Exactly, String Theory is the layman's Rubik's Cube: "It's a stupid toy, because I don't understand it and therefore can't show it off to my friends! Baww...."

You, sir, are a low life, terribly fond of his own delusion of being in a legitimate, respectable business. But I'm sure the money you extort from honest people makes a lot of people shut up in your face. However, everyone despises you behind your back. Kudos for being honest about your 'business', though!

When was the last time you timed out a website address in full? Current browser technology dictates that it's easier to just google a company. And after first finding the site you are looking for, no more than a couple of typed letters uniquely identify the desired website. Even Google itself hardly needs its epynomal domain name, although users might be sceptical about surfing to www..com. So, pick any domain name, as long as it seems trustworthy. I'll leave pointing out the downsides of this approach to you...

Are there certain parts of a standard that leave enough room for interpretation by the auditor to warrant an lawsuit if in hindsight this interpretation may be demonstrably flawed? Or, given all relevant information, will different auditors, following their auditing standards (damn, circular), reach the same conclusion?

...I'm listening to the music of Warcraft II, just for the awesome! The Fury of the Furries Amiga Forest theme, another such classic. The only games I play are games of yore!

We will die of disease, most likely. As we keep interbreeding, genetic veriation keeps going down. There does nog seem to be an end in sight to this process. But that is only after we, letting even the unfittest outbreed the smartest, have degenerated into mediocrity. A flu virus will at some time mutate into a persistent and very deadly variation, unless an airborne HIV-mutant beats it to the punch.

I'm convinced that I have developed a quite sophisticated online ad blind spot. I cannot remember ever having clicked on an add on purpose. As matter of fact, the only ad I can remember is the "how to lose your virginity" ad when googling "world of warcraft"

Or you could ask:
How long does it take to get on the highway?
How long does it take to get dressed?
How long does it take to get the shower temperature right?

The questions you ask refer more to delay times in starting applications, and overall responsiveness.

"Roughly speaking, we predict there could be a 1,000-time reduction in power consumption with electronic computers built in this new way"

Bullshit alert! As we all know, even 2 is a 'rough estimate' of a 1000, allthough not a very good one. But I suppose 1000 sounds both high enough to ensure next year's funding and still be plausible. "It's a nice round number too! People like that, they understand the number 1000, in that it is a lot!" Anyway, found any water on Mars yet?

Now who's being simplistic...

Life doen not simply come into existence in all it's complexity; there must some driving force for it to extend beyond the most simple stages. In our case, evolution got us to where we are now, and curiosity is driving us where evolution can't take us anymore. I cannot imagine life just staying put; it must either advance or go extinct.

1) All life considers itself supreme in apparent absence of the contrary. The vastness of space will also ensure at least millennia of breating room between first radio contact and first real contact. Besides, if they are capable of interstellar traval and willing to destroy us at first sight, what are the chances we have escaped their attention for so long?

2) Wars will be fought before resources become so scarce we can't power the LHC anymore. If they couldn't spare any resources to begin with, they wouldn't have advances as far as they did.

3) Yes, and somehow all of them will have missed electromagnetic radiation and its uses entirely.

4) Just like us, they son't know, but it can't hurt to try.

5) Intelligent hyve minds don't just suddenly dome into existence, like our beloved Gods.

6) This is just a temporary redistribution of resources.

And so on.

Fermi's paradox is a paradox, a discrepancy between what we see, and what we would expect to see, in essence telling us to look for other ways of communication besides messages in bottles.

In conclusion, we are not special, and it is very likely that our development is simply the most likely one. Our environment, in all its abundance, is simply the most likely one to spawn life. We are not special, and therefore every other civilization will probably be a lot like ours.

Indeed, anything is possible, but there is absolutely nothing that supports your suggestion, not unlike relgion...

How much longer will we be sending out signals into the ether? In 20 years time, everything except the last few yards will be through optical fiber. Furthermore, we have no reason to be sending huge amounts of radiation into space, and would we want to? Vis a vis Zebrowski' The Killing Star.

From our point of view, it seems far more logical than first contact will be made through AI, which probably isn't even in contact with its home planet anymore. Assuming aliens are like us may seem arrogant, but it's still the best assumption, though other ways are possible of course.

I don't buy into the argument that we can't communicate with higher life forms, just because we can't communicate with lower lifeforms, which isn't even 100% true. We are blessed with Socratean humility, and high life forms will too. But I suppose you can cast doubt on any assumption, even these.

Immediately, Chinese action movie images went through my head. But alas, no Crouching Tiger in space just yet. Would be cool, though, Zero-G Fights.

I don't buy the whole 'Big Brother'-argument. It's a matter of time before the public gets used to things like this. Now it's possible, and in ten years time, we wonder what the fuss was all about. Although you are right in saying that Obama first opposes the very same ideas he now endorses.
There is a BRCA-free baby now, the gate is open. Let the genetic engineering fest begin! I don't oppose it, I don't welcome it, I just accept it.