To worry that once the sun explodes there will be

[ArtVandeelay]

no intelligent life in the universe. Just vast space. It makes me sad: the slow evolution of man over billions of years; the art; the culture; to go from living in caves to flying to the moon in a blink of an eye.

A week on Tuesday, which is annoying because I’m meant to fly to New York on the Wednesday.

Hahaha I honestly thought you were a bot or someone who genuinely didn't understand it..sorry for bigLsplainin' it to you! 😁

In about 5 billion years

I think the life and death of the sun and our planet is probably just a blink of an eye in universe time.

there probably are other planets out there with life on them now, probably have been others in the past and probably will be more in future.

it’s definitely not something I concern myself with

Oh and humans will become extinct, just like every other species.
Inevitable.
It will happen.

We need some perspective on our size in the Universe.

"Space is big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long way down the road to the chemist's, but that's just peanuts to space"

This video does give some perspective on Earth, the Sun, out local stars, the Milky Way and the rest of the Universe.

I am sure there is life out there - and life still to come out there

no intelligent life in the universe.

possibly - but it is likely that there is intelligent life elsewhere in the unimaginably vast universe.

Just vast space.

Plus unimaginable amounts of matter. Some that we are currently incapable of perceiving.

It makes me sad:

Humanity is amazing. Whilst our presence in the universe is temporary it is amazing that it has happened at all. Focus on how amazing humanity is. The fact that you are able to conceptualise this as an issue is amazing.

the slow evolution of man over billions of years; the art; the culture; to go from living in caves to flying to the moon in a blink of an eye.

Humanity has evolved very quickly and will continue to do so for a long while yet. We are not ready to give up the fight. Our pioneering and restless pursuit of improvement will result in solutions to problems much greater than any we have faced yet.

You didn’t worry about what the universe was like before you were born; you don’t need to worry about what it will be like after you have died.

The slow evolution of humans not ‘man’.

I'm sure the average IQ in the universe will go up several points when humanity finally goes extinct.

It's a joke for the love of God.

A stupid joke I enjoy: "What's E.T. short for? Because he only has little legs"

I remember re-telling this to someone and they argued for ages - no, it's short for extra-terrestrial. Yes, of course it is, but that's why it's a joke, it subverts expectation.

Also, the joke wasn't "What's is the opposite of Steven Hawkins' name" so you're being simultaneously literal and illiterate.

Don't worry Luvvie.
I don't think even Trump can cause this in our lifetime.

Exactly? Though I’m not sure why it needed repeating.

Buying makes more sense and is the correct answer. I think the joke needs to be changed.

😆 Never heard the E.T. one before.

I don't get the Stephen Hawkins one though!

The sun? As in our sun - in our solar system?

That 1 star amongst billions?

Uhhhh, I should think the rest of the intelligent life in the universe really won't give a shit.

It's the eventual heat death of the universe I'm more (well actually, not at all) worried about.

That's what I said. There are loads of suns/stars in the universe. So us (and our sun) shuffling off our mortal coil isn't going to be the end of life in the entire universe is it?!

Nobody does.

Sorry – no intelligent life left in the universe? That’s a whole heap of importance you’re putting on the 0.00000000000000001% that is earth (and there are infinitely more zeros than that).

I know where you're coming from, it blew my mind when I read Sapiens and a book about the history of life on earth and realised so much is cyclical destruction and rebuilding. Its mind boggling that anything at all exists really, let alone a place where we have evolved a brain that is complex enough to attempt to understand things.

It will be a long time away and the planet will have horrendous volatility beforehand, but there is a sorrow to the idea of this beautiful world and the multitude of life (far less of course due to humanity's endeavours) going away.

It doesn’t worry me but there is some comfort and perspective in knowing that one day, none of anything we do will matter one iota. In my most stressful times, the knowledge that in 100 years time, me, everyone I know (pretty much), everything I do, will be gone and won’t mean a single thing, does actually act as some sort of pressure valve. I also get a lot from thinking what’s the worst than can happen? I suppose it’s just a way of stepping back.

No doubt that when the Sun does start to expand and things are looking serious, people on MN will ask for its own topic to be created as the doom mongering threads would be taking over Chat and AIBU.

Do we even exist at all? How do we know? Perhaps this universe is just one atom in an ocean of parallel infinities.

@cakeorwine (at 22.24,) that video of the universe is absolutely brilliant! 👏