Hi all, good to see you again! Not really cosmology but I read recently about the possibility of us humans missing out on interstellar comms because all the chatter might be digital and we don't have the code. Exoplanets are back in the news today, any thoughts? Nick

Hi all, good to see you again!

Yes, good to see you. I have to say, though, that "again" needs a clarification. At least I don't remember discussing with "nickoftime" previously. :)

Chatter might indeed be digital with unknown coding. However, it might also not be binary-digital as we seem to think, but could also be with different number system than binary.

I would think other forms of digital would be detectable as well - five levels instead of high/low, for instance - but it would not make sense to go non-binary if it was to maintain its integrity across long distances.

For communication not intended for outsiders, though, I think that we are screwed for detection on any number of accounts. Putting information into the phase (like we do with high-speed modems), directionality and/or quieter signals and/or repeated signals would themselves conspire to make another civilization inaudible to us.

Not to mention if they have discovered something akin to the 'ansible' with quantum effects that we do not yet know about.

Come on guys, let's stop all the subspace chatter.
☺

Nick W - Ari emailed me a while ago inviting me here but I've only just got around to it.

Nick W

I thought that it might have been so. Yep, nice to see you here! :)