Home » Reading & Literature » Science Fiction & Society » Where Have All the Spacemen Gone? Speculations on the Fermi Paradox (Part 4)

Where Have All the Spacemen Gone? Speculations on the Fermi Paradox (Part 4)

© Christopher B. Jones

Welcome back to our discussion on the possibilities of extraterrestrial intelligence. Specifically, we're looking at the reasons we have thus far found no sign of ET as we scan the heavens. If you haven't already done so, you may want to start off with Part 1, and then work your way to this fourth installment.

Having covered the idea that there is no one out there-the idea that the aliens are uniterested in space or are hiding from us-this week we turn our eyes to war. That's right: all-out devestation complete with fireballs, mushroom clouds, and lots of arrogant ideological chest pounding. So put on your battle suit and let's jump right in...

WAR, WHAT IS IT GOOD FOR?
The most obvious answer is, of course, absolutely nothing. But there actually may be one thing that war is good for, and that is wiping out civilizations before they have a chance to reach for the stars. The third solution to the Fermi Paradox says that once a civilization reaches a sufficient level of technology-that being a level great enough to develop horribly powerful weapons but not great enough to colonize other worlds-it always destroys itself. Could this explain why our searches have turned up nothing?

It is certainly a good guess. Given the current state of our world, with nuclear-armed India and Pakistan at each others throats, with Israel and the Palestinians

The copyright of the article Where Have All the Spacemen Gone? Speculations on the Fermi Paradox (Part 4) in Science Fiction & Society is owned by Christopher B. Jones. Permission to republish Where Have All the Spacemen Gone? Speculations on the Fermi Paradox (Part 4) in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.