The Jupiter Hypothetical

[The Troglodyte]

Heard this one the other day:

"How would things be different if Earth was the size of Jupiter?"

[Maloo Oture]

Heard this one the other day:

"How would things be different if Earth was the size of Jupiter?"

Assuming we still has the same mass, gravity, atmospheric pressure, etc?

[Draxas]

I woulod have to assume not, since if Earth were the size of Jupiter it would have to have a miniscule density in order to maintain the same mass. I can't imagine a bipedal lifeform would ever evolve on a rocky world the size of Jupiter, as the extreme gravity would make that extremely impractical.

[The Troglodyte]

Since it's a hypothetical, why don't we look at it from both angles?

How would Earth be different today under the assumption that we have to account for mass and density and any other scientific ramifications involving physics and stuff like that. Would there be any life whatsoever? Would the oceans all evaporate? Observations? Theories? Predictions?

or...

What if Maloo's question were answered by "Yes", and all-powerful supernatural powers (similar to the powers of the "Q" entity) made it possible to account for the atmospheric pressure and gravity and blah, blah, blah science junk. How would civilization and everything else be different had the Earth been this way since the dawn of man? Any thoughts?

[Maloo Oture]

So if science is taken into account, I don't think life as we know it would have ever evolved.

If not, I think the dinosaurs would still be a dominant life form. The asteroid that killed the dinosaurs would not have had the same impact on the planet if Earth were that big. Also, there'd probably be thousands more biomes and even more diversity than the most diverse periods of life on Earth.

[chenjesuwizard]

If not, I think the dinosaurs would still be a dominant life form. The asteroid that killed the dinosaurs would not have had the same impact on the planet if Earth were that big.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-36073592