Thursday, November 01, 2007

Path through the universe, teaching a robot about energy efficiency and secret plans for first contact

Welcome! “Alien Life” tracks the latest discoveries and thoughts in the various elements of the famous Drake Equation. You may notice that this and future entries are shorter than usual; career, family and book deal commitments have forced me to cut back some of my projects. Now, here’s today’s news:
g Abodes - The culprit behind Earth's ice ages may be its inevitable path through the universe. See article.
g Cosmicus - It’s not easy to teach a robot about energy efficiency – but it can be done. Roboticist David Wettergreen explains how. See article.
g Learning - Here’s a useful Web site for educators about microbial life and its role in astrobiology, created by Sarah Bordenstein of the Marine Biological Laboratory: “Microbial Life and Astrobiology”.
g Aftermath - Within the scientific community, the question is no longer whether extraterrestrial life exists, but if ET is smart enough to do long division — and the United States and other world governments already have detailed secret plans for first contact. My apologies in advanced for Popular Mechanic’s lurid title, but the reporting is sound. See article. Note: This article is from 2004.

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