The past few decades on Earth have shown that there is indefinitely more in nature than has been dreamt in our philosophies Computers which were once the size of large rooms have been shrunk to minuscule proportions. Space travel has become possible; communications expand exponentially. Impossible dreams are now legitimate research goals. There seems to be no limit. In the face of this advance, some preach caution or even a retreat but it is certain that here, or in other places in the universe, the prevailing evolutionary forces will drive things along. Individuals, even whole communities, can opt out but there will always be those whose desire to discover is too powerful to suppress. Eventually, we will make contact with conscious beings from other parts of the universe. Problems which seem insoluble at the moment, to do with speed of travel, communication over vast distances, the provision of adequate nutrition, coping with radiation and so forth will be overcome, as have so many other barriers in the past. Probably the exploration of space will mirror, on a vast scale, that of the Earth. The first travellers will be exceedingly brave. Beings from other places will surely seem strange at first but it will be obvious that we are all made up of the same raw materials. There will, of course, be the chance of conflict and perhaps there will be some terrible ‘star wars’. There is reason to hope, though, that any civilisation which has reached the level of sophistication which allows long-distance space travel would also have acquired enough knowledge and control to make competitive colonisation unnecessary. It is by no means impossible that creatures who have advanced beyond us have surveyed our planet and realised that we are not yet sufficiently mature to join in the inter-galactic community. Battles or not, eventually the processes which have pushed Earthlings to create international cooperative organisations will bring similar inter-stellar associations. Self-conscious beings throughout the universe will begin to share knowledge. Whatever the setbacks, love will pull peoples together. Knowing, by this time, that the cooperative end-point is to the benefit of everyone, the universal community will work in harmony to put the pieces of the energy puzzle together. Every last fragment will be drawn into the centre and slotted into place. BACK