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Immobile Planetary Inhabitants

Many of the problems with creating a space colony are associated with building inhabitable, mostly un-used travel areas.
 
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As un-appealing as this sounds, the concept of off world colonists moving around might not be the way to go.

Humans might be genetically modified to live the way plants do, immobile and in one place.

Hold on... I know.

Much of what occupies the human these days is mental, not physical. I'm sitting a computer now perfectly content. We all sat around and watched a movie last night. Great fun.

Pods with genetically modified humans would be much smaller than massive cities. If you look at the standard human dwelling, probably 99% of the space doesn't have a human in it 99% of the time.

If a suitable pod was built that had complete hookup with the outside world, control of robots that did the construction, farming etc, the humans could enter into a new realm of existence, the immobile but completely sentient and connected single location human.

You could say it's the concept of the couch potato taken to a new level for practical reasons. But think about it, if the desire for mobility is preventing us from occupying a new planet, is it serving a positive purpose?

Can a person be happy not moving like a plant or a tree if they have sufficient mental stimulation and complete control of their environment through control of remote control robots? It certainly seems un-appealing but perhaps being open to various approaches to colonization of other worlds could open new ways to get the job done.

doctorremulac3, Nov 17 2019

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       Umm, seen The Matrix lately? Because this is The Matrix, without the evil AI controlling everything...
neutrinos_shadow, Nov 17 2019
  

       "Brains in Jars" ...?   

       "The Matrix"...?   

       Given that some individuals already opt for something very close to a persistent vegetative state (Hence the term "couch potato") this is hardly an innovation ...
8th of 7, Nov 17 2019
  

       //Umm, seen The Matrix lately?//   

       Umm, no. Are there people genetically modified to live in pods on Mars while controlling robots that do all the physical work necessary to sustain life?   

       By the way, if absolutely necessary some of these pods could be mobile, but I don't think they'd need to be.
doctorremulac3, Nov 17 2019
  

       In "Matrix XXII: The Finding Nemo crossover", yes.
8th of 7, Nov 17 2019
  

       // By the way, if absolutely necessary some of these pods could be mobile, but I don't think they'd need to be. //   

       If we upgrade our brain to transmit neural impulses from 200 m/s to say the speed of light, and upgrade to fire at gigahertz rates, rather than current 10 Hz range, then distance will matter, because of long ping times. You will want to live not further than a few km away from your friends you like to prevent the subjective wait times for their responses painfully long.
Mindey, Nov 17 2019
  

       That's why we use subspace radio for our proximity transcievers.
8th of 7, Nov 17 2019
  

       No you don't. It's two empty tin cans and a length of string. I've seen it. In fact, I think it was me who showed you how to put the knots in the string so it could be pulled taut.
MaxwellBuchanan, Nov 17 2019
  

       Regarding the idea, what is the objective in sending people to live on other planets?
MaxwellBuchanan, Nov 17 2019
  

       Somewhere else to go and turn it into polluted mess after destroying this one.
xenzag, Nov 17 2019
  

       "EARTH FIRST: We'll strip-mine the other planets when we're done here".   

       // what is the objective in sending people to live on other planets? //   

       Well, not actually "people" as such, but it would be possible to send the entire cast of "Strictly Come Dancing" to a frozen, desolate wilderness for the rest of their (hopefully brief) lives.
8th of 7, Nov 17 2019
  

       // what is the objective in sending people to live on other planets? //   

       Life is programmed to expand and conquer the lifeless mud of other worlds. We're this planet's unique offering to the universe, the mind of matter, the soul and spirit that rose from the dust. The vanguard of life.   

       As to what the meaning of life is, you'll have to ask drunk, lonely, depressed, bearded German philosophers about that. Not something that particularly interests me.
doctorremulac3, Nov 18 2019
  

       Interesting. Rather than genetically modifying the humans, this could just be the first stage of colonization. Building a large habitat using remote controlled robots would be much easier for people on Mars who can control them in real time than for people trying to control the robots with a multi- minute delay.
scad mientist, Nov 18 2019
  

       //Life is programmed to expand and conquer the lifeless mud of other worlds.// I agree, but I don't think the "Expand and Conquer!" poster is going to look right with a bunch of rooted plant-humans on it. At the very least, they need to be able to duck behind a rock whilst firing a laser gun and yelling "Scotty, beam us up!".
MaxwellBuchanan, Nov 18 2019
  

       I admit the recruiting posters for this method of colonization might not be super appealing, but looking into different methods of expanding into different worlds might require some re-evaluation and modification of our life form.   

       At least putting in on the table for review.
doctorremulac3, Nov 18 2019
  

       // At the very least, they need to be able to duck behind a rock whilst firing a laser gun and yelling "Scotty, beam us up!". //   

       Yes, "To Boldly Grow " as a voice over on the opening credits only really works for a programme like "Gardener's World".   

       Unless, of course, you plan to cultivate Triffids ...   

       // putting in on the table //   

       Put it anywhere you like; after all, it's not going to go anywhere ...
8th of 7, Nov 18 2019
  

       //You could say it's the concept of the couch potato taken to a new level//   

       OK.   

       [Clears throat]   

       "it's the concept of the couch potato taken to a new level"
Skewed, Nov 18 2019
  

       //That's why we use subspace//   

       //No you don't. It's two empty tin cans and a length of string//   

       Yes he does, in a purely 'technical' sense.   

       It's actually laminated steel & copper wire (not string), it's like a stick of rock, anywhere you cut it you find the word subspace in copper.. if you use a strong enough magnifying glass.   

       He's patented it as 'subspace' wire.   

       But you got the tin cans right.
Skewed, Nov 18 2019
  

       <Deletes [Skewed]'s name from Christmas card list/>   

       <Adds [Skewed]'s name to "possibles" list for Special Christmas Gift, if there is enough cat excrement to meet existing commitments/>
8th of 7, Nov 18 2019
  

       This is a common theme in science fiction.
Voice, Nov 18 2019
  

       I'm sure it probably is, do you have any references? I'd like to see what the premise was, how it worked out, what the problems were etc.   

       Remember, I've read like 6 non fiction books in my life. (But read them over and over again)
doctorremulac3, Nov 19 2019
  

       Easy enough, when they all have titles like "See Spot Run" and "Where's My Cow", no more than 12 pages long, one sentence per page such as "Spot chases the Red Ball" with helpful illustrations ...
8th of 7, Nov 19 2019
  

       I used to basically live in a library, I'd read for hours after school.   

       I just wasn't interested in wasting my time on fantasy nonsense.
doctorremulac3, Nov 19 2019
  

       //fantasy nonsense//   

       <Carefully fills out post office forwarding address form giving [doc]'s address/>   

       <Posts cards to family advising them to use the usual post box for gifts & cards this year/>
Skewed, Nov 19 2019
  
      
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