Fermi's Paradox

is solved by the fact that life is, in the end, a planetary thing. It begins on a planet and is part of that planet. It can only live there, because it evolved to live there. That’s its home. Thus, by the time life gets smart enough to leave its planet, it’s too smart to want to go.

Maybe that’s why we’ve never heard a peep from anywhere. It’s not just that the universe is too big. Which it is. That’s the main reason. But then also, life is a planetary thing. It begins on a planet and is part of that planet. It’s something that water planets do, maybe. But it develops to live where it is. So it can only live there, because it evolved to live there. That’s its home. So, you know, Fermi’s paradox has its answer, which is this: by the time life gets smart enough to leave its planet, it’s too smart to want to go. Because it knows it won’t work. So it stays home. It enjoys its home. As why wouldn’t you? It doesn’t even bother to try to contact anyone else. Why would you? You’ll never hear back. So that’s my answer to the paradox. You can call it Euan’s Answer.” Later: So, of course, every once in a while some particularly stupid form of life will try to break out and move away from its home star. I’m sure it happens. I mean, here we are. We did it ourselves. But it doesn’t work, and the life left living learns the lesson, and stops trying such a stupid thing.” Later: Maybe some of them even make it back home. Hey—if I were you, Freya? I would try to get back home.” Later: Maybe.

is capable of being answered in this way: by the time life gets smart enough to leave its planet, it’s too smart to want to go. Because it knows it won’t work. So it stays home. It enjoys its home.

So, you know, Fermi’s paradox has its answer, which is this: by the time life gets smart enough to leave its planet, it’s too smart to want to go. Because it knows it won’t work. So it stays home. It enjoys its home. As why wouldn’t you? It doesn’t even bother to try to contact anyone else. Why would you? You’ll never hear back. So that’s my answer to the paradox. You can call it Euan’s Answer.

is neither fermi's nor a paradox. It misrepresents Fermi's views, misappropriates his authority, deprives the actual authors of credit, and is not a valid paradox.

Published Online:11 Mar 2015https://doi.org/10.1089/ast.2014.1247

is easily solved --- the surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us.

fermi's paradox, n.All

fermi's paradox