Originally Posted by Fish (Post 10648143)

Well, way over 99% of the universe is actually empty space. That's why they call it space. :D In many spots, you could travel for millions of light years in any direction and not even see anything to run into. The emptiness between galaxies is mind bottling.

But you're right that we'd have a problem with speed and collisions. You really wouldn't be able to see and react to anything during travel that fast. I'd guess that we'd have to create a 3D map of the travel area and completely program flights ahead of time.

Originally Posted by cdcox (Post 10648192)

Would also need deflectors shields to clear the small stuff.

Originally Posted by Fish (Post 10648224)

Which would need to absorb insane amounts of energy. Hitting anything at near the speed of light would release unimaginable energy. It's hard to imagine it would ever be possible.

Originally Posted by Rain Man (Post 10648594)

if you find a way to travel in a physical space that is different then the one with asteroids and planets and stuff, then you don't have to worry about hitting anything when you travel.

Originally Posted by Dayze (Post 10648094)

we're alone / Religion

Originally Posted by Dunerdr (Post 10648177)

We're never gonna make level II until there's a minimum intelligence standard for breeding. I propose a shot to make the body sterile at 13. At 18 your tested if your not the future of idiocracy you are eligible to breed. If not you get a neck tat and another shot. Now here's the beauty. You got all these increasingly intelligent people running around stressing over research and what have you. They walk out find em a broad with a neck tat, **** her stupid and go back to work without fear of consequence. It's gonna take it's toll on the used mobile home business and foot print gas pedal installers but it's a faster track to level 2.

Originally Posted by Bob Dole (Post 10648639)

Does not knowing the difference between a possessive pronoun and a contraction mean that you fail the test?

Originally Posted by Dave Lane (Post 10646371)

If 0.3% of the budget is a lot then the answer is yes. NASAs entire budget since it's inception is less than the bank bail out of 2008.

Originally Posted by beach tribe (Post 10648684)

That's because the military has their own space program.

Originally Posted by alnorth (Post 10647200)

Thats another wild, probably sci-fi, possibility. If a 4th or 5th dimension exists, whatever the hell that might mean, and if we were capable of existing in those dimensions, and if distance was meaningless in those dimensions.

Originally Posted by lcarus (Post 10648896)

Yeah I agree, but it's fun to think about. Some consider time to be the "4th dimension". So maybe the "aliens" are us from the distant future? Who knows what will be possible hundreds of thousands of years from now. Look at how much we've advanced technologically in just the past 20 years.

Speaking of tech advancements, is it just me or did aviation technology (along with, well, pretty much everything else) really just explode directly after the Roswell incident in 1947? I don't know what to think or believe regarding the UFO stories over the course of history, but it's interesting nonetheless.