Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by lupire 1918 days ago
The point is that if grabby and gardener aliens exist, grabby aliens will dominate.

It's similar to the idea in evolution that we species that like to reproduce more than species that don't.

2 comments

It is no means a foregone conclusion that grabby v. gardener => grabby wins.

Perhaps grabby aliens, a known menace to life in the universe, are systematically exterminated when they are identified by other aliens in the universe.

There are really strong implicit assumptions at play here. This is a very interesting thought experiment, and it's nice to see novel thinking in this area. It's important to recognize however, that this is not "logical" or a "forgone conclusion" in any meaningful or systematic way.

But in gardening, overinvasive species are weeds and they are removed by gardeners?
The gardener merely holds the weeds at bay for a while. Without constant upkeep, the weeds take over again.