Hello, SFIA audio listeners. In this month's Nebula exclusive, Big Alien Theory,

we're asked at the reason alien civilizations might be rare is because most aliens are huge.

To hear it and every episode early and add-free, plus hours of bonus content,

check out go.nebula.tv slash Isaac Arthur and use my code, Isaac Arthur.

There are many ways to measure how advanced a civilization is, by its feats of architecture

or art or philosophy or wisdom, how big and numerous their guns are probably is not the

best measure of things, but they may make a very convincing case to those who feel otherwise.

So welcome back to another sci-fi Sunday here on SFIA, where we explore the science

behind science fiction and ask how realistic it is and what real science paths might allow a

given sci-fi technology or something parallel.

Today we'll be examining super weapons, from those just a bit stronger than we have now,

to those which might ruin worlds or even rack whole universes, tearing out the fabric of

space-time itself.

We'll explore the weapons of the far future and those which might be used to attack your enemies

in the past, and if that sounds like a fun topic, make sure to hit those like and subscribe buttons.

Now, a problem we often have in science fiction is that a lot of the time,

the weapons on display are actually a good deal weaker and less effective than modern ones.

Frequently you'll see a show where they've got advanced lasers and phasers that are all high-tech,

but weaker and less accurate than modern sidearms.

There's also nothing between laser pistol and blow-up planet, not much in terms of tanks and artillery,

and even assault rifles and short-mounted rocket launch or equivalents are pretty rare.

In fairness to TV shows, with classic sci-fi TV shows, you're often

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