What if you knew…

[rnatalli]

Well, technically... asteroids and meteors hit the earth every day...

Nuclear war... you don't see that every day

I think our main concern, however, is neither asteroids or nukes...

Seriously -- Aliens.

You're right, but I was thinking of the asteroid in the original post which measures 25 miles wide.

Aliens might do us some good. Maybe we'll finally stop killing each other and get our butts in gear.

 

[res6jya6]

You're right, but I was thinking of the asteroid in the original post which measures 25 miles wide.

Aliens might do us some good. Maybe we'll finally stop killing each other and get our butts in gear.

If an asteroid of that size DID come near earth, I would personally hope that the government would utilize some of the newer sciences that have been created and are current under development. Why not just create a time warp in the path of the asteroid, so that instead of crashing into us, it's sent to some different time period somewhere in space... A wormhole would even suffice, as we don't need the asteroid to "survive" the excursion... unless we could somehow put various monitors on the asteroid that would allow us to see what happens to it in the wormhole and after it leaves it.

There are far too many technologies available that just make an asteroid seem so... innocent

 

[rnatalli]

There was a special on the History channel that examined some possibilities of what we could do in the event an asteroid is headed our way. Definitely worth a watch.

The first thing we should do is monitor the space around our planet as any plan to stop an asteroid requires we see it coming.

 

[MatthewB.]

Those that think going underground is going to help, it won't at all. I'm reminded of when I was in high school and walking with a teacher and we passed the underground shelter buried 40 feet below ground (enough to hold 400 people) and asked him, if a bumb were coming our way would he go down there and his resposne (which I thought was classic) "Hmmm should I be flash fried or slow baked. Think I'd want the quick way out." I thought of that for years and what he said made alot of sense. Now for those that think going underground is the safe alternative, you have to remember that when the asteroid hit Russia at the turn of the 20th century it was only 1/10th of a mile wide and hit with the explosive force 0f 1,000 nuclear bombs. I can't even imagine what one 25 miles would do it would literally kill microbes, so the chances of any survival is none. So party it up on the last day. No one lives forever.

 

[highfigh]

Maybe if you cranked up just the right frequency through your array of subs you could pulverise the asteroid just like a kidney stone.

You must have watched every science fiction movie since you were a kid. Just an FYI- THERE'S NO SOUND IN SPACE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[highfigh]

Personally, I would try and help stop it. But as a species, we should be pouring money into science to get colonies off this ball of dirt. One asteroid and we're done for.

Where would you go? We need too many resources that are unavailable on other bodies- air, water, food. What we need is to manage what we have, manage population growth and learn to farm in places that are dry. Something grows just about everywhere, so we need to select the crops intelligently.

Also, with the tendency to be dishonest when the opportunity arises, how would you govern the people who go to the new places? The can't be expected to police themselves, judging by what I see on the news. Why not just make some space here on Earth by sending the worst criminals somewhere else? While we're at it, how about if we give the heave-ho to people who expect to be handed everything they need? How about if we make it clear that staying in school is better than skipping and dropping out? How about making people do something other than sit on their ***, watching TV and eating every morsel of bad food in sight? Maybe these people could contribute something instead of just being a drain on everyone else?

 

[gmichael]

Wifey and I would f*ck like rabbits. Then my daughter and I would play video games till the end (if she's old enough by then). Every meal would be whatever we wanted. No worries about fat, cholesterol, or carbs. Screw my diabetes. Hand me a beer and turn up the volume.

 

[rnatalli]

Where would you go?

I hear Vega is nice this time of year

Seriously though, Earth can't be the only planet that can sustain human life taking into account technology. For all we know, the moons of Jupiter have water and air and they're nearby. It doesn't hurt to take a look around as did the early explorers of this planet. Let's get the propulsion systems going and find some new places to colonize. It has been done before.

 

[lsiberian]

Where would you go? We need too many resources that are unavailable on other bodies- air, water, food. What we need is to manage what we have, manage population growth and learn to farm in places that are dry. Something grows just about everywhere, so we need to select the crops intelligently.

Also, with the tendency to be dishonest when the opportunity arises, how would you govern the people who go to the new places? The can't be expected to police themselves, judging by what I see on the news. Why not just make some space here on Earth by sending the worst criminals somewhere else? While we're at it, how about if we give the heave-ho to people who expect to be handed everything they need? How about if we make it clear that staying in school is better than skipping and dropping out? How about making people do something other than sit on their ***, watching TV and eating every morsel of bad food in sight? Maybe these people could contribute something instead of just being a drain on everyone else?

What is there to be done?

Honestly there aren't a lot of useful jobs available IMO. With the advent of machines there is just less work to do. Many jobs are just busy work or a waste of energy.

However this is a fun topic.

 

[Adam]

You must have watched every science fiction movie since you were a kid. Just an FYI- THERE'S NO SOUND IN SPACE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

There is no sound in a vacuum, but there can be sound in "space." It depends on what material is present.

 

[MatthewB.]

I'm serious, drugs, booze, broads and good music, I can't think of a better way to go. I want to be inhaling on the "J" on Earth and exhaling wherever I wind up. I mean seriosuly if I wind up in hell (which with my life is a good possibility) I want to be baked to go "Whoa" and help numb the pain of the fire and brimstone. and if heading on up, then I want to arrive and shake things up a tad. I want my last waking moment, to be, "Matt you had a great life." and be laughing from the ganja and margaritas at the last possible second. I mean death is depressing, knowing all that you love will be gone is depressing. I would think if there is any time in life to be on mind altering "medications" that time is good as any. I want future explorers to find my charred carcus and see a man laying in a lounge chair, loose fitting shorts (around my ankles) and sunglasses with a big cheese eating grin on the skull and ponder why there is a second skull fused to my pelvic region. I want future explorers to go, "Dayum, now that guy knew how to go out in style."

 

[MatthewB.]

BTW Adam, your right, "Watts is hot" LMAO on that post.

- The look on my skull when future men find my carcus.

- the look on the bimbo with me.

- The progressive look on the explorers after they figure out what happened in my last moments.

 

[Alex2507]

I would start killing atheists just to send a clear signal about whose side I am on.

 

[gmichael]

I would start killing atheists just to send a clear signal about whose side I am on.

Wouldn't it be more fun to sacrifice all the virgins you could find? You'd also be providing a public service. No one should die before they get a chance to make an ugly face in the dark.

 

[lsiberian]

There is no sound in a vacuum, but there can be sound in "space." It depends on what material is present.

Yeah we are in space right now.

 

[Davemcc]

I would start killing atheists just to send a clear signal about whose side I am on.

I am NOT giving you my address.

This is how it would go with me...

TV News: "We're all going to die."

Me: "Meh, we had a good run."

 

[lsiberian]

I am NOT giving you my address.

This is how it would go with me...

TV News: "We're all going to die."

Me: "Meh, we had a good run."

Nah Canadians would view a nuclear winter as weak stuff. You'd probably survive.

 

[Davemcc]

Nah Canadians would view a nuclear winter as weak stuff. You'd probably survive.

It would only take one American survivor to blame Canada for destroying the earth.

 

[MatthewB.]

Alex2507, I guess it's a good thing I'm Agnostic.

 

[res6jya6]

I hear Vega is nice this time of year

Seriously though, Earth can't be the only planet that can sustain human life taking into account technology. For all we know, the moons of Jupiter have water and air and they're nearby. It doesn't hurt to take a look around as did the early explorers of this planet. Let's get the propulsion systems going and find some new places to colonize. It has been done before.

Oh, man... I was reading this article not too long ago... about these two other stars that astronomers just recently found... these stars have almost the exact same molecular makeup of earth... an atmosphere capable of sustaining life... h20... the works. These places are sum hundred billion lightyears away... but it's possible!

This article isn't about the planets... but it's about a NASA mission that's main goal is to find life-supporting planets in solar systems rather than our own.

http://theplummetonions.wordpress.com/2009/03/05/nasas-kepler-mission-to-look-for-other-planets-capable-of-sustaining-life/