Question

Colonization of one group of people by another has been a constant theme in human history. Europeans took the practice to a truly global level in the 19th century, imposing their culture and rules on much of the rest of the world, and giving colonization a bad rap in the process.



But from a biological point of view, colonization is perfectly normal. Species compete for habitats and resources all the time, and any species that doesn’t play the game will go extinct. There is no rest for the winners either because the habitat you live in today may not be available tomorrow. Volcanic eruptions and other natural catastrophes can turn your home into a hellscape, and some events — asteroid impacts, supernova explosions, or nearby gamma-ray blasts — can make a whole planet uninhabitable.

It seems prudent, then, for a technologically advanced life form to become a multi-planetary species to avoid possible extinction. That goes for alien civilizations as well. While we (or they) may be able to protect ourselves from certain calamities such as asteroid impacts, there’s not much we can do about a supernova. Colonizing other planets might be the only realistic route to long-term survival.



The ethics of space colonization



That leaves the question of how best to go about it. If we adhere to high ethical standards, we may decide to colonize only those planets that don’t already have indigenous life, so that our survival doesn’t result in their demise. The ethics could get tricky, however. Would we extend that principle to protecting even the lowliest microbes on another planet, even if our own survival were at stake? What if we thought no life existed on Planet Z, but found out after we arrived that it is actually inhabited?



Just how sticky a dilemma this becomes will depend on how common life is in the Universe. If it’s rare, there may be a near-infinite number of planets and moons that are habitable but uninhabited. In that case, it almost seems our duty to spread life — precious rarity that it is — to other worlds. But if there already is lots of life out there, as the Cosmic Zoo hypothesis implies, we will have to tread more cautiously. Don’t worry, though — there should still be plenty of habitable but uninhabited planets to provide a new home.



Would aliens take this same high road when venturing into interstellar space? Contamination may not be a significant problem if the alien visitors are AIs. But a full colonization effort would require biological beings. Luckily, there may be good practical reasons to respect indigenous life, beyond the ethical considerations. The visitors would want to carefully avoid toxic interactions with the indigenous biosphere (think War of the Worlds) so as not to endanger themselves.



Look at the information below. Drag each issue to the source that addresses it.

Issue: Ethical and biological concerns of space colonization


Issue: Technological structure and living logistics in space


Issue: Health and safety concerns of childbirth in space


Issue: Scientific innovation and cultural interest in settlement


First Source (Article)


Second Source ( Podcast)


Third Source (Infographic)

Answer 1

- Ethical and biological concerns of space colonization → First Source (Article)
- Technological structure and living logistics in space → Third Source (Infographic)
- Health and safety concerns of childbirth in space → Second Source (Podcast)
- Scientific innovation and cultural interest in settlement → First Source (Article)