Off Topic — HabitableZone

Off Topic » in reply to I love the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy

Supernovae happen all over the Universe all the time
Socrates II — (archived)

Their massive explosions vaporize entire solar systems and spray deadly
radiation for hundreds and even thousands of light years in all directions.

No doubt many life forms and civilizations are destroyed in the process. I am sure these life forms, however else they may think, considered
themselves to be unique and seriously valuable to existence.

Yet from our perspective, we don't even know if they exist and for the
majority of supernovae, only professional astronomers and serious
amateurs with big telescopes are aware they ever happen. And those
events happened millions and even billions of years ago.

So if we disappeared from the Universe tomorrow, would the rest of
reality even notice?

I am not saying we are completely unimportant or that we do not
serve some kind of purpose, but I am tired of our incredibly limited
and overblown view of ourselves, even after we now know just how
big the Cosmos is and how relatively small we are in it.

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