What Will It Take for Humans to Colonize the Milky Way?

Scientific American ^ | 1/13/16 | Kim Stanley Robinson

[UCANSEE2]

Another quaint story is that people originally feared to ride a train because people believed that they would start bleeding from the ears if they rode on something that could travel much faster than a horse. Those who sold horses were the most adamant in that belief.

[Windflier]

I'm hard put to name what these unimaginable distances are that we routinely travel today, since we haven't left the earth since Apollo.

We routinely travel between continents, which is something most ancient people could scarcely imagine, let alone do. There was a time when the average human never traveled more than a few tens of miles from their birthplace in their entire lives.

[UCANSEE2]

Currently, the U.S. can even refly John Glenn's mission without paying for a Russian seat.

Yeah... but it's worth it because the Russians still have actual female hostesses.

[UCANSEE2]

There was a time when the average human never traveled more than a few tens of miles from their birthplace in their entire lives.

Ahhhhhhh... the good ole' days.

[Windflier]

The answer is not to try and go faster than the speed of light, but to stay still and bring the mountain to Mohammed, so to speak.

I've read where theoretical physicists imagine FTL to be accomplished in exactly that way.

[A CA Guy]

Not Cosby and jello?

[Carthego delenda est]

“Baby steps, first a Moon Pie then a Mars bar then a Milky Way.”

Think I’ll take a pass on the one after Saturn.

[BeauBo]

“There was a time when the average human never traveled more than a few tens of miles from their birthplace in their entire lives.”

...When my Grandma was a girl, at the start of the last century - even in the most advanced country in the world. It still took a war to get most folks to move much further than that.

[UCANSEE2]

There is one reason why the Universe is teeming with Life and they have not contacted us. The entire galaxy has these spray painted everywhere.

[RedHeeler]

Nothing. It has already been done.

Let’s go surfin’ now...

[Fungi]

Thank you, interesting.

[Vendome]

A chocolate outer layer ought get it done...

[r_barton]

I think we are stuck in a rut. Airliners have gotten more reliable, more fuel efficient, have less engines to service, are in some cases made of composite materials, but they don’t go any faster.

We haven’t been back to the moon for 50 years. There have been hundreds of manned orbital flights, but none above 500 miles since the moon landings.

Something needs to break the log jam. Will it be Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos?

[Windflier]

When my paternal grandfather moved the family from Memphis to Los Angeles during WWII, that branch of the family hadn’t been beyond the borders of Tennessee since the Civil War.

Nowadays, we hop in our cars and drive three states away just for fun. Imagine how arduous traveling that sort of distance was, before the advent of modern highways and the automobile.

[CodeToad]

“Baby steps, first a Moon Pie then a Mars bar then a Milky Way.”

ROFL! Yeah, we’re not much past Mounds right now. (Nuts!)

[tenger]

I'll tell you what. When we've solved all the known problems on Earth, then we can explore elsewhere.

And regarding intelligent life outside of Earth? We assume that any kind of being is superior and more intelligent than us. What if they're dumber than a box of rocks? What then?

[UCANSEE2]

I've read where theoretical physicists imagine FTL to be accomplished in exactly that way.

Here is another secret.

Einstein was right. To move matter faster than the speed of light requires an unfathomable amount of energy.

The only way to go faster is for you to have no mass. To not be 'material'. Which , coincidentally, is in the Bible as well. It may even explain why we see those glowing orbs that zip around the sky violating the laws of physics. Maybe they aren't 'material', don't have 'mass'.

[UCANSEE2]

Even the Martians want nothing to do with us.

[Liberty Valance]

I'm worried about the belters ...

[r_barton]

The dims will give the Martians Little Green Men Cards and let them immigrate. Potential voters. ;-)