the Universe will last for at least the next 24 billion years,
Earth is estimated to last another 5 billion years.
Man, conscious beings are the only known living thing that can understand nature to control nature. In 3,000 years of man's efforts to better understnad nature to control it there has been -- aside from the dark ages -- an ever increasing advancement of technology to benefit man.
We can't even imagine what technologies we'll have in a million years. Or even a hundred years. Most important is the increase in human longevity. There will come a time, sooner rather than latter where conscious man will reach youth rejuvenating biologic immortality on Earth.
Five billion years as way more time than it will take for man to create or travel to a another solar system to live.
Physicists are still divided about the fate of the Universe.
Five billion years is more than enough time to learn how to control nature to interdict the big crunch. The big crunch never happens. If not interdicted by conscious man on Earth then the big crunch has already been interdicted by conscious beings living among the billion of galaxies with a billion stars each. Immortal conscious beings that began their civilization five billion years prior to our Sun formed.
The three macro components of the Universe are mater, energy and conscious beings.
Hmmmm, hadn't thought of it that way before. O_O
As a physics student, I wonder if there is a way to tell if the universe has been "tampered" with.
After all, we model our physical theories based on what we see in the universe. But if what we see isn't what would occur naturally, then we'll always be wrong by some margin.
*scratches chin*
If the kids can be enticed away from their X-Boxes and Playstation 2 for long enough to do some actual work, earth can be converted to a sun-independent interstellar Winnebago.