Comments on: When will we find life in space?

By: Ben H.

Ben H. — Mon, 03 Sep 2012 03:07:57 +0000

Phil,
No nod to optical SETI? There are some that now think optical is a more likely source of SETI signals than radio. I think the project at Harvard, funded in part by the Planetary Society, is pretty cool.

Regards,
- Ben H.
Houston, TX

By: dcr

dcr — Fri, 31 Aug 2012 17:42:50 +0000

Actually, none of “us” are going to be around whenever they DO use these “yet to be perfected” “machines” that they are have, to detect “human”-type -life on any other planet…Even though the whole idea may seem kinda strange to some people, I’d love to encounter another non-mammalian form of “life” , to sit-with & like share a cup-of-coffee…OR is this too humanoid?? ?

By: Jim

Jim — Thu, 30 Aug 2012 21:39:25 +0000

While this is an interesting question, I’m skeptical that life originating beyond planet Earth will ever be found. That’s because I believe that the Universe and everything in it are specially created by God and that human beings, created in God’s image are special and unique. All this specialness means that life elsewhere may not have been created at all! I reject the idea of the spontaneous, meaningless, random origin of life. But I admit the speculative nature of this post.

By: Drunk Vegan

Drunk Vegan — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 20:29:25 +0000

@marcher:

Scientists look for Earth-like life for a very simple reason: we have no evidence of any other kind, so we wouldn’t know what else to look for. And even if we found un-Earthly life, we might not recognize it because it would be so different from our own.

Thus the qualifer that is often used in searches for exo-Life, that we are looking for “life as we know it.” IE, something that requires warm, wet conditions, and will typically require oxygen to thrive as well (although there are anaerobic Earthly organisms, just not the norm anymore).

Scientists are well aware of this. It’s not a bias or an oversight. It’s just that looking for life that does not resemble us in at least some small fashion is currently not possible.

By: Geek Media Round-Up: August 28, 2012 – Grasping for the Wind

Geek Media Round-Up: August 28, 2012 – Grasping for the Wind — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 13:44:02 +0000

[...] When will we find life in space? [...]

By: marcher

marcher — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 05:49:05 +0000

you say oxygen is almost certainly an idicator of life…i disagree. I think if fish breathe water and trees breath carbon dioxide, whats to rule out that a human species or something out there can’t breathe oxygen but helium for example? I think you scientists are to quick to not consider there can be stuff out there different than us. That function differently.

By: SkyGazer

SkyGazer — Sun, 26 Aug 2012 08:36:47 +0000

Q: “When will we find life in space?”
A: “When it´s too late…”

By: MaDeR

MaDeR — Sat, 25 Aug 2012 17:05:25 +0000

@reidth …and stars are figments of imagination. Spectra are obviously Satan work.

By: reidh

reidh — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 22:20:49 +0000

Never. it will never be “found” and if imagined to have been “found” it will never be able to be “proven to have been”. bet you (like the amazing randi) $1,000,000.00.

By: amphiox

amphiox — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 20:20:11 +0000

I kind of think that Dyson Spheres are a very 21st Century way of tackling a 31st Century problem.

If you have the technological wherewithal to contemplate building a Dyson Sphere, it is highly likely that you already have far more effective energy generation methods and won’t need to.