Sorry that these messages are long overdue (and I mean long overdue). I’ll try to get to the rest of my inbox soon.
1. The thought of life on other planets is indeed very exciting. I hope we eventually get to the point that we can explore such far-away planets.
2. That’s a complicated question, and it deserves more of an answer than any blurb I could give. Simply, GMO’s are safe overall (strictly regarding human health), but more research needs to be done. I’d recommend reading more on the issue here.
3-4. I don’t share your fears for a few reasons. First, we don’t have the technology to pull off the sort of stunt you describe. It’s well beyond our means. Second, I think the pharmaceutical industry gets an unfair reputation. There are certainly many complaints to be wagered against the industry, but some is simply paranoia. Do you have the same fear that supermarkets are engineering their food to make you perpetually hungry? There will always be an unlimited demand for food, just as there will always be unlimited demand for healthcare, and neither the food nor the drug industry needs to resort to pure evil to get more customers. And third, I’m cynical, but not that cynical.
5. Quantum immortality is a thought experiment, so I’m not sure what you mean by asking if I believe in it. No, I don’t think immortality is possible based on quantum principles, since human phenomena are governed by classical mechanics.
6. According to the Big Bang, all of matter erupted from a very dense core. Therefore, when the universe has a span of about 13.7 billion light years, that means it has been expanding for that amount of time.
7. This is a tough ethical question, and I really want to avoid devolving into a debate about animal testing. Let’s first assume that scientists are conducting animal research ethically and only when absolutely necessary (since that’s supposed to be the case, and if it isn’t, then we’re arguing about something else entirely). The point of animal testing is to reduce future human (and potentially even animal) suffering, by curing a disease or testing a drug for potentially horrific side effects. Now, people who are completely against animal testing are essentially conflating the life and suffering of animals with that of humans. That, to me, is highly immoral, for too many reasons to get to in such a short post.
