Grrl Power IV: Constantly Expanded Universe

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What on earth does "starting off with ability to understand and manipulate RNA" even mean

Cephalopods actually posses the ability to change RNA of their neurons possibly other cells, on the fly. Unlike any other animal on earth. It could be temperature driven, but it also could be memory driven. So far it's unknown.

I'm trying to demonstrate how hard it is to even anticipate where such hypothetical creature could start off. For it, electricity would probably come before fire. Or it could discover CRISPR before rockets. This ties to my next point.

And how are they getting to graphene while skipping 100+ years of polymers?

Skipping? You seem to think that tech is a hierarchy like a tree. Tech is honestly much more like a graph, where every hypothetical race starts at different corners, and moves towards higher energies.

Also graphene isn't too hard to create. Just take a piece of charcoal and an adhesive strip...

They need to launch rockets to get the space elevator into place.

Rockets are A way. A way we invented. They aren't necessarily the only way. Nothing says you can't grow your space elevator. Or just launch the elevator with a strong enough railgun.

No. The posts are exactly where they've always been.

It's just that under every one of your assumptions there's a set of complications that need to be addressed before that assumption could be potentially be true -- you're mistaking someone asking those questions for "moving the goalposts".

Yes, and that professor had a subquestion for every answer given. So do you.

In summary, sure there are obstacles, but nothing insourmountable. Worst case scenario they just reinvent rockets and enjoy low gravity environment. Which is similar to their natural habitat.