RE: Meta-Foxes (was: Fermi Paradox)

From: Emlyn O'regan (oregan.emlyn@healthsolve.com.au)
Date: Fri Jul 25 2003 - 22:15:33 MDT

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    Because the foxes can become metafoxes, and so are a threat to the existing
    metafoxes. Further, the Rabbits cannot become foxes or metafoxes, so they
    are not threatening. Metafoxes don't need to consume for food, just to
    destroy enemies.

    Emlyn

    > -----Original Message-----
    > From: Robin Hanson [mailto:rhanson@gmu.edu]
    > Sent: Saturday, 26 July 2003 6:45 AM
    > To: extropians@extropy.org
    > Subject: Meta-Foxes (was: Fermi Paradox)
    >
    >
    > Some people think that the explanation of the Fermi paradox
    > is that there are predators out there that swoop down an destroy
    > any civilization that visibly starts to colonize. For that,
    > I have a parable:
    >
    > Imagine a field full of slow plump rabbits, munching on grass.
    > Imagine a fox sitting in a tall clump of grass eating the
    > rabbits that happen to wander into that clump. This fox is
    > thinks that he shouldn't leave his clump, because there are
    > meta-foxes out there, who only eat foxes. He thinks the
    > reason that there are so many uneaten rabbits out there is that
    > any time a fox comes out to eat a rabbit, a meta-fox sees it
    > and runs in and eats the fox. And his reason for not seeing
    > any meta-foxes out there eating foxes is that this is a very
    > rare event, due to the fact that meta-foxes are very efficient
    > and foxes are rare.
    >
    > My key problem with this scenario is: why don't the meta-foxes
    > eat the rabbits? Why focus on a few hard to catch foxes?
    >
    >
    >
    > Robin Hanson rhanson@gmu.edu http://hanson.gmu.edu
    > Assistant Professor of Economics, George Mason University
    > MSN 1D3, Carow Hall, Fairfax VA 22030-4444
    > 703-993-2326 FAX: 703-993-2323
    >
    >



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