Big Phoenix
Pronouns: zie/zhem/zer
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They aint out there you newbs(at least smart ones that is);
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fermi_paradox
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fermi_paradox
The Astronomy Thread
- Thread starter Araxen
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Guest, it's time once again for the massively important and exciting FoH Asshat Tournament!
Go here and give us your nominations!Who's been the biggest Asshat in the last year? Give us your worst ones!
Burnem Wizfyre
Log Wizard
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Zaara
I'm With HER ♀
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'WTF was that noise'' stories have been going around for years and years. Things of that nature happen in my neck of the woods once or twice a year (Loud mechanical buzzing/humming noises coming from every direction, loud singular booms), so I started to poke around. A lot of the explanations for that sort've thing seem wholly valid- noise dilation, sonic booms, etc.
Those ME3 virals popularized the trend on Youtube at the very least, to the point where people were making vid like ''How to create 'Creepy Booming Noise' ambients with your iPhone''.
Merrith
Golden Baronet of the Realm
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iannis
Musty Nester
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Maybe. But it's not old news to me, at least.
That shares the problems that "organic" compounds presented though. It's not a proof so much as an indication that this idea is not (yet) impossible. The trouble is that even if it remains possible forever that doesn't mean it happened. But that's also better than finding a proof of impossibility, so there's that.
Another brick in the wall.
That shares the problems that "organic" compounds presented though. It's not a proof so much as an indication that this idea is not (yet) impossible. The trouble is that even if it remains possible forever that doesn't mean it happened. But that's also better than finding a proof of impossibility, so there's that.
Another brick in the wall.
Well, that and we *really* don't know what habitable means anymore. We've found life pretty much everywhere we've looked on Earth, including in many areas where we still have no idea how it lives.
Assuming we are not a surreal fluke, we'll probably find life off planet and perhaps even life that started somewhere other than where our own did. Once we can do that a couple of times, it is a good bet that life pretty much happens wherever there are the basic elements to produce it. If and assuming and so on-s galore of course.
One is the most common number yet two is quite rare. The universe doesn't much deal in threes at all though.
Assuming we are not a surreal fluke, we'll probably find life off planet and perhaps even life that started somewhere other than where our own did. Once we can do that a couple of times, it is a good bet that life pretty much happens wherever there are the basic elements to produce it. If and assuming and so on-s galore of course.
One is the most common number yet two is quite rare. The universe doesn't much deal in threes at all though.
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This is probably stupid, but ate the mars rovers capable of looking for bacteria, etc? I mean, I imagine they have chromatographs or whatever to examine soil contents, but could they actually detect bacteria? Do they have microscopes, etc?
Tuco
I got Tuco'd!
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Cybsled
Naxxramas 1.0 Raider
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No, they can only detect the chemicals that comprise life. It's the equivalent of a robot here on Earth scooping up a handful of dirt and processing it to see what it's made out of, but it actually can't tell you if the scoop of dirt had life in it.
iannis
Musty Nester
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I'm also not entirely sure why they didn't send a regular, old ass microscope on the thing. I was genuinely surprised to find out that they didn't. I'm guessing it would have been too large a leap of faith to authorize as the functional payloads are highly limited and pound for pound expensive as fuck -- and I assume the next rover will probably have one since we have plenty of indications that it's not insane to go looking for cellular fossils.
There may also be some difficulties on getting one to work remotely... but I can't see why. But who knows, maybe that's part of it.
I have to think there was a credible reason besides "dammit, Iknewwe forgot something!" Although tbh, that would be proper funny.
There may also be some difficulties on getting one to work remotely... but I can't see why. But who knows, maybe that's part of it.
I have to think there was a credible reason besides "dammit, Iknewwe forgot something!" Although tbh, that would be proper funny.
TheBeagle
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You realize that looking at single celled micro organisms isn't as simple as just 'looking at it under a microscope' right? There's almost always a staining and fixation treatment that has to be done first, and all of the known staining techniques still only work on a fraction of microbes here on Earth. To think that you could do a Gram stain on an alien microbe would be silly. Not to mention the extra weight/programming/equipment/cost that would entail.
iannis
Musty Nester
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Sure. And for some of them it literally is that simple. But sure, I realize there can be and often is quite a bit more to it than that.
It just surprises me they didn't send a rudimentary tiny old-as-science style microscope is all. I'm only talking about some seriously basic observations. I mean they sent a mass spectrometer! You're right though, preparing slides would probably be more effort than it was worth for a hail mary "maybe we might see something, why not look". I bet you the next one is going to have one!
It just surprises me they didn't send a rudimentary tiny old-as-science style microscope is all. I'm only talking about some seriously basic observations. I mean they sent a mass spectrometer! You're right though, preparing slides would probably be more effort than it was worth for a hail mary "maybe we might see something, why not look". I bet you the next one is going to have one!
TheBeagle
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The next one will probably have some sort of sequencing equipment. But honestly, the odds of an alien life form using the exact same 4 nucleobases as DNA/RNA on Earth seems pretty slim, so I'm not sure how helpful any kind of sequencing/PCR/electrophoresis techniques would be. Maybe the next step is finding a way to get some good candidate samples back to Earth so we can tease out what teh building blocks for life on Mars would be.
TheBeagle
JunkiesNetwork Donor
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Ya. I just want to live long enough to have some sort of alien life confirmed, even if its just some bacteria eking out a living 10m below the surface of Mars. The similarities/differences in the microbiology will be endlessly fascinating and will answer ALOT of questions about the origins of life.
Plus it will be fun watching the religious zealots continue to tie themselves up in knots arguing against evolution despite life on another planet. Especially if somehow its DNA is built from the same ATCG/AUCG building blocks that ours is.
Plus it will be fun watching the religious zealots continue to tie themselves up in knots arguing against evolution despite life on another planet. Especially if somehow its DNA is built from the same ATCG/AUCG building blocks that ours is.