From: Robin Lee Powell (rlpowell@digitalkingdom.org)
Date: Mon Oct 04 2004 - 23:25:31 MDT
On Mon, Oct 04, 2004 at 11:18:41PM -0400, Eliezer Yudkowsky wrote:
> Robin Lee Powell wrote:
> >
> >According to http://www.obspm.fr/encycl/catalog.html
> >
> > update: 3 October 2004
> > Global statistics: 117 planetary systems
> > 133 planets
> > 13 multiple planet systems
> >
> >So, that removes as many as 120 or so main sequence stars from
> >the pool of "stars that could have habitable planets". Yes,
> >clearly habitable zone planets must be rare!
> >
> ></sarcasm>
> >
> >Our sample size thus far is paltry to the point of total
> >irrelevance.
>
> The size of the total population is nearly irrelevant to the
> reliability of a given sample size, so long as population >>
> sample.
Yep. However, our current detection methods can *only* detect
planets about the size of Neptune or larger.
What we're talking about here is scattering weight-sensitive plates
throughout the world that can only detect weights of 200 pounds or
more, and then after a few hundred hits concluding that there are
very few things on earth that weigh less than 200 pounds.
-Robin
-- http://www.digitalkingdom.org/~rlpowell/ *** http://www.lojban.org/ Reason #237 To Learn Lojban: "Homonyms: Their Grate!"
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