Interesting Idea On Galactic Scale

[belovelife]

ok say there are species out there tha make us look like trylobites

 

and a black hole emits matter instead of intakes

 

and they put a dyson shere around the center of the galaxy

 

 

what do you think of the concept?

[Lancewen]

ok say there are species out there tha make us look like trylobites

 

and a black hole emits matter instead of intakes

 

and they put a dyson shere around the center of the galaxy

 

 

what do you think of the concept?

 

Some time ago I read a SF plot that resembled your scenario. Can't remember the author or title, but the gist of it was a very old super intelligent machine life occupied the densely packed core of our galaxy and they would ruthlessly put down any possible threat of new developing intelligent life in the galaxy. Also, the central black hole allowed instant communication with other galaxies. The machines wanted the energy generated by the BH and also wanted to block the communication with the other galaxies. So they were building a Dyson sphere around the BH and were almost completed when the pesky humans messed with them.

[CraigD]

... and a black hole emits matter instead of intakes ...

As a rule, the supermassive black holes at the centers of galaxies do emit a lot of matter, and EM radiation. That’s what most astrophysicists believe galactic jets and similar super-bright phenomena, such as quasars, are.

 

... and they put a dyson shere around the center of the galaxy

 

what do you think of the concept?

It’s a pretty reasonable one, if you’re a vastly advanced engineer looking for a lot of energy to last a very long time.

 

What’s especially good with the scheme is that, unlike a “wild” galactic nucleus, you would presumable be able to control the infall of matter powering it, generating the amount of power you wanted when you wanted it.

 

Another benefit is that such a power system could outlast the stelliferous era, something engineers who like to plan for the really far (10¹⁴+ years) future would be very keen on.

 

The scheme would also work for much smaller, star-mass BHs, which doesn’t require quite as vastly advanced engineering as on a galactic scale.

 

These days, most folk familiar with the ideas don’t think you’d build a solid shell around a star (or something bigger) – there are a lot of structural difficulties with that that even super-advanced engineers likely wouldn’t want or be able to overcome. Rather, the “sphere” would be a “swarm” or “bubble” of smaller, non-connected structures, either orbiting or station-keeping, still capable of collecting all of the enclosed star’s radiation.

 

When used to power a big computer/network of computers, such a structure is often called a “Matrioshka brain”, a play on the popular little nested Matrioshka dolls most folk have seen, to illustrate the idea that a swarm-type Dyson sphere.

 

Some time ago I read a SF plot that resembled your scenario. Can't remember the author or title, but the gist of it was a very old super intelligent machine life occupied the densely packed core of our galaxy and they would ruthlessly put down any possible threat of new developing intelligent life in the galaxy. Also, the central black hole allowed instant communication with other galaxies. The machines wanted the energy generated by the BH and also wanted to block the communication with the other galaxies. So they were building a Dyson sphere around the BH and were almost completed when the pesky humans messed with them.

I can remember a bunch of stories like this, too, but can’t pin down (or maybe haven’t read) which one you’re remembering. A few that come to mind, In rough order of publication, from newest to oldest:

• Baxter’s Destiny's Children subsequence of the Xeelee Sequence of novels involves ancient, exotic aliens living in the galactic core and warring nastily with advanced humankind, but the whole conflict is due to the humans misunderstanding these aliens’ saving the galaxy from another exotic alien threat as an act of aggression toward less exotic life like us.
  
• Pohl’s Gateway novels had advanced aliens hiding in the Milky Way galaxy’s central black hole, popping out occasionally to check on the locals, but not ruthlessly exterminating, rather trying to keep their activities low-tech enough that they didn’t draw the attention of some big, bad boogies living in artificial Kugelblitz –style black holes dangling beyond the galactic edges.
  
• Niven’s Known Space series had the Pierson's Puppeteers’ 5-planet “fleet of worlds” fleeing the galaxy in anticipation of its nucleus going active and sterilizing all life, or perhaps engaging in an elaborate trick to get every other advanced culture to flee it so they could inhabit its core in safety.
  

An even newer series by the less hard-science-y Sean Williams and Shane Dix (known mostly for Star Wars space fantasy stuff), the Orphans of Earth trilogy involved a confusing armada of aliens passing throught the galaxy, annihilating (or uplifting or absorbing – that’s part of the confusion) ever people who flew ships to another stars, doesn’t focus much on galactic cores and black holes, but does have lots of instantaneous communications. I hesitate to mention it, though, because its physics is even more chocked-full-of-holes than Niven and Pohl’s old stuff, and SF writers of their generation, can’t claim the excuse of physics being less well-communicated back in their pre-internet days.

 

I’m curious to know the story you’re remembering arKane, so if you can dig up its title and author, do let us know.

[Lancewen]

I won't swear this is the correct series, because I couldn't get enough description. However I have read Gregory Benford and the little description there was about the first book sounded familiar.

 

Author Gregory Benford

 

Galactic Center Saga 6 book series

 

In the Ocean of Night

 

Across the Sea of Suns

 

Great Sky River

 

Furious Gulf

 

Tides of Light

 

Sailing Bright Eternity

[Aethelwulf]

 

and a black hole emits matter instead of intakes

 

 

 

In this sense, it wouldn't be a black hole, what you would have is a white hole, a time reversed black hole object.

[belovelife]

mabe it looks like a black hole because of a dyson shere around it

[Lancewen]

In this sense, it wouldn't be a black hole, what you would have is a white hole, a time reversed black hole object.

 

Technically you are correct, but an active black hole generates a lot of energy as it accelerates matter to nearly light speed be fore it crosses the event horizon. Much of that energy radiates away from the black hole. If enough energy is being radiated it will create an outward pressure pushing the gas away. You might say it's creating a black hole wind, similar to our own solar wind but on a much larger scale.

[Lancewen]

I won't swear this is the correct series, because I couldn't get enough description. However I have read Gregory Benford and the little description there was about the first book sounded familiar.

 

Author Gregory Benford

 

Galactic Center Saga 6 book series

 

In the Ocean of Night

 

Across the Sea of Suns

 

Great Sky River

 

Furious Gulf

 

Tides of Light

 

Sailing Bright Eternity

 

After reading the Wikipedia I'm more confident this is the series I was talking about.

 

The Galactic Center Saga is a series of books by author Gregory Benford detailing a galactic war between mechanical and biological life.

 

In the Ocean of Night (1977) -- 1977 Nebula Award nominee, 1978 Locus Award nominee

Across the Sea of Suns (1984)

Great Sky River (1987) -- 1988 Nebula Nominee

Tides of Light (1989) -- 1990 Locus Award nominee

Furious Gulf (1994)

Sailing Bright Eternity (1996)