Then countless sci-fi works are based on aliens, and human beings will always have such curiosity: Are there other planets or even life outside the solar system? Is there a more advanced existence in the universe than human civilization? If there are alien creatures, what do they look like?
Alien E.T. Alien in Film and Television Works
Tell the children that alien civilization
have a conversation
Thesis: You have published four series of "Children's Physics". What is the reason for choosing to talk about "extraterrestrial civilization" this time?
Li miao: The topic of "extraterrestrial civilization" has always been one of the most interesting topics for children and parents. If we investigate the scientific problems that children are most concerned about, it is estimated that dinosaurs rank first, followed by extraterrestrial civilization. There are so many sci-fi movies and literary works involving aliens, because not only children but also adults like such topics. Therefore, after a series of children's popular science about physics, we will talk about aliens. In addition, the topic of aliens involves the intersection of astronomy, physics and biology, and I am also very interested.
Paper: What is the biggest difference between telling children physics and telling adults? What methods should be used to make children understand profound content?
Li miao: Actually, the first thing to tell children and adults about physics and any other scientific knowledge is * * *: no one doesn't like to absorb knowledge by listening to stories. Therefore, the first way I want to use is to tell stories. What is the biggest difference between children and adults? In fact, most children have not learned anything systematically. They are very open, unlike adults who set their own boundaries. In this way, you should tell your children freely, which is why I told them about quantum mechanics from the beginning. Of course, there are other differences between children and adults. For example, they certainly won't like you to mention any formula, except for a few "schoolmasters". The bigger the target group for my writing, the better.
Stills of the movie "arrival"
Newspaper: What do you think of the images of "aliens" in science fiction and movies? How reasonable are these speculations about "aliens"? What is the significance of science fiction works such as Star Wars, Crazy Alien and Three-body for us to further explore "aliens"?
Li miao: Aliens are imagined by human beings based on themselves and life on the earth. At most, it is influenced by current human science and technology. For example, some aliens have computer-like shapes or brains, so unreasonable imagination hardly exists. Of course, some imagination does not refer to scientific knowledge, such as the size of monsters. For this knowledge, please see my physics in science fiction.
I think, on the contrary, novels without images are more interesting. For example, there is no specific setting about the image of aliens in "Three-body". Star Wars is the earliest literary work about aliens, and its imagination can only be like that. And "Crazy Alien", frankly speaking, I don't think it is a real science fiction movie, and its alien image is purely entertaining.
Stills of Crazy Alien
Paper: In this book, you also introduced the earth where we live and the birth of intelligent life in detail. How does this help children understand "extraterrestrial civilization"?
Li miao: The origin of life is the only one of the three so-called origin questions that has not been satisfactorily answered, so I say that aliens may focus more on understanding life on our earth. I just borrowed the topic of aliens to make children more interested in life science and the origin of life. Everyone is saying that "2 1 century is the century of biology", and I basically agree with this view. The so-called extraterrestrial civilization, or more popularly speaking, extraterrestrial life, is bound to appear in a logic similar to life on earth.
Paper: Why do you come to the conclusion in the book that life appeared on the earth by accident, so there are no aliens, at least not in our galaxy? Do you think that human beings will be the only intelligent life in the universe at present?
Li miao: I'm quite sure that the earth civilization is the only intelligent life in the galaxy. It's simple. If there are aliens in the Milky Way, then a very developed civilization has emerged among them, leaving any clues on the earth (such as their micro-robots). There is another biological reason to support my view: human beings have not synthesized life in any sense in the laboratory, which shows that the emergence of life is extremely accidental. My point of view is an extreme: I think we are the only intelligent life in the universe.
Paper: Looking back on the long history of human exploration of aliens and livable planets, you think that two things must be done in the future: first, continue to look for super earth; Second, vigorously develop the space industry. Why do you say that? Is it possible for human genes to be sent to the super earth? What will happen to China's space industry?
Li miao: The whole galaxy belongs to us, which is why we say "our journey is a sea of stars". Human genes were sent out of the earth. For example, last year, Liu and my genes from the Endless Gate were put into solar orbit. It is only a matter of time before the human gene is sent out of the solar system, much like the second scheme in the movie Wandering Earth. China is already a space power and will become a space power in the near future.
Thesis: As a physicist, you have been doing popular science in recent years, and it is very popular. In your opinion, what are the misunderstandings in the current popular science education for children?
Li miao: Scientists are the easiest to explain their subjects to their peers, followed by graduate students and college students. It is the most difficult thing to do popular science for the biggest crowd. Popular science for children has been developing, just as all fields have been developing. We should cherish all our hard-working colleagues. As for the so-called "misunderstanding", those who enter "misunderstanding" will naturally be eliminated.
Paper: What interesting physics content are you going to tell your children in the future? As a "popular science writer who loves poetry", which poem do you want to choose most for these children who like science?
Li miao: I plan to publish three books this year, Three-body Teaching Children Physics, which is another series. As for the next topic in the series "Children's Physics" published by Gibb Tian Juan, we should seriously think about it. As for poetry, I can answer this question with a "poetic" attitude: literature has neither the best nor what I want most.