New Research Analyzes Humanity’s Past to Test the Great Filter

Making it an Even More Likely Solution to the Fermi Paradox

Photo by Babak Fakhamzadeh on Unsplash

For as long as we’ve stared at the stars, we humans have wondered whether we’re alone in the universe. Our ancient ancestors imagined mythical stories about what the stars could be and who might live among them — inspiring the creation of heavens, gods and goddesses, and eventually religion.

As our scientific intelligence evolved and we invented the telescope, we learned of our solar system, and our curiosities morphed. No longer was it deities we searched for among the stars, but alien life.

These days, our curiosities about the stars and extraterrestrial life, have grown from stories shared around a fire to a global government and scientific expedition worth billions. We want to know, does intelligent alien life exist? Does any alien life exist? If so, where are they? Are we really alone? We wonder these questions so much there’s even a name for it — the Fermi Paradox.

What is the Fermi Paradox

Rumor has it that in 1950, physicist Enrico Fermi became inspired by a cartoon in the New Yorker while chatting with some colleagues during a visit to the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. The drawing led him to…