Re: Fermi Paradox in the news

From: Eugene Leitl (eugene.leitl@lrz.uni-muenchen.de)
Date: Fri Oct 27 2000 - 23:49:27 MDT


Jason Joel Thompson writes:

> I have my thoughts on this, but let me ask: why is this an appealing way of
> looking at reality?

Because the multiverse+anthropic principle can explain the observable
without making us appear special. The observer bias operates on all
scales, screening universes, galaxies, stellar systems, planets and
ecologies for intelligent observers, very much like combinatorial
chemistry selects prospective drug leads from a witches' brew of
random molecules by pouring them over an affinity column. Only those
fitting are retained.

The simplicity and the validity scope of the process makes it so
appealing. We're still left with the mystery of whatever metalevel
plumbing constitutes the multiverse reality, but this is currently
unknown, and perhaps unknowable. (It could be trained termites, or
turtles all the way down, there is no way for us to tell).



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