What about analyzing gravitational waves for intelligent signals like the SETI@HOME project does for EM waves. I personally believe that advanced civilizations would prefer to use gravitational waves, not EM waves, as a method of interstellar communication. The reasons, I think, are as follows:
1. They can be monitored 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, regardless of weather conditions.
2. Gravitational waves are more like sound waves, which can be detected (or heard), regardless of detector orientation.
3. Gravitational waves are not impeded by interstellar dust.
4. Gravitational waves produced by natural sources have a relatively low frequency (< 5 kHz). Intelligent signals are likely to be much higher.
5. Only the most advanced civilizations would have the technology to receive gravitational waves.
6. Currently, there are no terrestrial sources of gravitational waves that we know of.
7. Since the demand for wireless (EM) services is constantly growing, radio interference will become more and more of a problem. Satellites orbiting the earth also cause major interference. For this reason, advanced civilizations will be forced to use gravitational waves as a method of extraterrestrial communication and reserve EM waves for terrestrial communication. I predict that once we develop the technology to transmit and receive gravitational waves, we will also use it for interplanetary communication.
I had the pleasure of presenting this idea in a poster session at the AbSciCon 2008 conference last April. You can go to: http://www3.telus.net/foamyether/seti/seti.htm to view my poster and also watch a video of my presentation.
Copyright © 2024 Einstein@Home. All rights reserved.