Comments on: Empty Space

By: Overcoming Bias : Space Towers

Overcoming Bias : Space Towers — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 21:30:40 +0000

[...] to reduce the cost of spaceflight, and for geoengineering, but those probably won’t cover its costs. I’m proud my culture seems able to do such a thing, but I’ll admit my gain may come [...]

By: Joe

Joe — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 04:34:16 +0000

Hehe. Yes, there are definitely other problems to be addressed. But going into space helps with some of them. It also nicely “diversifies” the human “portfolio”.

BTW, I highly doubt it will be possible to stop AI and nanotech from developing. Ultimately, machines or biomachines will take over. The question is how human-like those machines will be.

By: Recovering irrationalist

Recovering irrationalist — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 13:01:20 +0000

That’s fight to prevent it. I’m not suggesting we brace ourselves to battle superminds packing nanotech

By: Recovering irrationalist

Recovering irrationalist — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 12:49:48 +0000

Joe: going into space may be the only way to ensure human survival.

It won't. A few existential risks might still get you, and unfriendly AI will still get you. We must stand and fight. Running away is not an option.

By: Joe

Joe — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 06:25:08 +0000

“deep mine colonies would better protect humanity from extinction”

This is probably true—in the short run. But it is unclear how long people can survive in deep mines. They need energy and resources, and if the surface of the planet is contaminated and cloudy through environmental, nuclear, and biological disaster, it may prove infeasible for people to survive very long in deep mines. Those lucky enough to survive a nuclear holocaust, for example, might just starve off after 50 years.

In the long term, going into space may be the only way to ensure human survival. Right now, at least, we have the economies of scale needed to make such a thing practical, and so it would seem like a shame not to take advantage of the moment.

By: Paul Crowley

Paul Crowley — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 08:03:15 +0000

I am inclined to agree – I don’t believe space travel will be an effective way to minimize our existential risk in the next century, and frankly that’s my only serious concern.

The one exception that might apply to that rule is global warming mitigation via a space-based shield (eg Roger Angel’s proposal).

The space elevator is a non-starter; look at other launch megastructures.

By: Hopefully Anonymous

Hopefully Anonymous — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 19:02:44 +0000

Unknown,
I’d prefer to live here, on the surface, until deep mine colonies have been around for a while (maybe a few hundred years?) on Earth and Mars. Then, I’d probably want to live in the most secure one here on Earth. I do give priority to my personal survival. I care about the survival of the human race to the the degree that it maximizes my personal survival odds. If the rest of you were to blip out of existence tomorrow, it seems to me that my persistence odds would be fatally compromised.

By: Unknown

Unknown — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 18:26:32 +0000

HA, would you prefer yourself to live here, or in a deep mine colony on earth, or on Mars?

Also, why do you care about the survival of the human race? I thought you just cared about yourself.

By: Recovering irrationalist

Recovering irrationalist — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 12:42:02 +0000

Just out of curiosity... how much now to send data (eg. genomes + culture) out of reach of hungry goo and dying suns, and preserved for 10^10 years for tardy alien discovery? How about cryopreserved brains, after nanotech but before singularity?

By: Hopefully Anonymous

Hopefully Anonymous — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 08:48:23 +0000

I just want to voice strong support for BOTH deep mine colonies on Earth and on nearby planets/moons. It seems to me to be a very reasonable hedge against disaster, and I think we can afford the efficiency costs of doing so. Ballparking it, I think our goal should be 10% of the productive population living in sealed mine shafts throughout Earth, and 5% of the productive population living in similar environments on Mars and elsewhere. Realistically for Mars this would involve mostly transporting embryos rather than adult humans. It’s a silly luxury for nearly all of us to be living on the Earth’s surface.

I have similar concerns about monoculture. I’d like to see time capsuled human population (wouldn’t have to be mine shafted) with no outside contact with the rest of us, and scheduled for release after various amount of time of isolation (from 1 generation to 1,000+ years), to keep fresh encounters with differently developed human cultures as part of our experience and opportunities for epiphanies.