#678 - Avi Loeb - Will Humanity Ever Become An Interstellar Civilisation?
Sep 9, 2023
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Avi Loeb, a theoretical physicist and Harvard professor, unpacks the complexities of humanity becoming an interstellar civilization. He shares his groundbreaking work collecting materials from another solar system and discusses the innovative technology aiming to propel spacecraft to near-light speeds. Loeb explores the existential threats due to global warming and the sun's expansion, emphasizing the urgency of interstellar exploration. The conversation also delves into the potential of AI, the classification of civilizations, and the mysteries of extraterrestrial life.
The possibility that our universe was created by an advanced technological civilization that engineered a baby universe in a lab.
The classification of civilizations based on their energy-harvesting capabilities and the importance of creating new universes rather than simply harvesting energy.
The discovery of an interstellar meteor and the methods used to analyze its composition, marking a significant scientific finding.
Deep dives
The Possibility of a Universe Created by Advanced Technological Civilization
Arvi Lobe discusses the possibility that our universe was created by an advanced technological civilization that engineered a baby universe in a lab. He suggests that the origin of the universe might not be a divine creation but rather the work of a civilization that unified quantum mechanics and gravity. He argues that if such a civilization exists, they could create new universes in a process similar to how humans reproduce.
Classifying Civilizations Based on Energy Harvesting
Lobe explains the classification of civilizations based on their energy-harvesting capabilities. He mentions the Kardashian scale, which categorizes civilizations based on the amount of energy they can collect. He also emphasizes the importance of how civilizations change and manipulate their environment, suggesting that advanced civilizations would be identified by their ability to create new universes rather than simply harvesting energy.
The Galileo Project and the Search for Extraterrestrial Objects
Lobe discusses the Galileo Project, an initiative he co-founded to investigate unidentified aerial phenomena and search for interstellar objects and meteors. He explains that the project utilizes a network of observatories with various sensors to continuously monitor the sky and differentiate between natural and human-made objects. Lobe also mentions his recent expedition to collect materials from a meteorite from outside our solar system and highlights the need for scientists to take a more open-minded and rigorous approach to the study of potential extraterrestrial life.
Discovering an Interstellar Meteor
The podcast episode discusses the discovery of an interstellar meteor and the methods used to analyze its composition. Researchers found an enhancement of spherals along the path of the meteor, indicating a distinct signature relative to background materials. The spherals were analyzed for composition using a mass spectrometer, comparing elements from the periodic table to the abundance in the solar system. Isotopes were also investigated to determine the age of the material. While the findings suggest it is not necessarily an alien artifact, it is the first identified interstellar meteor, making it a significant scientific discovery.
The Future of Interstellar Travel
The podcast explores the potential of interstellar travel and the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in such endeavors. The guest discusses the limited lifespan of Earth due to the sun's expansion and the need for humanity to eventually move off-planet. AI, as the future technological entity surpassing human capabilities, could lead the way in interstellar travel. Self-replicating probes carrying intellectual DNA could be sent to explore and potentially replicate desirable elements or biology in far-flung star systems. While a human-led journey to another star system appears challenging, the use of light sails and powerful lasers could propel humans at speeds close to the speed of light. Longevity and avoiding cosmic hazards would be key concerns in such travel.
Avi Loeb is a theoretical physicist specialising in astrophysics and cosmology, Professor of Science at Harvard University and an author.
Humanity travelling to different planets is a huge undertaking. Yet we're already looking further afield. If we are to survive out into the far future, we need to travel to different solar systems and this presents a ton of unique challenges, today we get to find out about the biggest ones.
Expect to learn how Avi discovered and collected the first ever material from a different solar system that landed here on earth earlier this year, whether we will ever send generations of humans on a space craft to a different stars, how Avi is planning to propel a craft up toward the speed of light within the next decade, the dangers lurking beyond the edge of our solar system and much more...
