Can environmental constraints shape the conceptual limits of intelligent life?
I've been thinking about whether planetary constraints (gravity, atmosphere, etc.) could not only limit spaceflight, but also shape how a civilization conceptualizes the universe—are there any existing models or research on this?
This relates to constraints like Escape Velocity and planetary mass, and could also connect to discussions about the Fermi paradox and habitability work like Super-Earth problems.
My idea is that environmental constraints don’t just limit a civilization’s technology, but also shape the boundaries of what it can perceive and conceptualize about the universe.
A quick thought for anyone wanting to visualize this.
Imagine if intelligent life had evolved on a planet under conditions where,
A high-gravity planet limits chemical rockets and renders them as impractical
A thick atmosphere blocks astronomy
Constant cloud cover -> no visible stars
Result: a civilization that may never develop cosmology as we understand it.
Could this kind of constraint meaningfully contribute to the Fermi paradox, or is it already accounted for in current models? And is this something already explored in the literature, or am I missing a key reason why this wouldn’t hold up?