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A recent study by Dr. Robin Corbet, a senior scientist at the University of Maryland and an astrophysicist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, has proposed radical mundanity as a possible explanation for the Fermi Paradox. The paradox questions why we haven't found evidence of extraterrestrial technological civilizations (ETCs) despite the vastness of the universe. The study could help scientists and laypeople alike understand why intelligent life beyond Earth remains elusive, and how to refine our search efforts. Dr. Corbet's study delves into the possible existence of ETCs beyond Earth, and why we haven't detected them yet. The research also looks at the Kardashev scale, which categorizes civilizations based on their energy consumption capabilities—Type I (planet-level), Type II (star-level), and Type III (galaxy-level). The study further explores whether ETCs would colonize the galaxy with robotic explorers, regardless of their technological advancement or scientific knowledge. Dr. Corbet proposes that the radical mundanity principle could explain why we haven't found ETCs yet. He suggests that these civilizations either don't make significant technological advancements or are less common in the galaxy than we think. The study also discusses technological limits and their implications, the possibility of high-powered beacons, constraints on robotic galactic conquest, and the detection of technosignatures, indicators of advanced technology used by extraterrestrial civilizations. Dr. Corbet concludes that the galaxy may host a small number of technological civilizations with technology levels more advanced than ours but not to the extent of 'super-science.' He argues that powerful long-duration beacons or robotic probes exploring the entire galaxy are unlikely. However, he also suggests that detection of these civilizations via leakage radiation could be possible in the future with advanced radio telescopes like SKA (Square Kilometer Array). The Fermi Paradox, famously posed by physicist Enrico Fermi with the question Where is everybody?, has become a key argument in the search for extraterrestrial life. It suggests that if intelligent life is common in the universe, we should have already detected signs of it. The paradox has inspired numerous hypotheses about the rarity or quietness of life, technological barriers, and even the possibility that advanced civilizations are observing us without revealing their presence.
