Grabby Aliens: A Resolution to the Fermi Paradox

My 2 favorite Fermi Paradox resolutions: 1 - Given that we are only 14B years into a many-trillion-year stretch, our existence now is so unlikely that it's possible that we actually are the first. Something has to be first. 2 - Aliens are everywhere, but we cannot perceive them for reasons we would find disturbing. Largely, for the same sort of reasons that cave fish cannot see light or that most species are apparently unaware of humans in their environment…

This is a compelling theory, especially the implication that humans are early. I do wonder whether we should see the evidence of spheres of growing alien influence out in the stars, but instead we see a highly uniform universe in all directions. This would indicate a few possibilities: 1. Expanding alien civilizations are relatively low impact and don't collect all of the energy of stars in ways that are visible to our current telescopes. 2. We are a very early…

The problem with 'unknown unknowns' is that you can come to whatever conclusion you want, and it's perfectly logical either way. The 'Dark Forest' model suggests that we should be as quiet and inconspicuous as possible. But I could also propose what I am calling the 'lumberjack model'. Suppose a lumberjack wishes to cut down all of trees in the forest--but being a sympathetic lumberjack, he avoids felling any trees with a birds nest in them. In that case, the…