Stack() {
root = new StackElem();
top = root;
}
public void push(T val) {
StackElem node = new StackElem();
node.prev = top; node.val = val;
top = node;
}
public T pop() {
if (top == root) { return null; }
T ret = top.val;
top = top.prev;
return ret;
} }
By Android, it's likely to kill a bunch of cellphone OSs, maybe even Palm, possibly even iPhoneOS.
But under the hood, Palm WebOS is Linux.
Mhhhm, perhaps it's just my deranged mind, but I can't help but wonder whether that would legally classify as suicide, fratricide or maybe even cannibalism...
Personally, I'd recommend the PowerGuy SPX.1000. It's hardly bigger than the devices it loads, weighs just 110 grams and comes shipped with direct adapters to IPods, cameras, etc. Additionally, it sports two USB-Ports with which it can power pretty much every other USB-device with their own sync-cables. Devices like Smartphones and PDAs come to my mind. Additionally, the USB-Ports can be used to recharge the battery in the Solar charger itself. If you happen to find an unguarded PC to siphon off power...:P
There are really only two downsides: One is the rather small battery which clocks in at just 1000mAh, the other is that it takes 8-10 hours of direct sunlight to reload, due to the small size of the solar panel. But at 110grams, nobody stops you to get two, or three. As for ruggedness, as long as you don't step on it with your boots, or submerge them in water for some time, they'll survive.
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Provided that if there is life out there, and if it's intelligent, said life can understand any of our languages, or would care to take the time to figure out what it meant.
I think there's an easy answer to that: Wouldn't we try? Don't we already search for it? Haven't we tried coming up with ways to make understanding easier [1][2][3]?
If there is intelligent life out there, it will surely look nothing like us and most likely think in wholly different ways. But whatever they do, if they have ever gone to the length to discover radio, don't you think that one of the prerequisites to that is trying to find out why you can't send on a particular frequency as well as on others, because it's blocked by another, albeit weak, signal?
Of course, if they don't exist, or can't receive or even can't understand it after all, what have we lost by sending it in the first place?
[1] - Voyager Golden Record
[2] - Arecibo Message
[3] - Lincos
Just recently I was reading a book about data structures and algorithms in Java, and it was very funny the loops people have to jump to create a simple linked list or stack... because Java is *not* done for that...
Funny loops?
public class Stack {
class StackElem { public StackElem prev; public T val; }
StackElem root, top;
public Stack() {
root = new StackElem();
top = root;
}
public void push(T val) {
StackElem node = new StackElem();
node.prev = top; node.val = val;
top = node;
}
public T pop() {
if (top == root) { return null; }
T ret = top.val;
top = top.prev;
return ret;
}
}
And that's not even the shortest way to do it.
By Android, it's likely to kill a bunch of cellphone OSs, maybe even Palm, possibly even iPhoneOS.
But under the hood, Palm WebOS is Linux. Mhhhm, perhaps it's just my deranged mind, but I can't help but wonder whether that would legally classify as suicide, fratricide or maybe even cannibalism...
Personally, I'd recommend the PowerGuy SPX.1000. It's hardly bigger than the devices it loads, weighs just 110 grams and comes shipped with direct adapters to IPods, cameras, etc. Additionally, it sports two USB-Ports with which it can power pretty much every other USB-device with their own sync-cables. Devices like Smartphones and PDAs come to my mind. Additionally, the USB-Ports can be used to recharge the battery in the Solar charger itself. If you happen to find an unguarded PC to siphon off power... :P
There are really only two downsides: One is the rather small battery which clocks in at just 1000mAh, the other is that it takes 8-10 hours of direct sunlight to reload, due to the small size of the solar panel. But at 110grams, nobody stops you to get two, or three. As for ruggedness, as long as you don't step on it with your boots, or submerge them in water for some time, they'll survive.
http://www.powerguy.biz/products/1/12/powerguy-spx-1000/