Chad Cooper I just read a book that discussed something similar. Assuming that sentient beings can populate a galaxy in 10 million years, the idea was presented that non-sentient life could spread throughtout a galaxy within 1 billion years easy. Considering that we may very well have rocks from Mars that may have contained life, and other recent studies that point to the possiblity that bacteria may be raining down upon us everyday from space, leaves me with the following assumption (no matter how weak): If you assume that it takes 1 billion years for life to form, and 4 billion years for sentient life to form,
10+ billion years ago the U was formed, 9 Billion years ago the universe cooled down enough for stars to form. 8 billion years ago life appears in this galaxy 5-7 billion years ago first set of stars start to supernova blowing out this life like a big sneeze into other regions. 5 billion years ago, our sun is formed, presumably with this contaminated stuff. 4 billion years ago, life either starts on Earth, or the Earth is 'infected'. This suggests that the initial life evolved perhaps very far way, but quickly "infected the Galaxy, therby preventing or at least slowing down 'sprouts' of foreign life. Sentience should have followed behind this proliferation by 4 billion years. This does not answer if there is other sentient life out there, but it does suggest that the galaxy is full of life - in fact, With our many catastrophic collisions with meteorites, life could have easily (I assume) been blown away from our planet into space. I don't consider this a problem with this model, but what elements are needed for bacterial? How many elements were present in the first wave of suns? And of course, what made those first bacteria. Well not what, it's just I don't think we can claim we were populated from first wave suns bacteria. If bacteria arose so early in the universe, then it would be as easy for life to arise independent on Earth, with out seeding. And there should be life everywhere, which I would like. Kevin T. Dazed and amused
