The Search for Extraterrestrial Life: Recent Developments

The Search for Extraterrestrial Life: Recent Developments
Author: M.D. Papagiannis
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 553
Release: 2012-12-06
Genre: Science
ISBN: 940095462X

PROCEEDINGS IAU S)1WOSIUM 112 Michael D. Papagiannis Department of Astronomy Boston University Boston, Massachusetts 02215, USA 1. THE SYMPOSIUM AND THE PROCEEDINGS IAU Symposium 112 - The Search for Extraterrestrial Life: Recent Developments, was held in Boston and in particular at the new Science Center of Boston University, June 18-21, 1984, and was attended by about 150 participants from 18 different countries. It was the first official scientific meeting organized by IAti Commission 51, the youngest of all IAU Commissions, which was established only in 1982 at the 18-th IAU General Assembly at Patras, Greece. This Volume of the Proceedings contains nearly 70 papers with about 90 authors from 20 different countries, including two papers from our Soviet colleagues (Kardashev and Slysh) who had not been able to attend our Symposium in Boston. The Volume is divided into eight Sections, the first of which serves as a general introduction, and the other seven correspond to the seven Sessions of the Symposium.

The Search for Extraterrestrial Life: Recent Developments

The Search for Extraterrestrial Life: Recent Developments
Author: International Astronomical Union. Symposium
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 620
Release: 1985-09-30
Genre: Science
ISBN:

Proceedings on the 112th Symposium of the International Astronomical Union held at Boston University, Boston, Mass., U.S.A., June 18-21, 1984

Literature 1985, Part 2

Literature 1985, Part 2
Author: S. Böhme
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 1106
Release: 2013-12-14
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3662111780

Astronomy and Astrophysics Abstracts aims to present a comprehensive documen tation ofthe literatme concerning all aspects of astronomy, astrophysics, and their border fields. lt is devoted to the recording, summarizing, and indexing of the relevant publications throughout the world. Astronomy and Astrophysics Abstracts is prepared by a special department of the Astronomisches Rechen-Institut under the auspices of the International Astronomical Union. Volume 40 records literatme published in 1985 and received before February 15, 1986. Some older documents which we received late and which arenot surveyed in earlier volumes are included too. We acknowledge with thanks contributions of our colleagues all over the world. We also express our gratitude to all organiza tions, observatories, and publishers which provide us with complimentary copies of their publications. Starting with Volume 33, all the recording, correction, and data processing work was dorre by means of computers. The recording was dorre by om technical staff members Ms. Helga Ballmann, Ms. Mona El-Choura (t), Ms. Monika Kohl, Ms. Sylvia Matyssek. Ms. Karirr Burkhardt, Ms. Susanne Schlötelbmg, Mr. Mar tin Schlötelburg, and Mr. Stefan Wagner supported om task by careful proof reading. lt is a pleasure to thank them all for their encomagement.

Space, Time, and Aliens

Space, Time, and Aliens
Author: Steven J. Dick
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 795
Release: 2020-05-11
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3030416143

In this comprehensive and interdisciplinary volume, former NASA Chief Historian Steven Dick reflects on the exploration of space, astrobiology and its implications, cosmic evolution, astronomical institutions, discovering and classifying the cosmos, and the philosophy of astronomy. The unifying theme of the book is the connection between cosmos and culture, or what Carl Sagan many years ago called the “cosmic connection.” As both an astronomer and historian of science, Dr. Dick has been both a witness to and a participant in many of the astronomical events of the last half century. This collection of papers presents his reflections over the last forty years in a way accessible to historians, philosophers, and scientists alike. From the search for alien life to ongoing space exploration efforts, readers will find this volume full of engaging topics relevant to science, society, and our collective future on planet Earth and beyond.

Weird Life: The Search for Life That Is Very, Very Different from Our Own

Weird Life: The Search for Life That Is Very, Very Different from Our Own
Author: David Toomey
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Total Pages: 246
Release: 2013-02-26
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0393089940

“Weird indeed, and not a little wonderful.”—Nature In the 1980s and 1990s, in places where no one thought it possible, scientists found organisms they called extremophiles: lovers of extremes. There were bacteria in volcanic hydrothermal vents on the ocean floor, single-celled algae in Antarctic ice floes, and fungi in the cooling pools of nuclear reactors. But might there be life stranger than the most extreme extremophile? Might there be, somewhere, another kind of life entirely? In fact, scientists have hypothesized life that uses ammonia instead of water, life based not in carbon but in silicon, life driven by nuclear chemistry, and life whose very atoms are unlike those in life we know. In recent years some scientists have begun to look for the tamer versions of such life on rock surfaces in the American Southwest, in a “shadow biosphere” that might impinge on the known biosphere, and even deep within human tissue. They have also hypothesized more radical versions that might survive in Martian permafrost, in the cold ethylene lakes on Saturn’s moon Titan, and in the hydrogen-rich atmospheres of giant planets in other solar systems. And they have imagined it in places off those worlds: the exotic ices in comets, the vast spaces between the stars, and—strangest of all—parallel universes. Distilling complex science in clear and lively prose, David Toomey illuminates the research of the biological avant-garde and describes the workings of weird organisms in riveting detail. His chapters feature an unforgettable cast of brilliant scientists and cover everything from problems with our definitions of life to the possibility of intelligent weird life. With wit and understanding that will delight scientists and lay readers alike, Toomey reveals how our current knowledge of life forms may account for only a tiny fraction of what’s really out there.

What We Know About Extraterrestrial Intelligence

What We Know About Extraterrestrial Intelligence
Author: Michael Ashkenazi
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 441
Release: 2016-09-23
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3319444565

Have you ever wondered what could happen when we discover another communicating species outside the Earth? This book addresses this question in all its complexity. In addition to the physical barriers for communication, such as the enormous distances where a message can take centuries to reach its recipient, the book also examines the biological problems of communicating between species, the problems of identifying a non-Terrestrial intelligence, and the ethical, religious, legal and other problems of conducting discussions across light years. Most of the book is concerned with issues that could impinge on your life: how do we share experiences with ETI? Can we make shared laws? Could we trade? Would they have religion? The book addresses these and related issues, identifying potential barriers to communication and suggesting ways we can overcome them. The book explores this topic through reference to human experience, through analogy and thought experiment, while relying on what is known to-date about ourselves, our world, and the cosmos we live in.

The Stars of Heaven

The Stars of Heaven
Author: Clifford A. Pickover
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 256
Release: 2004-05-06
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0190291346

Do a little armchair space travel, rub elbows with alien life forms, and stretch your mind to the furthest corners of our uncharted universe. With this astonishing guidebook, you don't have to be an astronomer to explore the mysteries of stars and their profound meaning for human existence. Clifford A. Pickover tackles a range of topics from stellar evolution to the fundamental reasons why the universe permits life to flourish. He alternates sections that explain the mysteries of the cosmos with sections that dramatize mind-expanding concepts through a fictional dialog between futuristic humans and their alien peers (who embark on a journey beyond the reader's wildest imagination). This highly accessible and entertaining approach turns an intimidating subject into a scientific game open to all dreamers. Told in Pickover's inimitable blend of fascinating state-of-the-art science and whimsical science fiction, and packed with numerous diagrams and illustrations, The Stars of Heaven unfolds a world of paradox and mystery, one that will intrigue anyone who has ever pondered the night sky with wonder.

Extraterrestrial Altruism

Extraterrestrial Altruism
Author: Douglas A. Vakoch
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 325
Release: 2013-09-14
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3642377505

Extraterrestrial Altruism examines a basic assumption of the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI): that extraterrestrials will be transmitting messages to us for our benefit. This question of whether extraterrestrials will be altruistic has become increasingly important in recent years as SETI scientists have begun contemplating transmissions from Earth to make contact. Technological civilizations that transmit signals for the benefit of others, but with no immediate gain for themselves, certainly seem to be altruistic. But does this make biological sense? Should we expect altruism to evolve throughout the cosmos, or is this only wishful thinking? Is it dangerous to send messages to other worlds, as Stephen Hawking has suggested, or might humankind benefit from an exchange with intelligence elsewhere in the galaxy? Would extraterrestrial societies be based on different ethical principles, or would we see commonalities with Earthly notions of morality? Extraterrestrial Altruism explores these and related questions about the motivations of civilizations beyond Earth, providing new insights that are critical for SETI. Chapters are authored by leading scholars from diverse disciplines—anthropology, astronomy, biology, chemistry, computer science, cosmology, engineering, history of science, law, philosophy, psychology, public policy, and sociology. The book is carefully edited by Douglas Vakoch, Director of Interstellar Message Composition at the SETI Institute and professor of clinical psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies. The Foreword is by Frank Drake. This interdisciplinary book will benefit everybody trying to understand whether evolution and ethics are unique to Earth, or whether they are built into the fabric of the universe.

Astrobiology

Astrobiology
Author: Julian Chela-Flores
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 343
Release: 2012-12-06
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9401143137

The general topic of this book concerns the origin, evolution, distribution, and destiny of life in the Universe. It discusses the transition from inert matter to cellular life and its evolution to fully developed intelligent beings, and also the possibility of life occurring elsewhere, particularly in other environments in our own and other solar systems. The theoretical framework of Astrobiology may be probed with a forthcoming series of space missions, which at the time of writing are being planned for the next 10 to 15 years. Advanced extraterrestrial life can also be probed by means of radioastronomy in the well-established project of search for extraterrestrial intelligence. Astrobiology pays special attention to the robust growth in our capacity to search for microorganisms, as well as signals of extraterrestrial life, with recent significant technological progress in planetary science and radioastronomy. The progress of the main space agencies is highlighted. Audience: This volume is aimed at advanced undergraduate and graduate students, as well as researchers in the many areas of basic, earth, and life sciences that contribute to the study of chemical evolution and the origin of life.