I guessstimate that optimizing the universe for random values would require us to occupy many planets where life could’ve originated or repurpose the resources in their stellar systems. I did express doubt that mankind or a not-so-misaligned AI could actually endorse this on reflection.
What mankind can optimize for random values without wholesale destruction of potential alien habitats is the contents of some volume rather close to the Sun. Moreover, I don’t think that I understand what[1] mankind could want to do with resources in other stellar systems. Since delivering resources to the Solar System would be far harder than building a base and expanding it, IMO mankind would resort to the latter option and find it hard[2] even to communicate much information between occupied systems.
But what could random values which do respect aliens consist of? Physics could likely be solved[3] well before spaceships reach Proxima Centauri.
Alternatively, more and more difficult experiments could eventually lead to realisation that experiments do pose danger (e.g. of creating strangelets or a lower vacuum state, but informing others that a batch of experiments is dangerous doesn’t have a high bandwidth.)
I guessstimate that optimizing the universe for random values would require us to occupy many planets where life could’ve originated or repurpose the resources in their stellar systems. I did express doubt that mankind or a not-so-misaligned AI could actually endorse this on reflection.
What mankind can optimize for random values without wholesale destruction of potential alien habitats is the contents of some volume rather close to the Sun. Moreover, I don’t think that I understand what[1] mankind could want to do with resources in other stellar systems. Since delivering resources to the Solar System would be far harder than building a base and expanding it, IMO mankind would resort to the latter option and find it hard[2] even to communicate much information between occupied systems.
But what could random values which do respect aliens consist of? Physics could likely be solved[3] well before spaceships reach Proxima Centauri.
SOTA proposals include things as exotic as shrimps on heroin.
Barring discoveries like information travelling FTL.
Alternatively, more and more difficult experiments could eventually lead to realisation that experiments do pose danger (e.g. of creating strangelets or a lower vacuum state, but informing others that a batch of experiments is dangerous doesn’t have a high bandwidth.)