An overview of very large artificial constructs from space stations to Dyson spheres. Including building artificial worlds around black holes to how to destroy a star.
An in-depth look at the Fermi Paradox in terms of Kardashev 2+ civilizations.
A Comprehensive list of all the major proposed solutions to Fermi's Paradox, the question of "If there are aliens, where are they?"
A look at various Cataclysmic Scenarios in terms of how they factor into the Fermi Paradox. We'll look at everything from Biowarfare and AI to Nukes and Grey Goo.
First installment of a spin-off of the Fermi Paradox Series, focusing on how very un-Earth-like worlds might support life. This video focuses on how life might exist on worlds like Pluto.
This video covers what Tidal Locking is and what causes it, and looks at how this can happen to moons & exoplanets.
The second episode in the series examines Twilight Worlds, planets tidally locked to stars so that one side is always lit and the other side eternal dark. We discuss what life would be like on such a world and how realistic it is for life to arise there or for us colonize them.
This video takes an in depth look at Orbital Rings and Space Elevators and is the first installment of a reboot of the original Megastructures video.
The second installment of the series looks at the Skyhook, a type of abridged Space Elevator that allows spacecraft to hook up and get into orbit at much lower launch speeds.
In this episode we look at moons the size of Earth, what they'd be like, and the possibility of life evolving or colonizing such a world.
Episode 3 is our final look at Megastructures designed to help carry cargo and people into space at far lower prices than we currently pay. Main focus is on the Lofstrom Launch Loop, StarTram Mass Driver designs, and the Space Fountain.
This video gives an overview of various terraforming concepts and hurdles from those using near-horizon technologies to very advanced and speculative tech.
A detailed look at how Nuclear Fusion could impact our economy and civilization, from agriculture and water shortages to space stations and interstellar travel.
The Habitable Planets series continues with a look at Rogue & Steppenwolf planets in the Interstellar Void. This video considers both the possibility of life arising on such planets and the prospects for colonizing them.
In this fourth installment of the series we take a lengthy look at Rotating Habitats, large space stations that simulate gravity via spin and can replicate Earth-like environments.
Today we look at the subject of Interstellar Colonization, from the ship concepts and propulsion methods all the way to intergalactic colonization.
A look at the difficulties of returning to the moon to establish a permanent presence and many of the concepts and ideas envisioned to help accomplish that goal.
Today we take a look at Artificial Planets constructed as Shells around a filler mass, such as a black hole.
A look at Discworlds, Flat Earths, and Alderson Discs in terms of how they'd function and how they might be built.
A look into how very small black holes function, are created and destroyed, and how they might be used for power. This is the first episode of a three part, and lays the groundwork for the concepts to be examined in Black Hole Space Ships and Concepts for Faster Than Light Travel.
A continuing look at possible technologies using artificial Black Holes as power sources, focusing on spaceship concepts, as well as the impact on SETI. In this video we will examine the basic concept, as well as refueling black holes, using black holes as weapons, and several related concepts.
Our first installment of a new series looking at Faster Than Light, or FTL, concepts and technologies. In this episode we review the basics of Special Relativity and some misconceptions about it, then look at Quantum Entanglement.
Our second installment of a new series looking at Faster Than Light, or FTL, concepts and technologies. In this episode we look at the Tachyon, a hypothetical superluminal particle than can travel back in time as well as looking at what theory tells us about Time Travel and Temporal Paradoxes.
In the 7th episode of the Megastructures series we look at Hoop Worlds, a type of artificial planet with some surprising properties.
A new version of the original video covering the Dyson Dilemma of the Fermi Paradox, in which we cover the apparent contradiction in the lack of numerous Dyson Spheres in the Universe and their seeming inevitable construction by growth-oriented technological civilizations.
Episode 5 of the Habitable Planets Series takes a look at double planets and what sort of conditions would prevail, or need to prevail, for them to be Earth-like. As well as the Rocheworld, a special case of Double Planets where the two planets either share an atmosphere or have even begun to merge together.
A look at the simplest type of Dyson Sphere, the Shkadov Thruster, a device able to move entire solar systems.
A new look at the Fermi Paradox detailing all the popular solutions and their strengths and weaknesses.
In Episode 3 we look at the concept of warp drives, a theoretical type of spaceship propulsion that warps spacetime to allow faster than light travel. We discuss the basic concept and the scientific and technological hurdles to developing it, along with clearing up many of the myths about it.
An in-depth look at the Transhumanism movement and related concepts, with a special focus on pathways for extending the human lifespan. Topics including SENS and anti-aging research, mind uploading, Technological Singularities, and physical and mental augmentation.
A look at the Simulation Hypothesis, or Simulation Argument, along with its implications for identity, consciousness, and the Fermi Paradox.
A look at the Doomsday Argument, also known as the Carter Catastrophe, a probabilistic argument which suggests humanity may be nearing its end. We will examine how this applies to the Fermi Paradox and the Simulation Hypothesis, as well as examining the concept of the Anthropic Principle.
Today we are looking at two topics, the Anthropic Principle and the idea of greater than human intelligence, generally called Super-Intelligence or SI.
Continuing our look at Dyson Spheres we examine the concept of the Nicoll-Dyson Beam, a type of advanced weapon that uses the output of an entire sun to create a laser that can strike target across the galaxy.
In Episode 10 we explore the Matrioshka Brain, a nested Layer type of Dyson Sphere designed to turn stars in to giant computers, and conclude our look at Dyson Spheres and other types of Stellar Engines.
In our first look at possible futures for Earth we examine the concept of Arcologies, self-sufficient habitats that adapt the concepts we've previously considered for space stations and off-world colonies to Earth itself. We'll examine the original concept, the more modern one of giant structures that dwarf skyscrapers, and under what circumstances such ideas can be practical.
In our second look at possible futures for Earth we examine the concept of Ecumenopolises, planet spanning cities homes to trillions. We'll examine concept in detail, starting with the first portrayals of it in fiction and extending on how Arcologies and other technologies we've discussed on the channel might be employed to create a Ecumenopolis and what they might be like to live in.
In this video we jump trillions of years into the future to examine the concept of civilizations living in a dark, post-stellar Universe, where we encounter some surprising possibilities about just how abundant and robust life might be in a seemingly dark and dead Universe.
Continuing our look at Habitable Planets we look at worlds entirely covered in water, and how they are both harder and easier for life to develop and thrive on than we might expect.
In Episode 4 we look at the concept of wormholes, how they derive from General Relativity, the various different types and theories, and some under-considered uses of wormholes. We'll also discuss some myths and misunderstandings of the concept.
A in-depth look at KIC 8462582, also known as Tabby's Star. We'll explore how this star became famous for an anomaly, what that anomaly was, and the various theories for what might be causing it.
A look at how emerging concepts in science & technology could disrupt our most our understandings of identity, consciousness, and free will. This is the 5th episode of the Existential Crisis series which looks at concepts like Transhumanism, Life Extension, the Simulation Hypothesis, the Doomsday Argument, and the Anthropic Principle.
A look at Dark Matter, what it is, what it isn't, and what it might be used for.
This video continues our look at Colonizing Space by examining the idea of Asteroid Mining and setting up colonies on Asteroids. We explore the science as well as practical issues of engineering, economics, legality, and psychology of such distant outposts.
This episode examines the concept of a civilizations and economies in which very little scarcity exists and in which production of goods requires so little labor that most basic needs can be met at little or no cost.
The concept of a Technological Singularity, an accelerated rush in processing speed improvements culminating in a super-mind, has captivated people for decades. Today we will examine this idea and look at some misconceptions about it.
A look at the concept of Self-Replicating Machines, Universal Assemblers, von Neumann Probes, Grey Goo, and Berserkers. While we will discuss the basic concept and some on-Earth applications like Medical Nanotechnology our focus will be on space exploration and colonization aspects.
An in-depth survey of the various technologies for spaceship propulsion, both from those we can expect to see in a few years and those at the edge of theoretical science. We'll break them down to basics and familiarize ourselves with the concepts. Note: I made a rather large math error about the Force per Power the EmDrive exerts at 32:10, initial tentative results for thrust are a good deal higher than I calculated compared to a flashlight.
A look at Dark Energy, explaining and simplifying the concept around it, the Cosmological Constant, the Lambda-CDM model, and Vacuum & Zero-Point Energy.
Starlifting is the process of removing matter from stars, and in this episode we will look at how you would do this and why you would do this. We will see there are a lot of reasons, and that the methods are not very high tech at all.
An in-depth look at Cryptocurrency & Blockchain, what they are, how they differ from existing methods, and what the advocates and critics have to say about them.
An in-depth look at the Kardashev Scale, a system of classifying advanced civilizations. We will talk about what it is, and what some of the capabilities of such civilizations would be.
A deep look at some of the truly advanced and surprising options that might become available to us as we improve our skill with genetic engineering, ranging from altering humans to adapting life to live on alien planets or to serve as machines. We will also look at methods for doing genetic engineering, such as DNA printing and CRISPR, as well as consider some of the ethical concerns associated to using this technology.
Today we're teaming up with Joe Scott to look at the Great Attractor, a mysterious and massive source of gravity obscured from our vision, and the concept of Dark Flow, movements of whole clusters of galaxies in directions with no obvious cause.
This episode is an in-depth look at stars, from the common kinds and basic terminology to exotic stars, some which are entirely hypothetical. We'll look at Stars bigger than solar systems or tinier than a pinhead, and some stars that no longer exist or cannot exist till long after all other stars have died.
In this epic, 2-part episode, we team up with Isaac Arthur to imagine how humans will colonize the inner Solar System, becoming a true spacefaring civilization.
This episode continues our team up with Fraser Cain to look at Colonizing the Solar System, we move from the inner solar system to the Asteroid Belt and beyond, all the way out to the Oort Cloud.
This episode focuses on the basic concepts and misconceptions of wars fought in space and examines the notions of weapons, defenses, stealth in space, and the distance involved.
This episode begins a three-part series focusing more on the specifics of colonization including the human aspect of it. We lay the groundwork by looking at colonies just in our solar system before moving off in episodes two and three to look at life on colony ships and then on interstellar colonies.
This episode is the second of a three-part series focusing more on the specifics of colonization including the human aspect of it. Having laid the groundwork last time, we now ask ourselves what the ships carrying people to new worlds would be like, and what life aboard them would be like.
This episode concludes a three-part series focusing more on the specifics of colonization including the human aspect of it. Today we journey to the Tau Ceti System after a 120 year voyage to join our colonists in the early days of the colony.
Today we return to the Fermi Paradox to contemplate the notion of civilizations which neither expand outwards to colonize the galaxy nor go extinct, but exist as long-term, high-tech civilizations just on their own planet or solar system. To discuss the possible motives and reasoning we will look at the many arguments raised for and against space exploration.
This episode ends Year 2, not with predictions for the future, but rather a discussion of concepts of Black Swan Events and Outside Context Problems, highly unpredictable events which massively impact civilization.
In this episode we begin our look at possible Alien Civilizations by considering the impossible ones. Fiction has introduced a lot of misconceptions about aliens we need to clear away before we can seriously consider them and that begins by looking at some of the common ideas and removing any that rely on the concept of advanced civilization being quite stupid.
We continue our look at hypothetical alien civilizations by discussing the various possible circumstances in which we might first contact them or be contacted by them.
A look at advanced means of altering or controlling the planet's climate and geography, drawing on concepts proposed for terraforming other planets. We look at existing and proposed ideas of controlling the weather, creating artificial islands or mountain ranges, using orbital mirrors and shades, and many other concepts.
In this episode we continue our look at possible Alien Civilizations by attempting to peer into the alien psyche. In the absence of any actual ones to examine we will review fictional examples and try to match those up against both human behavior and what we might consider likely, unlikely, or impossible to arise from evolutionary processes.
This episode focuses on many of the problems with travel between stars at relativistic velocities, like collision avoidance, radiation, ship geometry, armor, and point-defense. We will also look at some of the possible engine types and discuss realistic maximum speeds they offer.
In this episode we explore technological challenges and solutions for extending the human life span and contemplate some of the challenges an extended lifespan might pose for our civilization.
In this episode we continue our look at possible Alien Civilizations by discussing language and communication. How could we translate their language? How would they translate ours? What modes of communication are available besides sight and sound?
This episode discusses the idea over using chains of relays firing immensely powerful lasers or streams of particles to move spaceships between neighboring stars at near-light velocities.
The first installment in a new series discussing alternative means of getting in space, from better rockets to massive structures like Space Elevators, Skyhooks, and Launch Loops.
In this episode we examine the concept of a Space Elevator, a popular piece of developing technology designed to lift people and cargo into space at a fraction of normal launch costs. We will look at technology as well as many of the misconceptions about Space Elevators which have emerged.
In this episode we explore Quantum Computers, from the basic theory to the potential applications, as well as many myths and misconceptions this groundbreaking technology has accumulated.
In this episode we examine the Skyhooks and Rotovators, technology designed to lift grab spaceplanes or rockets at far slower speeds than normal and lift them into space at a fraction of normal launch costs.
Space is a hostile place, in this episode we will look at what you need to survive in it, dispels some myths about it, and get into the specifics of how much air, water, power, and other things you need and how to get them.
This episode feature Mass Drivers, Space Guns, and other means of rapidly accelerating a spaceship up to orbital speeds without a rocket. We will explore the basic concepts, the engineering issues, and the potential cost & safety advantages & disadvantages along with how these devices can be used in tandem with other systems we have looked at.
Continuing our look at possible alien civilizations, we examine extinct alien civilizations and the possibly of finding them and exploring their ruins to learn about them. We will also contemplate the possibility of bringing them back, and the conundrums that raises.
In this episode we'll be looking at improvements to rocket systems, with the main focus on re-usability. We will also look a bit deeper at rocketry principles, at some other improvements and alternative uses for rockets, such as oceanic launches, and discuss Metallic Hydrogen, a potential game changing fuel.
We examine the concepts of cyborgs, clarify what they are and how they differ from bionics, androids, and similar concepts. We also discuss some of the lesser known options for augmentation and explore the notion of man-machine integration.
While potentially dangerous, nuclear powered spacecraft offer far faster and more efficient spacecraft than traditional chemical rockets. Today we will examine the various means of using atomic power sources to propel spacecraft, both to get off Earth and to travel to other stars.
Science Fiction loves the Many Worlds Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics, but its implication go far beyond basic Alternate Universes and histories. Today we will explore some of the mind-bending consequences of this theory.
We return to the Moon to explore ways to go beyond simple Lunar Bases to a full-fledged productive colony that can help us travel to other worlds and expand our own.
look at methods for predicting the future, how plausible they are and what hurdles they face, with a focus on Isaac Asimov's concept of Psychohistory, from the classic Foundation series.
The Launch Loop is a type of space vehicle launch assist mechanism that allows us to transfer vast amounts of energy and momentum from ground based generators to a launch vehicle high in the upper atmosphere.
Fraser Cain and Isaac Arthur team up again to bring you another epic collaboration. This time, it’s a 2-part series of construction tips from an engineer from a Type 2 Civilization. In this episode, we harvest helium 3, mine the asteroids, and rearrange the Solar System.
Part 2 of our look at mega-engineering projects civilizations may tackle on their way to achieving Kardashev 2 status. Teaming up again with Fraser Cain & Universe Today, we look at artificial magnetospheres, mining and disassembling comets, asteroids, and even whole planets, and harvesting the Sun itself.
Today we look at using Space Towers, Buoyant Structures, Airships, and Space Fountains as means of launching spaceships, as well as their other applications to create enormous structures that normal materials could never permit.
This episode begins our look at solutions to the Fermi Paradox - the question of why the Universe appears empty of intelligent life besides ourselves - by looking at some of the reasons why life may simply be very uncommon. Before we can contemplate what might be special about Earth, we first need to consider what might be special about our region of space, and even our epoch of time, or our Universe itself.
The Orbital Ring is a type of launch-assist system that goes beyond moving small ships and crews into space and allows cheap movement of bulk cargo up to space, into orbit, and beyond.
We return to the Megastructures series to examine the the concept of a Dyson Sphere, a means of enclosing a star to gather all of it energy. We will look at myths and misconceptions about Dyson Spheres, as well as a number of additional purposes they can be put to, from allowing interstellar travel to generating black holes or running computers large enough to simulate whole Universes.
In the previous episode we saw how civilizations might not simply survive after all the stars in the Universe had died, but might indeed thrive far better during the Black Hole Era of the Universe. Today, we will go beyond even the Dark Era to examine the concepts or Iron Star Civilizations, Boltzmann Brains, Reversible Computing, and even reversing Entropy itself.
We continue our look at possible explanations why life may be very rare in the Universe by examining our planet itself, and looking at which of its characteristic might be important to intelligence developing and how improbable those traits are for a given planet in a given solar system.
Force fields are a staple of science fiction, but usually regarded as only science fiction, not science fact. Today we'll examine the notion and see what options we might have inside known science, as well as what alternatives might achieve similar effects.
It is often suggested that the reason we don't hear from alien civilizations is that they are in hiding. In this episode, we will explore that notion, and examine why a civilization might hide and how they would go about doing it.
Many technologies are greaty anticipated and predicted, and promise to change our lives. Today we will be looking at some that get less fanfare, but hold the promise to change our lives in profound ways.
We begin the new Outward Bound series by discussing the Colonization of Mars, and survey all the colonizing and terraforming options from the early settlement days to the far future and a Green Mars. We will also look at alternatives to terraforming which might make more sense for Mars, like bioforming the people to the environment, rather than terraforming it to our environment.
We conclude our look at possible explanations why life may be very rare in the Universe by looking at the evolutionary pathway to intelligence and the hurdles between life starting on a planet and migrating off of it.
Following on our look at Space Warfare concepts, we look at popular ideas from science and science fiction for war between planets, or inside a fully colonized solar system or Dyson Swarm.
We continue our look at colonizing the solar system by visiting Venus, and exploring both the options for vast floating habitats in the upper atmosphere as well as full terraforming of the planet.
Ringworlds are a type of megastructure that engulf an entire star, first popularized in Larry Niven's classic novel Ringworld. These constructs a million times larger than Earth have captivated minds for nearly half a century but been considered impossible to build under known science. Today, we will attempt to show otherwise.
We continue our look at hypothetical Alien Civilizations by examining concepts such as Zoo Hypothesis - that aliens may be keeping us secluded from the rest of the galaxy - and the motivation for non-interference, such as the Star Trek Prime Directive.
The concept of enhancing and augmenting animal minds & bodies to be able to use and understand human technology, known as Uplifting, has long fascinated us. Today in this two-part collaboration with John Michael Godier, we will explore this concept as well as the possibility of using such technology with alien races, the polar opposite of the classic Star Trek Prime Directive.
Part II of a collaboration with Isaac Arthur on the subject of uplifting, the concept of increasing an animal or alien species' intelligence. Further, we explore the concept of Downshifting, the idea of making deliberately making something less intelligent.
Androids, machines that look and act human, are rapidly leaving the realms of science fiction and entering science fact. In this episode we explore their uses, dangers, ethical dilemmas, and more.
We continue our look at colonizing the solar system by visiting Saturn's moon Titan. We will examine the options for less classic colonization by exploring alternatives to manned colonization and classic terraforming.
A look at methods and concerns for augmenting the human mind. Today we will be looking at Mind Augmentation, the basic concepts, methods, ethical concerns, and possible pitfalls entailed.
It is often thought that if we cure aging or find out how to upload a human mind that humans will be immortal. Today we will examine that notion and see how well it holds up against astronomical time lines.
Today we discuss the concept of trade throughout a colonized solar system, and ask how viable it is and what challenged it faces. While Interplanetary trade faces many challenges, Interstellar Trade faces even more, this episode will seek to examine in detail what can be traded between worlds, what probably can't, and what technologies might impact that.
In memory of Carl Sagan, this episode will review many of the topics he covered during his career and see what what we've learned about the Cosmos and its inhabitants since then.
A look at creating artificial planets, ones vastly bigger than Earth. We return to the Megastructures series to discuss various ways of creating artificial planets, the special issues with making an Earth-like planet much larger or smaller than Earth, and the maximum size they can be, potentially larger than entire solar systems.
Jupiter and its moon are a rarely considered prospect for colonization, but potentially the ripest opportunity for it in the solar system. In this episode of the Outward Bound series we will examine the options for colonizing each of Jupiter's primary moons and even discuss ways to colonize the giant planet itself.
The possibility of Artificial Intelligence turning on humanity has been a concern for as long as we've had computers. Today we will look at some of those fears and see which ones might be valid and which might not be cause for alarm.
The concept of linking many minds together to act in concert, or even fuse into a new singular entity, has been popular in science fiction for decades. Today we will explore the idea and Networked Intelligence in general, to see how realistic it is, and what benefits or concerns might arise from it.
Could the cold outer reaches of the solar system ever be called home? Far beyond even Pluto and the Kuiper Belt is a vast and mostly empty region of space that we theorize may contain trillions of comets and other icy bodies. Frozen and barren though they would be, we will consider how they might one day become thriving and comfortable habitats for us.
The concept of Interstellar Empires has fascinated us for as long as we've know those stars in the night sky were other solar systems, and it's become a staple of science fiction. But rarely do we consider how realistic such galaxy-spanning confederations are, and what special challenges they'd face.
We often discuss the notion of settling the galaxy but do we need to stop there? This episode will examine the additional difficulties with traveling between galaxies and ask just how far we might be able to journey even without faster than light travel.
We contemplate colonizing planets, but what about the stars themselves? Containing virtually all the mass and resources of the solar system, the Sun, the Sun is the ultimate asset for a growing interplanetary civilization. While typically assumed too hot to touch and so out of our reach, we will challenge that notion today.
The End of the World is nigh... how do you escape? This episode will look at many of the potential ways the world might be destroyed, from supernova to asteroid strike, as well as looking at how we might survive such disasters and go about saving civilization.
A discussion of various theories for the End of the Universe. How the Universe began and why is a question that's obsessed humanity for at least as long as civilization has existed, at the same time, how it will end has equally fascinated us. Today we are joined by Astrophysicist Paul Sutter for a two-part episode looking at the science and history of how the Universe came to be and may end.
Ever since we started finding fossils of long extinct species we've dreamed of getting to meet them, either by finding some secluded group of survivors, using a time machine, or resurrecting them. As our knowledge of genetics grows, this last option is fast approaching as a possible reality and raises many additional concerns about the technical and ethical challenges, not least of which is where to put them, with their former environments now used by people or other critters. We will examine these challenges today.
We explore the history and future of missions to Mars. For years following the Moon landings it seemed liked Mars would be our next step and sooner than later, but the costs and risks discouraged interest for around a decade after that. We pick up from part 1 when renewed interest arose and examine many of the more recent plans and what options they give us for manned missions to the Red Planet in the next decade.
We return to the Upward Bound Series to look at spaceports, giant structures dwarfing the modern International Space Station, with a focus on the Gateway Spaceport design.
The idea that alien civilizations may exist but be hiding or asleep is a popular explanation for the Fermi Paradox, the apparent contradiction between the immensity of the Universe and the seeming absence of civilizations in it. Today we exam the concept that civilization may hibernate and what their motives for doing so would be.
A journey out to the stars to colonize Alpha Centauri. We've looked at colonizing our own solar system, from Mars to Venus, and all the way inward to the Sun itself and out to the dark edges of the Oort Cloud. In this episode we conclude the Outward Bound Series by heading to our nearest neighboring star system, Alpha Centauri, and look at the trials and tribulations of colonizing binary star systems and red dwarves.
To explore space and expand beyond Earth we will need a robust orbital infrastructure to serve as our beachhead. Today we will explore the necessary components for that, how we will go about creating them, and threats to them like Kessler Syndrome, a potential cascade destruction of all our space-based assets.
A look at the future of warfare in the void between the stars. Today we will examine the concepts from science fiction of how such conflicts might occur and see how realistic they are under known science.
This episode begins an in-depth look at Post-Scarcity Civilizations, seeming Utopias where virtually anything is available to its citizens at the snap of their fingers. One of the exceptions to that may be privacy, which might be inherently impossible in such a society, and we will explore that challenge as we begin our series on such civilizations..
To see deeper into space, we will need much bigger telescopes. Visit our sponsor, Brilliant: https://brilliant.org/IsaacArthur/ As astronomy seeks to find and study distant planets and peer further and more accurately into space and time, the limitations of ground based telescopes, especially optical telescopes, represents our largest barrier. Today we will examine what those limitations are, and ways to make vastly more enormous telescopes and arrays.
The possibility that ancient civilizations might have encountered or even been influenced by extraterrestrials has fascinated us for as long as we knew there were distant suns they might visit from. Today we will examine the evidence and consider the numerous scenarios form the perspective of the Fermi Paradox, to see how reasonable the Ancient Aliens hypothesis is, and ask if the evidence of UFOs visiting us in the past is credible.
The ability to be able to copy or upload the mind has been discussed much in science fiction, and increasingly in science in recent years. Today we will examine many additional uses of Mind Uploading, along with how it works and some of its implications for concepts like Consciousness, Identity, and Individuality. We will also explore how these themes appear in Dennis E. Taylor's newest novel, The Singularity Trap, our Book of the Month.
Today we take a trip inward, to explore Sun-Scorched Mercury. Mercury is the nearest planet to the Sun, a seeming airless wasteland little discussed in conversations about colonizing our solar system. Today we will challenge that, and show that Mercury may be one of the most promising places for humanity to make new homes on.
A look at the possibility of future civilizations rising and falling. It's long been observed that empires tend to rise and fall in a seeming cycle, never identical but sharing many similarities. Today we will examine the idea that this may be the reason that we have encountered no advanced civilizations in our own galaxy, and that the solution the Fermi Paradox, as to why we have seen no alien civilizations, may be that they are caught in a perpetual loop. Unable or unwilling to use technology which might allow them to travel the cosmos. We will also consider if such a loop may await us, or that we are already in it.
Try out Ecosia and support reforestation: https://ecosia.co/isaacarthur Technology may one day grant us a Utopia in which virtually all tasks are performed by robots and artificial intelligence. In such a post-scarcity civilization, people may have difficulty finding a purpose to existence. Today we will explore how this may come about, what the consequences of this existential threat might be, and what purposes people may find for themselves in such a future. Visit our Website: http://www.isaacarthur.net Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IsaacArthur SFIA Merchandise available: http://signil.com/sfia Social Media: Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/15839... Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/IsaacArthur/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/Isaac_A_Arthur on Twitter and RT our future content. SFIA Discord Server: https://discord.gg/v5UKTsz
Ceres, a dwarf planet amid the Asteroid Belt, hold the potential to be the hub of a vast mining and manufacturing network in the Belt, as well as potentially growing the food to support future colonists. Today we'll look at colonizing Ceres and asteroid mining, faming in space, and a potential distant future of a developed asteroid belt.
Today we will begin our look at the spaceships we might use for colonizing interstellar space in the future. In order to cover the vast distances between even the nearest stars in our galaxy within the boundaries of known physics, we need vessels able to voyage at high speeds for very long periods of time while carrying everything they need to colonize another solar system, a concept typically known as a space ark or generation ship. We will explore the challenges and options for such a vessel, as well as some alternative approaches to the problem.
For today's 2-part episode we team again with John Michael Godier to discuss the future of humanity should we head out to colonize the galaxy and find it empty, and how we might end up encountering aliens even then.
Part II of a collaboration with Isaac Arthur on the possibilities of a galactic human future and what that might entail.
Beaming energy down from satellites in orbit to replace the production of electricity on Earth may solve many of our problems, and avoid a potential economic or ecological crisis such as energy bottlenecks or global warming. Today we will explore how wireless microwave transmission of energy down to rectennas may not only be possible, but could be massively profitable in the near future and spur our exploration and colonization of space.
In order to colonize the galaxy, we are going to have to spend huge times on board equally huge spaceships. To move thousands of people, and our ecosystem, to distant planets, will require not only giant ark-like starships, but entire fleets of them. Today we will examine how we could do this even if physics never offers us any superior methods in the future for covering the void of interstellar space faster.
Today, we're discussing 5 plausible ways that the world could end, and I'm thrilled to be doing this as a 2-part collaboration with the one and only Isaac Arthur. Check out his video here:
Today we team up with Joe Scott to discuss 5 catastrophes that might threaten humanity in the future, and what we can do to prevent or mitigate them. Here in part 2, we will look at ways of dealing with those threat, which will include artificial intelligence, global warming & climate change, asteroids & comets, gamma ray bursts, and the eventual death of the Sun.
Since the advent of technology, there have been concerns about it replacing jobs and leaving people without an income. Technological disruption has often eliminated entire industries. However, new fields of employment have always arisen to replace those, typically focusing more on training and skills, as machines have no minds and little flexibility. While artificial intelligence may one day change that, today we will examine what sort of jobs might be available to people in the future.
In order to do serious exploration and colonization of space, we will need a source of food beyond Earth. But can we go beyond simply small hydroponic gardens to entire vast space farms in orbit of our planet, and could those farming on satellites and space stations eventually replace earth-based agriculture as our main food source at home?
Alien puppeteers arriving on UFOs, body snatchers, and mimics are a staple of science fiction, but are they realistic? Today we'll examine these concepts and see if they might be possible under known science, or what similar scenarios extraterrestrial evolution or technology might be produce.
In order to terraform new planets, we will need to be able transport entire ecologies & ecosystems through interstellar space in the future. Today we will examine how we could build and maintain such environments inside vast arks, generations ships able to colonize our galaxy, and the challenges these starships will face maintaining not just stores of DNA and genetic material but living organisms which depend heavily on other members of their species and other species to survive and thrive, not least of which is human ourselves.
Drones are becoming more common for military, commercial, and recreational purposes, today we will explore how these will impact us in the near future and far, for peace and warfare, on Earth and in the void of space. We will also examining the fundamental differences in the problems and challenges drones represent compared to more mentally sophisticated artificial intelligences or robots.
The Icy Giants, Neptune and Uranus, are often overlooked for as candidates for colonizing our solar system. Even when noted, the focus tends to be on their larger moons like Triton. Today we will challenge that notion by looking at way we might place a colony on the planet itself, and how Orbital Rings and Chandelier Cities might let us colonize any gas giant. We will also look at how helium-3, a core ingredient of aneutronic fusion abundant on Neptune, might serve as the fuel of future starships, and the physics behind some other starship drives future science might give us access to, such as laser propulsion.
We often worry about the possibility of a civilization developing methods of brainwashing to indoctrinate its population and turning into a totalitarian dictatorship. We will examine both existing and possible future methods and technologies for mind control, such as neuro-hacking and genetic programming, as well as the possible defenses against such brainwashing or conditioning and implications it has for civilization.
Our first end-of-the-month livestream Q&A session, with hopefully minimal technical glitches. Join us 2pm EST, Sunday, Sep 30, and get you questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Our seas and oceans have long been central to human civilization, while at the same time we built dikes and islands to reclaim land. As technology improves, we may see even more ambitious efforts in the future. In the episode we will explore the options, both for ways we may extend our civilization to the sea and the motives of doing so. We will also look at seasteads and seasteading, artificial islands built in international waters with the intent of being new, sovereign nations.
As we continue our look at Generation Ships, vast vessels designed to carry many thousands of colonists to distant and alien worlds centuries away, we must ask just how far and how long such ships can be made to last? Can space ships be made that will endure even longer voyages of thousands or even millions of years in the void of interstellar or even intergalactic space? Will ships, and their crews, fall apart or turn into Cargo Cults who no longer remember how their technology functions or what their mission was?
Our seas and oceans have always been central to our civilization, but only the thin layer at the top. In many ways the ocean depths remain more of a mystery to us than distant worlds. And yet, they may be of great value to us as future homes for humanity.
A look at environments and ecology on truly massive space stations. As we expand in space and build ever large space stations, true space habitats, we will need to incorporate ecosystems into them. However, such space habitats will have their own weather and cycles unlike those of Earth, and we will need to adapt to those unique conditions, which will vary by size and type. Today we will look at everything from smaller rotating habitats like Kaplana One and O'Neill Cylinders to vast structures such as Ringworlds, Supramundane Planets, Mega-Earths, and see the unique challenges each of them will offer us in the future.
Our second end-of-the-month livestream Q&A session. Join us 2pm EST, Sunday, Oct 28, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Lifespans have been slowing increasing as medical technology improves, but could they extended massively or even indefinitely? We will explore the science of aging and Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence, SENS, the field looking at how to improve geriatric medicine to extend our lives and possibly even makes us biologically immortal.
Our deserts have been slowly expanding, consuming arable land and neighboring ecosystems. Can we push them back, or even turn them into lush oases and fertile farmland? We will investigate the available options, and consequences, with both modern technology and those which may emerge in the future.
The Fermi Paradox asks us where all the alien civilizations are? Today we will ask if the might be hiding in the Voids, from those between the stars to the massive Supervoids like the Boötes Void. Could they be home to Extraterrestrial Empires so large they dwarf even Kardashev-3 Civilizations?
A Moon Base may be built within a generation, but long term colonization will take many more. As more people travel and immigrate their, establishing more lunar colonies, tension between them and Earth could lead to conflicts and possibly even warfare.
To journey across the stars requires voyages of centuries or more, ensuring the crew will be long dead by the time they arrive. If you want your crew available to colonize new worlds after their interstellar voyage, you either have to extend their lives, train their descendants, or freeze them till they arrive. We will examine the third option day, freezing people with cryonics, using hibernation, or suspended animation, or some other form of stasis the future might offer.
Our planet is so enormous that it can often appear flat to those living on it, as time went on and we determined it was a sphere, many still chose to assume it was a flat disc. While this notion is outdated, it is possible to construct an artificial planet as a discworld, and such worldbuilding shapes may have some advantages over a sphere. In this episode we will examine a number of Flat Earth models and some variations on the theme, and see what advantages and disadvantages they have, along with the challenges in constructing them
Our third end-of-the-month livestream Q&A session. Join us 7pm EST, Friday, Nov 20, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
So often expanding into space can seem like a Catch-22, where every proposed idea for development can only be practical if space is already developed. Today we'll take a look at some potential options for pushing forward our orbital infrastructure such as asteroid mining or power satellites, and take a look at what other technologies and industries might start the avalanche to our future in space and on other planets.
Humanity has long had outposts in the barren tundra lands of the arctic, but only in recent times have we visited the poles or the entire continent of Antarctica. In this episode we will explore how me use technology in the future to make cold permafrost into verdant farmland through greenhouses, solar mirrors, geothermal, or other techniques, as well as how we might follow a different path, and adapt our civilization to prosper among perpetual winter and ice.
To ring in the New Year, we're joining up with Kaspersky Lab's Earth 2050 project to make some predictions about how our world will change over the next generation as we make improvements in technologies on medicine, data storage and manipulation, and robots & AI.
Revolutionary improvements to automation and production may one day create machines able to produce almost anything, quickly and cheaply, and far faster and more varied than modern 3D Printers. Such devices are sometimes known as Santa Claus Machines, Cornucopia Devices, or Clanking Del-Replicators, and today we will examine how likely such technology is, how far off in the future they might be, and what impact they would have on society.
The galaxy is a vast place with billions of potential new worlds for humanity to colonize, but interstellar space is so enormous that reaching even the nearest stars and planets by spaceship would take decades at best, and maybe many centuries. Even on arrival terraforming those barren planets would take just as long. Two options for overcoming the immensity of space and time are the Seed Ship and the Data Ship, automated vessels able to colonize the worlds for us. We will examine those today, their advantages, limitations, and misconceptions, and variations of them we might use to seed the stars.
35 years ago, Science Fiction's Grandmaster, the late Isaac Asimov, made some predictions for 2019. As we head into the New Year, we'll take a look at those predictions and see what he got right, what he got wrong, and what it tells us about trying to predict our own future, 35 years from now.
Many believe humanity's future lies among the stars, colonizing distant planets around alien suns, or perhaps building artificial worlds, space habitats, and megastructures. But what if instead of traveling to worlds far away in outer space we create virtual worlds to live in instead, colonizing inner space? We will explore this possibility of simulated universes and what it might mean for humanity, and also ask if this might be a solution to the Fermi Paradox, the strange absence of other life in our own universe.
Without the Sun our world would be a frozen wasteland, and for this reason any efforts to colonize the galaxy must focus on huddling in the tiny oases of warmth around stars, separated from each other by enormous gulfs of interstellar space. But what if we could make our own stars at the places of our choosing? And can we merely mimic nature or create stars unlike anything which nature has formed?
Historically humanity has often taken shelter in caves or underground, and it is often thought we might do so again, on other worlds, in event of disasters, or simply because we run out of room on the ground above. In this episode we'll explore the concept of building underground, from simply subways and basements to advanced bunkers or entire cities beneath the Earth.
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, January 20, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered
Many a land was settled by exiles and prisoners, and many a science fiction story contemplates that we may use such methods when colonize new worlds. But are such methods viable? and what methods might we use in the future for dealing with criminals?
The Dark Forest Theory is a proposed solution to the Fermi Paradox from Cixin Liu which suggests all alien civilizations remain intentionally quiet, hiding from SETI efforts and possible hostile civilizations. It also argues they may attack any civilization which does not remain silent, like us.
Our current theory of evolution holds that all life on Earth originated from a single, simple life form billions of years ago. But what if that life did not originate on Earth? In this episode we'll explore the theory of Panspermia, that origin of life might be extraterrestrial in origin, and that the abiogenesis of that origin life form we descend from might have descended from the sky in a comet or some other alien source. We will explore the impact this concept would have on the Fermi Paradox if true.
The galaxy is an immense place, with billions of solar systems to colonize, and interstellar voyages to even nearby stars can take centuries. In order to explore and settle those new worlds, we may wish to take advantage of a type of generation ship that stops at planet after planet, colonizing each in turn, and entire colonial fleets that grow as they venture outward from Earth, creating new spaceships as often as terraforming new worlds.
To celebrate Valentine's Day, we'll take a look at relationships in the future, both the romantic and platonic friendships. We'll see what options and challenges might lay in store as we have to tackle the rising effect of social media and online dating, as well as more advanced technologies like virtual reality, artificial intelligence, cloning, and life extension.
Today we're joined by Fraser Cain of Universe Today to discuss the future of astronomy, how you can get started in it as a hobby, and a wide-range of other topics.
Humanity has long wished to dwell among the clouds, today we'll look at what options we may have in the future for floating a city or home high in the sky.
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 5pm EST, Sunday, February 22, 2019, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
The possibility that aliens might be regularly visiting Earth is one of the most popular Fermi Paradox solutions. In this episode we will look at UFOs and flying saucers theories and arguments, as well as examining the logic and possible motives of such extraterrestrial visitors.
The Galaxy is an enormous place, and moving from your planet to worlds in a different solar system over vast interstellar distances will be no easy voyage. Today we'll consider how someone would go about hitchhiking around on spaceships, as a tribute to Sci-fi's master of humor, Douglas Adams.
A new paper has come out discussing how the Fermi Paradox might be explained by the rigors of traveling space for interstellar colonization, causing settlements to be rare and and possibly not long-lived. We'll look at this model for spreading humanity out across the galaxy and see what insights or flaws it might have.
Science Fiction often presents us technologies that go far beyond the realms of known science, but many of these, such as force fields, inertial dampeners, anti-gravity, or faster than light travel might be possible if our future knowledge of physics holds some surprises. Today we will look at many technologies that are currently fanciful but may not be ruled out, what we call Clarketech, and consider what their implications would be if we could get them working.
One of the biggest reasons for colonizing other worlds is to ensure we don't die with our own sun, but even those alien suns we might travel to will die one day. And yet, our image of stars living than erupting spectacular as a red giant or supernova, present a somewhat false impression, as those stellar remnants often last far longer than the stars which bore them. Could civilizations survive around these dead stars? Could they even outlast the End of the Universe, as the last stars fade away?
Earth has often been compared to a spaceship, one that's successfully orbited our star and the galaxy many times over billions of years. So what about moving our planet or even converting it or another world into a spaceship? Can we use entire planets to cross the intergalactic void to settle planets in distant galaxies or superclusters? And what sort of engine and drive could move a whole planet?
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, March 31, 2019, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Fears about technology and it's impact on our civilization, or on individuals even when new tech is net benefit, are often shown to us in fiction as giving rise to technophobic cultures that abandon science. Today we'll take a look at such concerns and if they might be common or rare, rogue examples. Or if, counter-intuitively, they benefit us in settling the galaxy in the future.
Perhaps one of the most common technologies seen in science fiction is anti-gravity and gravity manipulation. Today we'll examine if there's an scientific pathways in physics to permit such technology, and what sort of amazing options it might offer if developed in the future.
To celebrate International Pet Day, we'll take a look at what the future might have in store for our furry friends, and what sorts of new pet might emerge as technology improves.
Giant Robots, or Mecha, in films and comic books fascinate audiences, but are usually considered impractical even with improved technology in the future. Today we'll look at them and concepts like power armor and exoskeletons and see if such suits might have a practical role in warfare or uses other than comba
The galaxy contains countless billions of planets we might colonize, and we may build far more living area as space station habitats and megastructures, but Earth will always be unique and living here prized. Today we will see what we can do make Earth larger, by adding many layers of terrain in concentric spheres around us.
The End of the World is a popular topic in science fiction and a source of serious worry for modern civilizations. If Doomsday comes, what can a Prepper do to survive and what would those civilizations look like? How long would recovery take and what technologies would remain? Just how grim is such a possible future?
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, April 28, 2019, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Black Holes are often considered the greatest dangers to spaceships in science fiction, but they may turn out to be the perfect power source for future spaceships.
The option of using floating platforms, balloons, or cargo air planes to launch rockets into space and save fuel is often discussed but rarely employed. Today we'll look at stratostations, rockoons, and other suggested methods for getting into space using these methods.
Natural disasters can topple civilizations, even in modern times, but with more and more technology civilizations become more robust and capable of predicting future calamities and preventing such ruin. So what other threats face spacefaring civilizations, both at the interplanetary and interstellar scale?
Nuclear Fusion holds the potential to free us of so many of the constraints offered by everything from fossil fuels to renewable energy option like wind and solar, if we can just get it working. Today we'll look at the challenges facing us in terms of the physics and engineering, the various possible reactors like the Tokamak, Poylwell, NFI, and more, and see what a bright future fusion might offers us. Check out the Butterfly Effect: https://watchnebula.com/isaacarthur
In the future humanity might build structures of incomprehensible size and splendor, megastructures and artificial worlds, but somebody is going to have to build and maintain these feats of science and engineering and clean up all the orbital debris.
It's popular to say nothing is impossible, especially in regard to the future and our Universe, but are there somethings which might turn out to be impossible or at least so impractical they never occur?
Science fiction delights in showing us brave adventurers boarding abandoned spaceships, exploring ancient alien worlds and space hulks, or surviving on planets turned into giant garbage dumps, but how realistic is this idea? And what sort of civilizations and cultures might spring up around such efforts?
A Paperclip Maximizer is an example of artificial intelligence run amok performing a job, potentially seeking to turn all the Universe into paperclips. But it's also an example of a concept called Instrumental Convergence, where two entities with wildly different ultimate goals might end up acting very much alike. This concept is very important to preparing ourselves for future automation and machine minds, and we'll explore that today.
Humanity has a long and inventive history of sports and games, and the future will offer us many new options for athletics as we move out in space, be it racing around the Moon, climbing the mountains of Mars, hang gliding on Venus, or zero-g gymnastics. We'll also explore potential challenges and opportunities offered by genetic enhancement, cybernetics, and virtual reality.
Colonizing Mars and terraforming it to be a comfortable future home for humanity is quite the challenge. How would we go about it and how close is close enough for our purposes? How would we let life grow on the open surface of Mars and how would we give air and water and potentially even alter its day, year, and gravity?
The Fermi Paradox ask us how in a Universe so vast and ancient we seem to be the only intelligent civilization around, with no older interstellar alien empires visible in the galaxy. But could extinction play a role in that, or might extinction events instead drive evolution forward?
Discussion of advanced extraterrestrial civilizations often hinges on the idea that they may have ascended to a higher state or higher level of reality, and lost interest in us and the rest of the galaxy. While we can't know what technologies or enlightened paths they might have available, we can ask how realistic the portrayals of those aliens might be, and if this notion make sense as a Fermi Paradox solution.
There's many dangerous places on Earth, and everywhere off Earth is downright lethal, from the emptiness of space to the airless and radiation soaked Moon to the smoldering inferno of Venus, humanity can't visit them without protection. We'll see what options for spacesuits are under works and what options might emerge for even better ones in the distant future.
Venus is a desolate scorching world on which no life can exist. Yet if it can be cooled down, there is no other planet we know of more suitable for terraforming and colonization. We will examine methods of cooling Venus down and preparing it to be settled in the future.
When people get lost, stranded, or stuck in dangerous situations, we go and rescue them. Today we'll look at what new dangers may face us in the future and what new tools technology might offer us to improve survival chances.
The Butterfly Effect is the principle that notes that even the smallest actions can have sweeping effects on everything in the long term. Today we'll look at that effect and ask what it means toward chaos, inevitable events, fate, and free will itself.
The ability to link mind and machine has long been the realm of science fiction, but now improvements in our understanding may allow us to network brain to computer in the near future. Companies like Neurolink have begun to explore how to link our neurons to machine, and we'll explore now such neural interfaces might function and how they might change our lives.
The Fermi Paradox, the big question of where all the aliens are, has many proposed solutions focusing on what might lower the odds of intelligent species arising on another world, or what might end technological civilizations or cause them to go unseen by us and our SETI efforts. But what if intelligence rarely leads to technological civilizations in the first place? Could there be countless planets in our galaxy occupied by species who never came to value technology?
Cloning people is a staple of science fiction, and now something science can do, but what are the future social and legal consequences of cloning, and can we learn to make fully grown clones or even duplicate our memories?
Every age produces new wonders and new challenges, and for the information age one of those is cybersecurity. We'll attempt to demystify the topic and explain some of the core concepts of keeping your computer secure and your personal data private.
From the most basic rockets to future ships designed for interstellar or even intergalactic flight, spaceship design is all about mission purpose, available technology, and keeping your crew safe and comfortable.
We often consider interacting with Aliens and Robots in the future, but what about Alien Robots? Today we'll ask what artificial intelligence created by aliens might look like and what sort of circumstances we'd encounter them, and if they may be the only aliens we ever encounter.
The Fermi Paradox asks why we don't see any alien civilizations with our SETI efforts. The Late Filters are common solution suggested, that intelligent species may often arise but either destroy themselves or unwilling or incapable of interstellar travel to reach new worlds and colonize the galaxy.
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, November 24, 2019, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
H.P. Lovecraft is known as the father of the Cosmic Horror genre of fiction. The creator of Cthulhu and many other terrifying dark gods in his novels paints a bleak and decaying view of our world and the Universe. Today we'll examine what it might imply if that nihilistic and grim view of reality was correct.
We often wonder how we might first meet extraterrestrials, picturing flying saucers and UFOs landing and aliens emerging asking to be taken to our leader - but joining the galactic community might be a very strange experience.
All of our civilization exists only a thin layer of Earth's surface, and our deepest mines barely scratch our planet. We often talk about finding new mineral resources on other worlds or asteroids in the future, but are we ignore a treasure beneath our feet, and what other technologies and engineering might we utilize in Earth's depths?
We often accuse people of being paranoid about extraterrestrials, flying saucers, and UFOs - but what if it's the aliens who are paranoid?
Right now, for a limited time, you can get 3 months of Audible for just $6.95 a month. That’s more than half off the regular price Visit https://www.audible.com/isaac or text isaac to 500-500. Space Piracy is a classic theme of science fiction, but is there chance we'll see it in the future? We'll examine how it might develop in the next century around asteroid mining and how it might occur in the interstellar void as spaceships travel out to the wider galaxy.
As we pioneer our way out from Earth to other planets and eventual the stars, our concept of time will change in more ways than just different calendars. We'll explore how interstellar civilizations might cope with everything from relativity to life extension and how century long voyages and time lags of communication over millions of worlds might be managed.
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, December 29, 2019, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Is time travel possible, and if it is, what sort of civilizations would result? We'll explore the science that might permit it as well as the classic science fiction examples to see if they make sense.
Alien Conspiracy theories are too numerous to count, but are they simply being paranoid about UFOs or might aliens be conspiring against us? Alternatively, could an extraterrestrial civilization be conspiratorial by nature, and what motives might a galactic civilization have for involving themselves with us in secret?
Fire is often considered the foundation of human technology, but there may be many worlds on which it would not be likely to practical, such an ocean planets, and on which intelligent life like Dolphins might emerge. Could such worlds host technological civilizations anyway? Or would they be forever stuck at little to no technology?
The Moon is gateway to space, and in the future it might serve as an industrial and mining complex fueling vast production of spaceships, rocket fuel, satellites, space stations, and colonial habitats.
The big question of why life exists has challenged minds for countless centuries, but what does science have to say on this matter? Could life arise on other worlds and in other Universes, and what is the reason for it?
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, January 26, 2020, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
O'Neill Cylinders space stations are examples of large rotating habitats able to be constructed in space in which people and even a complex ecology might be transplanted. But what would it be like living in one and how would civilizations based inside them in the future tend to operate?
The Moon is covered in vast numbers of craters, some larger than entire Earth-based Nations, which may serve as dome habitats for humanity's future space colonies. But what would a crater city colony be like?
Artificial Intelligence, while still limited to only the most simplistic computers and robots, is beginning to emerge and will only grow smarter. Can humanity survive it's own creations and learn to coexist with them?
According to modern cosmology, one day all the stars will burn out and the Universe will be full of dead planets, black holes, and other stellar remnants, slowing decaying till entropy brings the Heat Death of the Universe. But could this fate be postponed or even reversed?
Climate Change can occur from many sources, natural or manmade. In order to handle these problems we may wish to utilize many of the technologies we've developed for future space exploration, colonization, and terraforming.
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, February 23, 2020, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Genetic Engineering and DNA alteration is an emerging technology with huge ramifications in the future, including potentially altering the DNA of adult humans, not just embryos or plants & animals.
A brief look at the life and work of Physicist and Mathematician Freeman Dyson.
The Zoo Hypothesis is a Fermi Paradox solution that assumes extraterrestrial civilizations can't be detected by our SETI efforts because they keep our whole world in an Alien Zoo.
Our future in space will require immense industry and infrastructure as we colonize out solar system and beyond. But how will those industries affect that colonization, and what form might an interplanetary civilization take from that influence?
Could Earth be home to a trillion people, or even more? We'll explore if we can do this with current technology, what future technologies would help, and what such a planet-wide city, an Ecumenopolis, might be like.
We often speculate that the reason we can't hear aliens civilizations is because our SETI efforts (the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) relies on radio and telescopes to weak to hear them. But how plausible is that? and what would it tell us about our own future?
Science fiction loves to take us to desolate alien worlds with low-gravity, and envision creatures evolved to those or humans adapted to those conditions or zero-gravity in space, and many planets we might one day colonize like Mars do have low gravity... but our assumptions about life on such places correct or what if we're making incorrect assumptions?
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, March 29, 2020, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Every day brings us new technological advances, today we'll explore many of those of such as robotics, automation, rapid delivery, education, medical science, nanotechnology, and more.
We often see science as an eternal march forward, but could a society stop advancing, either by choice or by running out own new things to discover.
Science Fiction has long contemplated the idea that alien life not based on carbon chemistry such as silicon might exist on distant and strange worlds, or might be made to exist advanced biological engineering. What would such life be like?
The other side of the coin to all the new & future wonders we produce is what to do with them when they're old or broken. Today we examine the future of garbage, waste, and recycling.
The future of humanity might be one of unrivaled prosperity - a post-scarcity civilization - of abundant power, advanced automation and robotics, and sophisticated artificial intelligence helping boost efficiency to all economic sectors. But what would such an economy look like, and what challenges might we face getting there?
As humanity reaches out to the stars and make new homes on strange new worlds, how will our genetics & DNA change under those alien planets?
In the future we might see the rise of minds entirely on computers, be it uploaded humans, transhumans, or artificial intelligence. But what would such an existence be like? Would they interact with our world or live in entirely virtual realities or simulated universes?
Parallel Universes, Multiverses, Alternate Timeline & Realities are the focus of many theories of physics and popular science & science fiction.
Ancient cultures long thought the Sun had a mind of it's own, but could life form in stars by nature or exist by artificial origins, and what would star with a mind of its own be like?
Antimatter represents both the most powerful weapon and most powerful fuel for a future humanity, if we can ever learn to make it efficiently and store it safely.
Science fiction often shows us seemingly benevolent aliens whose UFOs come in peace then turn out to have sinister motives and hidden conspiracies, but what would a genuinely friendly group of extraterrestrials be like?
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, May 31, 2020, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Jupiter is an enormous gas giant, more massive than all the other planets in the solar system combined... and yet small compared to our Sun and other Stellar Objects. Could Jupiter be turned into a second sun via advanced technology?
As ancient and vast as the Universe is, it seems like some alien race arose in the galaxy long before us, but who rose before them? What would the cosmos be like for the first civilization to arise, and what if it is us?
Artificial Intelligence seems nearer everyday, and many people worry about a conflict between us and robots & computer minds, but what would life be like After AI?
As we head out into space we can expect to see crimes and a need for laws and someone to enforce them. Today we'll examine the notion of Space Police and future crime and law enforcement.
Graphene, Carbon Nanotubes, and other hyper-strong materials have generated great interest in recent years, but how do they actually work and what will their impact on our future be?
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, June 28, 2020, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Mankind's future is among the stars, but not necessarily on other planets. Instead we might forge giant space stations that are entire artificial worlds, and today we'll explore some of those megastructure designs, like the McKendree Cylinder, Bishop Rings, Banks Orbital, Topopolis, and more.
Science fiction loves to show us disembodied heads or brains floating in jars, but could this be one route to extending our lives? Or could you already be one living in false reality?
Our future lies out among the planets and stars, but to climb out in to space we must take many steps to get off, and today we'll look at those first steps to becoming spacefaring species. From cheaper rockets & space stations to asteroid mining & defense to space tourism & commercialization, we've a long road ahead, but we have a roadmap.
Our solar system contains many planets, moons, and asteroid that we may one day call home, but the future might instead be artificial space habitats, stations, and megastructures of vast size and numbers, using all those celestial bodies as raw materials to be dismantled for construction.
If the Universe is inhabited by older alien civilizations, those who have ventured out to the stars and colonized galaxies, we would expect to see a footprint of extraterrestrial activity. Could the many stars whose brightness has dimmed be indicative of Dyson Spheres or other Megastructures? Could the Cosmic Voids vastly bigger than any galaxy be the work of even greater and older starfaring species?
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, July 26, 2020, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Science fiction often shows us post-apocalyptic future civilizations with techno-barbarians running around in fur & hides but carrying laser weapons or other advanced technology. But how plausible is such a civilizations and what would it actually be like?
Superconductors offer us a path to high-efficiency, low-loss power and energy, but the impact they'll have on our civilization through other technologies may be far greater, and we'll explore the science or superconductivity works and what future technology it will of us.
Our future in space may be one of millions or even trillions of vast space station, space habitats, and megastructures. How would a space-faring civilization going about traveling around such an immense solar empire?
The Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence, SETI, relies on looking for signals from distant alien worlds where even very powerful signals can weaken to near nothing. We'll explore today how we, or extraterrestrials, might get around this problem, be it by immense star-powered transmitters or by using laser communication beams. Part 2 on The Exoplanets Channel: https://youtu.be/04AIXj78nJ0 Part 3 with Parallax Nick: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iim--...
One possible solution to the Fermi Paradox, the big question of where all the aliens are, is that some ancient galactic disaster wiped out extraterrestrial civilizations, and we're among the first to arrive back on the spacefaring scene.
Over the centuries humanity has tried many versions of government and many variations on each type, today we will examine how technology and space colonization might impact what types of governments we use in the future.
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, August 30, 2020, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Spaceships and fleets of the future may host their own unique civilizations of nomads, traveling the space lanes or venturing deep into interstellar space to colonize the galaxy or flee peril. What would such cultures be like?
To travel to other planets, we will first have to build up are infrastructure closer to home, in orbit of Earth. The best place to get all the mass for those space stations and rocket fuel depots is from the Moon, and we'll examine the milestones we'll need to reach to start lunar resource harvesting and building up space settlements.
Asteroids represent a serious hazard to Earth, past, present, and future, but will be even more of a concern to humanity as we venture out to space beyond beyond our atmosphere's protection. We will explore what technologies and methods may be available to help protect us from asteroids.
Nuclear Fission was once hailed as the solution to our power & energy needs, but has grown unpopular of fears of radiation, meltdowns, and radioactive waste. However, advances in science and reactor design may make atomic energy safer and more attractive in the future.
The genesis and origin of life may require a very rare and delicate mixture of certain chemicals. One of those is phosphorus, and trying to figure out how we ever got enough of it in Earth's primordial soup for life to form in the first place has long puzzled scientists. We will also discuss the recent discovery of Phosphine Gas in Venus's Atmosphere
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, September 27, 2020, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
It's been over half a century since we first went to the Moon, and nearly as long since we last went. To Return to the Moon we need a base with a purpose, and we'll look at what purposes we have in mind and what the bases might be like as we head back to establish a Lunar Colony.
Science Fiction delights in showing us grim, dark, giant, and dystopian future cities of covered in garbage and where life is cheap, but how realistic are such metropolises and how can we avoid living in them?
Recently the Military released Navy footage of 3 separate UFO or UAP - unidentified aerial phenomena - we will review that footage and consider both mundane explanations and the not-so-mundane, like secret projects, extraterrestrial origins, and what it might indicate about the technology and motivations of such alien civilizations if they are visitors from out in the galaxy.
We typically imagine interstellar civilizations as vastly superior in technology to modern times, but could the future see planets colonized by spaceships little better than our modern ones? Could some alien worlds allow space travel to develop far sooner and easier than it did on Earth? Or could civilizations abandon more advanced technology?
To become an Interplanetary Species we need to colonize another planet, and Mars will be our first target. To establish a base there, and a future settlement, we need to get their first, so we will also examine the Aldrin Cycler, a type of spacecraft that may make traveling to other worlds far easier.
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, October 25, 2020, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Aliens are portrayed in Science Fiction both as our potential saviors and best friends, as well as the stuff of nightmares. Would an extraterrestrial civilization be benevolent or terrifying, and how would we seem to them?
The Kardashev Scale measures how powerful a high-tech civilization is, with K-1 indicating a advanced society able to call on all the power of their planet, which we often envision as a Post-Scarcity Utopia. Is this the future of Humanity? And if so, how can we achieve it?
Establishing Interstellar Trade and Commerce in the future will require an entirely new approach to moving cargo, as years if not centuries might pass for shipments to arrive by even the fastest spaceships, but may be aided by the use of vast interstellar Cycler Castles traveling on century long trade routes.
One solution to the Fermi Paradox, the big question of where all the aliens are, is that extraterrestrials might hide from us to avoid altering our society, a concept we see in Star Trek called the Prime Directive. Is such a policy ethical, and if so, should we follow it?
Asteroids represent a threat to Earth, but in the future they may be a boon, serving as sources of vast wealth and resources, and as orbital settlements and keystones of interplanetary trade.
In order to colonize space, we will need colonists willing to travel to desolate planets, moons, and asteroids to settle those worlds. What would life be like as a pioneer to the alien frontier?
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, November 29, 2020, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
The last century has been one of awesome and often terrifying technological progress, and the next century offers as many wonders and terrors for us to navigate into our future.
As we venture out into space to colonize new planets, moons, and asteroids, how will these new settlements grow from simple outposts in to developed worlds with cities and civilizations all their own?
Our galaxy likely contains trillions of worlds, and perhaps none we could live on without great effort to make them like Earth. To colonize these worlds, to make them settlements for our descendants in the future, we must first terraform them.
Navigating the vast ocean of the galaxy to reach distant stars will be no easy matter, but future spaceships may find many new difficulties finding their way throughout space, and also throughout time.
Kardashev-2 Civilizations are hypothetical empires which encompass entire stars, with access to billions of times the energy Earth has, often seen as builders of megastructures like Dyson Spheres. But could civilizations with only the technology we have become Kardashev-2?
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, December 27, 2020, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
As we move into space we prepare not just to settle the Moon and Mars, but stretch our reach out to other stars and settle the galaxy, becoming an interstellar species.
Our Universe is billions of years older than our planet, and we often contemplate alien civilizations that might have arisen early than us in our galaxy, but just how early could life have arisen?
Cryonic freezing offers a pathway to reap future medical technologies today by preserving someone for future restoration, but what would the impact of this technology be on civilization?
Machines may help bring about a Post-Scarcity Utopia, assuming they don't take over instead, and we dream of a future that is a Post-Scarcity Utopia, but its dark reflection is the Post-Discontent society, one where through deception or brainwashing people do not even known how they are being deprived or oppressed.
Water is one of the most common substances in the Universe, and Earth has far more seas than land and life arose in the ocean first. Planets covered entirely in water may be common and abundant with life, including intelligence extraterrestrial life.
For every yellow star like our own there are ten times as many smaller stars. Red Dwarfs are the most common type of star, outnumbering all the others combined, and as we head out into interstellar space to colonize the galaxy, the exoplanets around these red alien suns may be the most common home for settlers.
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, January 31, 2021, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Colonizing space and settling the minor planets and asteroids may mean adjusting to much lower levels of gravity, or micro-gravity, what sort of biological and cultural adaptations might that require of humanity?
Dark Matter is both the most abundant and most mysterious substance in the Universe, what properties does it have and what technologies might we create to use it in the future?
Science Fiction often shows us aliens and human living among one another in space, but how realistic are such portrayals and what sort of accommodation would extraterrestrials need for their environments? We will also ask if humans and aliens could live together, possibly even marry and have hybrid offspring.
They say you should always attack from the high ground, and there's no higher ground than from orbit. Today we'll examine orbital strikes, asteroid bombardment, kinetic weapons, dropships, and how to defend from them.
Giant Stars are often considered too hot and short lived to colonize, but it may be that they shall be the most powerful and pivotal systems in a future galaxy.
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, February 28, 2021, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Future battlefields will employ ever-more technology, whether that battlefield is on earth, in the sea, in space, or in cyberspace. Today we will examine the roles robots, drones, artificial intelligence, armored suits, and nanotech may play in the future of war.
When the largest of stars dies, the supernova they produce can outshine a whole galaxy, and potentially sterilize vast swathes of space. Future civilizations will need to be able to prevent or mitigate such events, though some might seek to artificially ignite a nova.
Our future in the galaxy is typically envisioned as tied to the stars, be it on planets orbiting them or vast megastructures fueled by the alien suns, and yet the true future of humanity might be to dwell in the vast gulfs between the stars or even in a galaxy in which those stars have ceased to exist.
Perhaps the most sought after technology is not the ability to extend life, but to restore it once it is gone. We will examine the technological options that may be available to us in the future.
In the future we may encounter or create minds equal to our own, smarter, or somewhere in the gap between human and animal. And yet we still barely understand what concepts like intelligence and sentience truly are.
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, March 28, 2021, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
In the future we will rely ever more on Artificial Intelligence to run our civilization, but what role will AI and computers playing in governing?
Drake's Equation lies at the core of the Fermi Paradox and SETI, the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence, but is it a good guide in our search for aliens, and what does modern astronomy tell us about the probabilities of finding life on exoplanets?
In the future, medical science may increase lifespan and longevity to the point of near-immortality, but what would be the effects of such technology on our civilization.
In the future technology may help us enjoy prosperity beyond our dreams, with robots manufacturing our goods and attending all our needs but one... our need for purpose.
As Humanity moves into the future, traveling to other worlds and exploring genetics, AI, transhumanism, and cybernetics, we may begin to diverge into a thousand post-human species.
The Fermi Paradox contemplates the weirdness of our galaxy seemingly being devoid of intelligent alien life, but Many Worlds Theory, Multiverses, Parallel Universe, and Alternate Realities may radically alter our thinking on Aliens & SETI.
In the future Biotechnology may allows us repair, modify, or augment humans, but how will this be done? What will these technologies look like and should we embrace them?
One day humanity might make contact with an alien race, but will we be able to understand their languages?
Science fiction amazes us with futuristic technology and weapons, but many like the laser pistol, raygun, or lightsaber seem high-tech versions of old tech. Are such weapons possible and if so, could they have a role in future warfare?
There's a great debate of whether our next step into space should be a permanent Moon Base or our first manned mission to Mars.
Nuclear power is a controversial source of energy, seen by some as a miracle source of clean and abundant power, and by others as a source of radioactive waste and danger. But with new generations of safer reactors and alternate options like breeder reactors and thorium, is it time to embrace nuclear power?
Fusion is the power of the stars, and if we can master it, we will be able to send our spaceships to others stars.
The Universe is immense. Does it have an edge out beyond the Cosmological Event Horizon? Or in time, before the Big Bang? Or in higher dimensions like Hyperspace?
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us 4pm EST, Sunday, August 29, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Teaming up with the machines we’ve designed and created has boosted our production and let us attempt things we never could have before, but as Artificial Intelligence emerges, what will Human-Machine Teaming come to look like?
Megastructures of the future may range in size from cities to entire galaxies, and must be built to withstand damage and time, but how is this done and what happens when a megastructure dies?
Many dream of a future with lots of money, other where currency is a thing of the past, a prosperous post-scarcity civilization, but could such a future be possible and what would a society without money be like?
Advances in farming have let us feed billions. The future of agriculture offers many more innovations in robotics, hydroponics, aquaponics, aeroponics, greenhouses, and more… but will it be a future of mega-farms or small farms?
We often imagine that our planet might be a sentient entity - Gaia - but could something like this evolve under known science? And might a conscious world be something we might create in the future?
Science Fiction often shows us aliens who look much like humans, and suggest this is a result of convergent evolution to useful traits. But is such convergence to the human form or mind likely with extraterrestrial life?
One day humanity might find itself competition on the galactic stage, and need to flee aliens, artificial intelligence, or even other humans. How could the escape pursuit and survive the long exodus to safety?
Telepathy and other psychic abilities have often been investigated by science, but could the future offer humanity such talents, and is science they key to unlocking or creating them?
In the Future, we may use nuclear bombs to help turn dead worlds into living ones, in this episode we'll discuss several different methods of atomic terraforming.
Getting into space is difficult, but it may be that other worlds have even harder times at it than we do, imprisoned by orbital debris, high gravity, or even being quarantined by other civilizations.
In the future humanity will look to build new lives out among the stars, forging new worlds and megastructures for us to live on. But what about deep sea ecologies and aquatic life? What sort of habitats might we design for them?
The future may see advancements in claytronics, memory metals, and catoms to allow shapeshifting materials that can take on any form and perform any job - possibly even taking on human for itself.
In the future we will journey to new worlds, but how will we travel around on them?
As computer has improved at an accelerating rate for generations now, fears of some emergent super intelligent computer mind have grown, but is such a Technological Singularity Inevitable, and can we survive it?
Science Fiction often shows us alien civilizations so advanced they are godlike, but how realistic are they, and what would such entities be like?
We believe Mars may once have had oceans and sky, but lost them from a lack of a magnetosphere. How does this happen and how can we create a magnetosphere for Mars so we can terraform and live on it?
One day humanity might journey to new worlds and settle them, or discover life already on them, but first we'll have to find those exoplanets under aliens suns.
In the future humanity may build enormous structures, feats of mega-engineering that may rival planets or even be of greater scope. This episode catalogs roughly 100 major types of Megastructure, from those that are cities in space to those that rival galaxies.
We continue our discussion of surveying for habitable exoplanets by touring our possible option for interstellar probes, dumb and smart, flyby and protracted orbital.
Science Fiction has shown us humanity exploring the stars at hundreds of times faster than light speed, but what if the fastest ships we can make never even reach a hundredth of light speed? Can we still settle the galaxy and what will that colonization entail?
Every known planet, moon, and asteroid in our solar system occupies a volume of space both enormous and yet tiny compared to the vast empty gulf between stars. But interstellar space isn't truly empty and may one day be home to countless billion of isolated deep space habitats.
The great mystery of where all the aliens are in our vast Universe contemplates ancient interstellar civilizations building enormous megastructures that rival worlds or even stars in the immensity… and asks why we can't see these giant alien artifacts.
Black Holes and Dark Matter are two of those mysterious things in the Universe, but could black holes be the key to unlocking the secrets of Dark Matter?
Our monthly livestream Q&A session. Join us on 4pm EST, on the last Sunday of each month, and get your questions about the channel and episodes on chat to be answered!
Aliens may one day visit Earth not to invade us but to seek refuge from an invasion or other calamity, how can we respond and should we?
We often wonder where all the aliens are out in the galaxy, but could it be that the technologies needed to get to space and travel the stars lead to inevitable catastrophe?
An Alien Invasion of Earth is a terrifying scenario, yet science fiction rarely has good reason for those invasions. Today we'll discuss the worst reasons aliens invade in fiction and some plausible scenarios for why they might do it in fact.
Temporal Paradox and Time Travel delight us in science fiction, but what would a war across time really look like?
To get into space in a big way we need to be able to move vast amounts of people and cargo to space at a fraction of modern costs; tethered rings offer a potentially practical path to do that using only modern technology.
The idea that some mimic might steal your identity and replace you, or takeover your mind, is terrifying. But could we encounter aliens that were able to do this?
Kardashev Civilizations are beyond immense, with even the first tier of them making any modern nation look miniscule, and there are many barriers to becoming one.
For centuries now science has unlocked ever more mysteries, but could we one day run out of discoveries or abandon further research?
The new Grabby Aliens model proposes that the Universe may already contain several thousand immense alien empires... and that we may soon be one of them.
Saturn's moon Titan captures our attention as a future colony, but might the majestic rings of Saturn and other planetary rings be better places to transplant life, and could life arise naturally among those orbital icefields?
One day our destiny may take us to the stars, but what happens if we find we are unable, or unwilling, to journey to new worlds, and remain only on Earth?
Among the uncounted stars in this Universe there may be unnumbered strange new worlds, many of which may have environments unlike anything we've ever imagined.
Many of us dream of one day owning our on spacecraft, of traveling to space and other worlds when we choose to. What technologies must the future deliver to make this dream a reality?
Spaceships getting damaged or crashing is common story in science fiction but it's also terrifyingly common with real spaceships. So what do we if our spaceship gets damaged?
Our monthly livestream Q&A session for Sunday, October 30, 2022, where we take questions live from the audience.
One day our Sun will go Red Gant and consuming our world, and yet, it may be possible to extend our Sun's life almost indefinitely, trillions upon trillions of years.
Many fear that future automation may turn out to be the bane of civilization rather than its liberator. How do we ensure we take the path to a prosperous world and not one of ruin?
As we head through hard times things can seem rather bleak, but there's lots of amazing and beneficial technologies on the horizon.
One day we may get a signal from beyond Earth, positive proof of the Existence of Extraterrestrial L
As we continue to scan the heavens for signs of intelligent life, we must contemplate what it might mean if we are the first civilization to ever arise.
Wars in the future may involve vast interplanetary conflicts or civil wars sprawling over an entire world or more, but what will those wars look like?
One day humanity might settle the Red Planet, but how will we grow food on world more barren than any desert or tundra on Earth?
Could our entire Universe be one enormous Black Hole? And is it possible to live inside a black hole?
In the future, humanity may embrace genetic engineering and cybernetic augmentation of mind and body, but what does this Transhuman future look like? And should we embrace or resist these paths?
Planets under twin suns have fascinated us since we saw Luke Skywalker peer out at a sunset of binaries in Star Wars, but what would such star systems and worlds truly be like?
In this Nebula Exclusive we examine how feasible bulk transport and trade ships are in space.
Explore what science tells us about free will and consciousness in a quantum universe, including Sir Roger Penrose's theory of Orchestrated Objective Reduction.
Could something in the future alter the past, so that effect came before cause? Does quantum mechanics truly allow this as often hinted?
Mining asteroids is often seen as one of the best pathways for brining humanity into space, but what will life be like for those intrepid miners who journey out into space to find their fortunes?
In the ancient past, before the first stars formed, all was darkness and the Universe was a very different place, but there may have been strange dark stars in that primordial era at the beginning of time.
Space is enormous, to cross it will requires spaceships able to reach high fractions of light speed. What options do we have under known science?
In an attempt to avoid doomsdays, some folks will flee for the hills, but at the galactic scale, could this be the answer to the Great Silence?
As we seek to travel vast distances to claim the galaxy, we will need to develop strategies and methods for voyaging through deep space and reaching strange new worlds.
A day may come when our technology permits vast prosperity for everyone, with robots and other automation producing plenty, but if that day never comes, what will life be like?
When we look up into the night skies, all we see is absence and silence, but could our galaxy be a dark forest full of hidden predators waiting to consume us?
The Omega Point Cosmological Theory argues that it may be possible to continue existing until the End of Time itself.
Current theory says the dinosaurs came to an end when a giant asteroid from space crashed into Earth, wouldn’t it be ironic then if we sent asteroids out from Earth into deep space to colonize other worlds?
A recording of SFIA's monthly livestream Q&A session [#51] from January 29, 2023.
Once we journey out to the stars, we will need to forge new worlds to live on. Choosing the best terraforming techniques for each planet and star system will be vital to surviving on alien worlds.
Our telescopes find new exoplanets and reveal deeper details about them everyday, unveiling massive hydrogen-rich atmosphere planets and icy worlds which may be able to harbor life even far from any star.
Alpha Centauri may be the closest star system to us, but reaching it will be the voyage of a lifetime.
Powerful new technologies are helping us learn more about our past, uncovering lost cities and recreating documents that time destroyed.
Many speculate that the world isn't real, that it a dream or simulation, but if it is, how to we get out of it or control it?
In order to reach the stars we will need vastly more powerful engines for our spacecraft than modern rockets offer. Fortunately, when it comes to possible ship drives, the sky is not the limit.
Our galaxy is a dangerous place for life. A vast storm of stars in which new ones are born and die in deadly displays. How much of the galaxy is truly safe for life to emerge in?
Science fiction often shows us dark, grimy, dystopian mega-cities in the future, but are such planet-wide cities possible, what would they be like, and how many people could they hold?
Our monthly livestream Q&A session recorded on Sunday June 25, 2023, at 4pm EST.
Humanity has often preferred to move its communities, and in the future we might do that by moving our entire cities, by air, sea, or land.
Robots play an ever greater role in every aspect of our lives, including the battlefield, but what will their role be in the wars of the future?
The ability to get a strike force anywhere and fast is of vast strategic value, and the future may dropships landing anywhere on a planet within minutes.
Our monthly livestream Q&A session recorded on Sunday July 30, 2023, at 4pm EST.
A Space Elevator on the Moon, made of mundane materials, could be built with modern technology, and allow ultra-cheap freight off the Moon.
Eons from now the last stars will be born, living trillions of years before they too fade out, and in the gathering darkness will come the final sunset on the last planet.
In the future we may deploy armies of cybernetic superhumans to fight our battles, people so augmented they could tear through walls or dodge bullets. But would these invincible warriors be willing to fight for mundane humans, or merely fight each other to rule us?
Comets have awed, amazed, and even terrified humanity for thousands of years, with many believing they heralded the end of the world, but could they be the key to reaching and creating new worlds?
Humanity has evolved in the face of much hardship and turmoil, and invented technologies to aid us, but could an end to hardships be our undoing and cause us to devolve?
Our monthly livestream Q&A session recorded on 57: August 27, 2023 at 4pm EST.
Many millennia from now we may have journeyed out to colonize billions and billions of planets in our galaxy, but every journey has to start somewhere.
We often dream of a future out in the galaxy, exploring and settling strange new worlds under the light of alien suns, but what would living in space truly be like?
They say space is the future, out among the countless billions and billions of new worlds in our galaxy, but a journey needs a path or road, so what sort of roads will we build in space?
They say space is the future, out among the countless billions and billions of new worlds in our galaxy, but a journey needs a path or road, so what sort of roads will we build in space?
The cosmos seem silent and empty of any great interstellar empires, but perhaps they once existed, and if so, what titanic ruins might they have left behind?
Science fiction has popularized asteroid mining and cities in the sky, but could the future of mining be in cloud cities hanging far above distant worlds?
Space is often called the final frontier, a place of billions and billions of worlds awaiting explorers and pioneers. But what will those journeys be like, and what gear will people need for them, and perhaps most importantly of all, what sort of people will make those travels?
A collection of the first 20 Shorts from SFIA, covering a wide range of topics in science & space.
The industrial revolution saw the rise of factories so big they often grew entire towns or cities around them to operate, but in the future entire planets might be used to fuel the titanic projects for conquering the stars themselves.
In some of our greatest wars on this world we have seen entire regions covered in fortifications, but in great wars across whole regions of our galaxy, could we see entire planets fortified?
Our penultimate monthly livestream Q&A session recorded on Sunday, October 29, 2023, at 4pm EST.
Throughout history it has been common for distant colonies to break away from their homeland. In a future where colonies are entire planets and light years from home, shall history repeat itself?
In the grand theater of the cosmos, amidst a myriad of distant suns and ancient galaxies, the Fermi Paradox presents a haunting silence, where a cacophony of alien conversations should exist. Where is Everyone? Or are we alone?
As we search the heavens for signs of alien life, is it possible that the easiest place to find aliens is to look in the mirror?
Among the billions and billions of planets and moons in this galaxy, we may encounter many examples of double planets, but what would they be like and could life arise on them?
In this bonus companion video for The Plan For After SETI Is Successful, we'll examine the current SETI methodologies for hunting for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, there limitations, and how they might be updated or added to.
In order to survive and thrive in space, we have to be able to create and maintain clean and comfortable living spaces, and remain vigilant nothing disease or virus reaches Earth.
In the past, we had entire civilizations devoted to agriculture, but in the future, we might have entire planets devoted to it.
In science fiction we often see immense starships attacking planets, crushing or besieging them, but in our own future we may deploy powerful orbital fortresses to defend our world.
In the future we will travel to strange new worlds, but who will pilot the spaceships that take us there?
Many doubt whether existence has any purpose or meaning, but could entirely civilizations become nihilistic. Would this spell their doom? And if not, what would they be like?
What does science tell us about reality and are there pathways to control, change, or re-create it?
In the grandeur of the universe, the tapestry of life may be woven from stranger threads than we ever dared to dream, and spun from materials far different to our own.
We often discuss if space travel is feasible and if we can settle strange new worlds, but if we can, there is still the question of if we will.
Our future lies among the stars, and many challenges must be overcome to reach them. One of those challenges is making sure our ships don’t crash into our own garbage littering orbit.
Our Final monthly livestream Q&A session recorded on New Year's Eve Sunday, December 31, 2023
Sci-fi thrills us with enormous space monsters and Kaiju, but could the galaxy already be home to such leviathans?
In the ancient past, civilization arose around long rivers that took weeks to travel down, but in the future we might build civilizations around rivers that were billions of miles long on a type of Megastructure known as a Topopolis.
Crystals are not alive, but mimic life in many ways including growing. And yet, on distant alien planets, could life have grown based on crystals?
It can be hard to hear a signal 100 miles away, so what does it take to make a beacon loud enough to hear 100,000 light years away?
To watch and guard and monitor a world for millions of years, or simply to keep a single person's house running, we may use machine sentinels & assistants, but how do we ensure they do their job?
In order to succeed in space, we must be able to produce as much as possible on-site, or ‘in situ’, but what are the most critical resources to harvest and how do we do it?
In the future we may use caretaker AI or even modified humans to care for cities, artificial habitats, ecosystems, or even whole worlds.
Reaching new worlds is a difficult task, but transplanting ecosystem and civilizations to them may be even harder.
A look at Statites, or Static Satellites, and variations like the Lagite, Quasite, Mag Sail, Solar Moth, and Non-Keplerian Orbits that offer us powerful foundations for advanced, Kardashev-scale space development.
Uplifting is the process of altering an animal - or even an alien - to be smarter or able to use technology. Our ability to do this seem inevitable, and with it a host of moral dilemmas.
We often worry that humanity might be attacked by Aliens or AI, but which is worse and which would win in a battle between them?
For us to live and build communities in space we will need law and order, but who will make the rules, what should they be, and what sheriff will see that the law is enforced?
Lagrange Points are the rare oases, stationary islands in space. As a result, they are invaluable real estate where we can build vast space habitats.
In a future so distant that all has decayed to nothingness and time itself ceases to exist, might this eternal moment of oblivion bring on a fiery resurrection to all of space and time?
The galaxy is a harsh place full of desolate and barren planets, but some worlds may be so deadly they actively seek to kill those who dare to travel to them.
In the future we will not simply travel to visit new worlds but seek to build homes and forge lives on them. So what would being a pioneer in space truly be like?
Until recently a planet-wide state of quarantine seemed almost unimaginable, but in the future could entire planets be quarantined from the rest of space, and what dreadful causes could necessitate such measures?
Black holes are objects of mystery and dread from which nothing can escape… but could they also be the foundations of future civilizations of unimaginable might and size.
We have gazed upon the Moon with wonder since the dawn of humanity, and named its craters as seas, but could those become true seas one day?
Vacuum Trains and other low pressure rail & maglev systems offer the possibility of ultra-fast and ultra-cheap transport on and off of Earth.
The vast gulfs between stars may take decades or even centuries to travel, requiring enormous generation ships carrying families and whole ecosystems with them. What will life be like on board such arks?
Our world is ancient, but the Universe is far older. What were those first planets like, and how soon can life emerge on new ones?
In the future we may be able to claim new worlds and forge them into paradises, but should we?
A look at the possible effects of alien food, drink, and microbes on us or our ecosystem.
The Red Planet beckons us toward it, and the day draws closer when humans will walk on its dusty surface, and the moons of Mars, Phobos & Deimos, may be our gateway to that future.
As ever more automation works its way into our legal system and courts, we must ask what challenges and advantages AI has in justice, and if AI will come to be our judge and jury.
Life is incredibly complicated, but for most of Earth’s history it was much simpler. Is it possible the Universe is full of planets with very simple life, and complex organisms are rare?
Black Holes can swallow anything, even light, and small black holes made from light itself may offer us abundant clean energy and a pathway to the stars.
One day humanity may settle countless worlds, but could any nation hope to govern multiple planets or even star systems?
Space offers a variety of clean and abundant sources of power, but how can we get them down to Earth? And which are safe and economical?
We often worry that the reason we hear nothing in our search for extraterrestrial intelligence is that travel to other stars is just too hard, but what if a civilization decides it’s just too dangerous to allow?
The galaxy is an immense and mysterious place we may one day explore and settle, but for now, we have only one planet, and the galaxy holds many dangers, so what can we do to defend Earth?
We are fascinated by portals between worlds, gateways between stars, wormholes through the fabric of reality, but could these be real, and if so, what would the civilizations using them be like?
Beneath the surface of the Moon lie vast underground caverns, some of which are miles long and wider than football fields, and they may make for excellent settlement sites.
Stars give warmth and light to planets and make life possible, until they run out of fuel and die themselves, but could these dead stars still enable life to dwell around them?
There are billion of binary star systems in our galaxy, including many of those stars closest to us. Can such systems host life, and what would it be like to live under two suns?
The Banks Orbital is a ring-shaped Space Habitat over a million miles across with hundreds of times more living area than the entire Earth.
We often look out into the galaxy and wonder where all the civilizations are, but could it be that we don't see them because they have all chosen to exist in fortress star systems, surrounded by despoiled deserts of their own making?
We often imagine encountering many alien civilizations, and establishing trade and relationships with them, but what would being an alien ambassador be like?
One day our civilization may settle our whole galaxy, with mighty star empires consisting of millions if not billions of worlds, but what would the centers of such empires be like?
We think very highly of the human brain, after all, it's what lets us think about anything in the first place, but Nature is vast, and our primate brains are not the end-all and be-all of neural engineering.
One day we may settle thousands of planets and trade between them, but what would a space freighter be like, who would crew them, and what would they carry?
Ganymede is an enormous moon, larger than any other we’ve found, including our own, and may one day be the centerpiece of wider human settlements around Jupiter.
We all dream of a future in space, but it will take a lot of work to get there and more to make it a place we can visit and live. Of course, where there’s work to be done, there’s jobs to be had.
Many fear future technologies may doom our civilization, but could the pursuit of technology, and civilization itself, be what dooms humanity?
The galaxy has many stars orbited by many planets, and many of these are orbited by immense icy moons, but could others have oceans on their surface, or even life?
As we reach out to the stars and settle other worlds, could we find or create ones even better for humanity than Earth?
What if dinosaurs have survived the asteroid impact? Could we have seen a shared dino-mammal ecology, or even intelligent dinosaurs?
Earth is immense, but we only live on a thin shell of its surface. So what if we built a planet with only that thin shell, or with several layers of them?
An extended exploration of what science tells us about free will and consciousness in a quantum universe, including Sir Roger Penrose's theory of Orchestrated Objective Reduction.
The dangers of artificial intelligence have long loomed in our future, and seem ever closer. But it may be that the dangers of the future can reach back into the past itself, and even without a time machine.
We often contemplate cyborgs, people enhanced by machines, but what would a civilization built upon cybernetics be like?
Space is huge, immense beyond our wildest dreams. In order to explore and settle it, we’ll need to learn to dream a lot bigger and bolder than ever before.
When listen to void of space, we hear no alien signals, but could the galaxy be quiet because ancient empires slumber inside it?
Our universe is a strange place, with underlying rules we’re only just beginning to understand, but could the strangest thing of all about our Universe be that we are able to live here to observe it in the first place?
We often try to distinguish between what is alive and what is a machine, and note that machines can't reproduce or fix themselves, but that may soon change.
We so often hear of mining asteroids, but the Moon outmasses every known asteroid combined dozens of times over again, and is closer to Earth too. So what would life be like mining on the Moon?
Join us for a journey to a new world, as we explore what it would be like to lead a colony mission.
We often wonder where all the vast and ancient alien civilizations are, but could it be that they've migrated far away in space or time, or even journeyed beyond our cosmos?
Many believe humanity's climb upward may have been assisted by outsiders. Is this possible, and if so, what does that tell us about our own past... and future?
Technology has shaped our civilization as it grew down the centuries, and since the industrial revolution, each new generation seems defined by some new technological revolution… So what will the next revolution be?
In the future, fleets of unimaginable scope may battle over light years, in conflicts that might last milliseconds or entire centuries.
Could something in the future alter the past, so that effect came before cause? Does quantum mechanics truly allow this, as often hinted?
The Moon is barren and lifeless, but as we return to the Moon and settle there permanently, might we transform the brightest jewel in our sky into a glittering emerald full of life?
In the future, we may colonize other planets or build artificial worlds for people to life on, but some may choose a nomadic life on spaceships instead.
The Library of Babel is repository of every book ever written... if you can find it.
One day we will journey to the Red Planet and perhaps settle there, but what great civilizations and cities will emerge on the red sands?
In the future we may have technologies sufficiently advanced that they are indistinguishable from magic, but could those civilizations also be indistinguishable from primitive ones?
Many seek a path to enlightenment through study and meditation, but what does science tell us about transcendence? And could entire civilizations seek to leave this reality behind?
Technology brings us many wonders, but it may also bring about the end of our privacy. What, if anything, can we do to protect it?
We often envision filling space with vast megastructures people might live on in the future, and mining asteroids to provide the materials for their construction, but what would life as an Asteroid Miner be like?
One of Earth’s most unique features is the enormous gemstone in our sky we call the Moon, but could the Moon be the reason why we even exist?
Explore the challenges and possibilities of colonizing Io, Jupiter's volcanic moon, as we delve into the extreme conditions, scientific innovations, and potential for human settlement on one of the most hostile environments in our solar system.
Fungus and Protista are far more ancient than animal life, and far more varied in form. So could alien fungi be more common in the galaxy, and might it spread through space by spores?
Humanity has often lived with one foot on land and the other in the sea, but in the future, we may build our homes in the seas, here and on other worlds.
We can imagine civilizations enduring for thousands or even millions of years, but if they can’t keep an accurate record of their own past for that long, can that civilization truly claim it endured all those eons?
We often contemplate superintelligent entities, and advances in AI and human mind augmentation may soon bring them about. But how big could they get? What would they think about? And might you, or I, one day become one ourselves?
The universe is beyond immense, and yet it might be nothing more than a tiny dot beside the rest of reality.
Today the channel has reached 100,000 subscribers and to celebrate that we'll take a look back at the channel's origins and thank some of the folks who've helped the channel grow. Our regularly scheduled episode will still appear Thursday morning.
Every year Project for Awesome runs a charity drive for many causes that viewers can vote for, with funds allocated to those which receive more votes. To vote for this video go to: http://www.projectforawesome.com/watc... This year SFIA is participating to help raise funds for the SENS Research Foundation. SENS [Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence] seeks to extend the length and quality of the human life. To learn more about SENS: http://www.sens.org
A Nebula Exclusive examining the pros and cons of terraforming planets versus constructing immense space habitats and artificial worlds. This episode is a companion video to our Megastructure Compendium episode, out June 9th.
Conformal Cyclic Cosmology is a theory by physicist Roger Penrose for how the Universe might undergo cycles of decay and expansion, resetting over aeons, and in this Nebula Exclusive we'll explain the theory and how it might be proved.
The Moon offers vast resources to assist us in exploring and settler new worlds, but to get those resources, someone will have to mine them.