Cosmic Connection (33 page)

I can imagine, in such a galaxy, great civilizations growing up near the black holes, with the planets far from black holes designated as farm worlds, ecological preserves, vacations and resorts, specialty manufacturers, outposts for poets and musicians, and retreats for those who do not cherish big-city life. The discovery of such a galactic culture might happen at any moment–for example, by radio signals sent to the Earth from civilizations on planets of other stars. Or such a discovery might not occur for many centuries, until a lone small vehicle from Earth approaches a nearby black hole and there discovers the usual array of buoys to warn off improperly outfitted spacecraft, and encounters the local immigration officers, among whose duties it is to explain the transportation conventions to newly arrived yokels from emerging civilizations.

The deaths of massive stars may provide the means for transcending the present boundaries of space and time, making all of the universe accessible to life, and–in the last deep sense–unifying the cosmos.