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Old 04-26-2018, 12:23 PM   #21
Flyndaran
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Default Re: Pre-human civilizations on Earth

Unless you're suggesting their entire genus burst forth into being with nuclear reactors and all choosing to cremate, population density really isn't an issue.
Even then, accidents, crime, and predation will occur leading to hidden corpses.
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Old 04-26-2018, 12:28 PM   #22
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...

As I ponder it, I begin to suspect that there might be many orders missing from our knowledge even yet, and the further back we go, the more so. Esp. since even an entire taxonomic order doesn't necessarily have to be all that numerous in terms of member-species.

That doesn't prove such an order existed, of course, but I don't think we can rule it out with any confidence based on the fossil record, either.
Hypothetical orders would have to be very localized geographically in regions with poor fossilization, small, or lacking easy to identify hard parts.
But we're imagining sapient creatures, not a new beetle.

To hide entire types of animals within the last 100 million years would require a rather absurd series of hoops for them to have leapt through to make things reasonable. Unless we invoke something supernatural or literal aliens.
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Old 04-26-2018, 12:31 PM   #23
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Even then, accidents, crime, and predation will occur leading to hidden corpses.
Most of which will vanish without a trace. On the other hand, you can pretty much tell something is up without actually finding remains. A civilization as advanced as ours would show up in the fossil record as a mass extinction event, plus in the geologic record as some really weird strata.
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Old 04-26-2018, 01:05 PM   #24
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Default Re: Pre-human civilizations on Earth

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Unless you're suggesting their entire genus burst forth into being with nuclear reactors and all choosing to cremate, population density really isn't an issue.
Even then, accidents, crime, and predation will occur leading to hidden corpses.
The hypothesis does not specify how large the civilization is nor it's terrestrial origins.
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Old 04-26-2018, 05:23 PM   #25
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Most of which will vanish without a trace. On the other hand, you can pretty much tell something is up without actually finding remains. A civilization as advanced as ours would show up in the fossil record as a mass extinction event, plus in the geologic record as some really weird strata.
Extinctions as well as population explosions of food plants/animals and those that live alongside the civilization. Even without intentional human destructiveness, mice, roaches, and pets are now everywhere.
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Old 04-26-2018, 05:26 PM   #26
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The hypothesis does not specify how large the civilization is nor it's terrestrial origins.
Of course. But those things can make any other logical extrapolations moot. I tend to believe that the base rules should be agreed upon before such things are added.
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Old 04-26-2018, 08:52 PM   #27
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Most of which will vanish without a trace. On the other hand, you can pretty much tell something is up without actually finding remains. A civilization as advanced as ours would show up in the fossil record as a mass extinction event, plus in the geologic record as some really weird strata.
I wonder what kind of metamorphic rock concrete would turn into over time? Or would it be stable enough to survive the ages?
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Old 04-27-2018, 07:11 AM   #28
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I wonder what kind of metamorphic rock concrete would turn into over time? Or would it be stable enough to survive the ages?
Marble, I would think. There are also naturally occurring materials that mimic concrete, with varying degrees of efficiency.
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Old 04-27-2018, 08:58 AM   #29
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What if they're fairies? They live in mysterious mounds and mystical places.
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Old 04-27-2018, 10:28 AM   #30
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I wonder what kind of metamorphic rock concrete would turn into over time? Or would it be stable enough to survive the ages?
Should depend on exposure to elements (water and various ions carried in water). If it gets buried in a dry area, it will probably just sit there.
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