Space/Science — HabitableZone

Space/Science » in reply to re: electricity works underwater

re: electricity works underwater

"Uh, not very well. It tends to leak out everywhere. Electric eels are not supercomputers.

Think "The little Mermaid". Shell and stone tools, Kelp clothing, domesticated sealife, talking crabs...

Stone age life yes. Telescopes and computers and rockets, no.

WHo would want to invent heavier-than-air flight when you live in water? "

Most animals, including electric eels, are supercomputers.

You could argue that using fire on the land is too suicidal to consider that creatures in 20% oxygen atmosphere would use it. My point was that fire was more difficult than electricity if you are underwater. Our ocean is essentially one component of a large battery. But come to think about, you do have volcanic activity in the ocean, so perhaps they could use fire.

I don't think humans were required to follow some technological path, and I think such creature would unlikely to follow a similar path that humans did.
Other than a broad outline, I don't think I'm capable of understanding any particulars of their technology.
For example, perhaps such creatures would use other animal life in the oceans, in a similar way that human use tools- so yeah, something like The little Mermaid, I suppose. Perhaps The little Mermaid with nanotechnology.
And starships as in Farscape.

Of course, I don't even know if there is ANY life beyond Earth. It seems highly likely, but there could be, I would say, somewhere around a 1% that we are alone in this vast Universe.
Of course if we actually find alien life on say Mars, then it drastically lower the odds much lower than 1% that there life elsewhere in the universe and drastically increases the chance of alien civilizations in our galaxy.
I would say there is 60-70% chance there is alien life in our solar system, and maybe a 80% chance there is life beyond Earth in our solar system which either alien or related to Earth life.

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