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 - Earth sits between two worlds that have been devastated by climate catastrophes. In the effort to combat global warming, our neighbors can provide valuable insights into the way climate catastrophes affect planets. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/27climates/.
g Life - Can life travel from planet to planet? A theory called Panspermia says that meteorites could potentially act as miniature spaceships, carrying microorganism passengers. But a new study has found that photosynthetic life probably wouldn’t survive the journey. See http://www.astrobio.net/amee/spring_2007/features.htm.
g Message - SETI research isn’t limited to a single facility listening to radio signals. Another dimension of the program is “Optical SETI,” consisting of two efforts based at Berkeley and two at Harvard. To learn more about it, see http://www.planetary.org/html/UPDATES/seti/oseti_article.html.
g Learning - NASA’s free Astrobiology Education Poster illustrates in words and pictures the fundamental questions addressed by astrobiology: What is life? Where is it? How do you find it? Three activities have been developed to explore these themes. It’s great for teachers — or parents looking to spend some quality time with their children. See http://nai.arc.nasa.gov/poster/index.cfm.
g Imagining - Could the Oankali of Octavia E. Butler’s “Xenogenesis” trilogy really use human genes to continue their species? For a biologist’s analysis, see http://biology.kenyon.edu/slonc/books/butler1.html. The answers may surprise you.
g Aftermath - Once scientists are certain that we’ve received a signal from an extraterrestrial civilization, how would we decide to respond? Read the proposal “A Decision Process for Examining the Possibility of Sending Communications to Extraterrestrial Civilizations”(http://www.iaanet.org/p_papers/seti.html), made at the International Academy of Astronautics meeting in Paris during 2000.
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
Monday, May 07, 2007
Three generations of stars, Martian climate change and Arecibo message
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 Stars - Analysis of Hubble observations of the massive globular cluster NGC 2808 provides evidence that it has three generations of stars that formed early in the cluster's life. This is a major upset for conventional theories as astronomers have long thought that globular star clusters had a single "baby boom" of stars early in their lives and then settled down into a long, quiet middle age. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0705/02babybooms/.
g Abodes - Mars is a very windy place—so windy, in fact, that bright, oxidized Martian soil is being scoured away by Martian winds and dust devils to reveal darker, sub-surface soil with the end result of making the whole planet warmer. Mars is experiencing its own brand of climate change. Is this related to planet Earth’s greenhouse gas driven climate change? No. Is understanding the process important for our understanding of how planets evolve and change over time? Absolutely. See http://www.seti.org/site/apps/nl/content2.asp?c=ktJ2J9MMIsE&b=194993&ct=3827357.
g Life - Unless someone or something stops it soon, the mysterious killer that is wiping out many of the nation's honeybees could have a devastating effect on America's dinner plate, perhaps even reducing us to a glorified bread-and-water diet. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070502_bees_food.html.
g Intelligence - Defects in the brain's white matter, which is responsible for communication between parts of the brain, may be a key genetic factor contributing to schizophrenia, a new study suggests. See http://www.livescience.com/healthday/603946.html.
g Message - In 1974, astronomers sent the "Arecibo message," a binary-coded signal that decodes to a graphic illustrating some basic characteristics of Earth. The message was intended more to demonstrate the power of the telescope than to contact distant civilizations. Cornell's 25th anniversary announcement includes a decoded explanation and more information about what the scientists were thinking. See http://www.news.cornell.edu/Chronicle/99/11.11.
99/Arecibo_message.html.
g Cosmicus - Bears conk out for up to seven months during the Wisconsin winters, a snooze that would turn a human's muscles into Jell-O. But when nature's alarm clock signals it's time to awaken from hibernation, black bears have just as much muscle mass as when they tucked themselves in for the deep slumber, a new study finds. The discovery could ultimately help astronauts and the bed-ridden maintain their skeletal muscles. In fact, the research was initially spurred by astronauts who had trouble recovering after a trip to space. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070503_bear
_hibernators.html.
g Learning - Here’s a neat Web site to introduce kids who go ga-ga over movie aliens to the science of astrobiology: http://www.riverdeep.
net/current/2002/03/031802_extraterrestrials.jhtml.
g Imagining - Many science fiction story lines involve alien life forms. From a literary prospective, aliens often serve as metaphors for something more familiar. From a practical prospective, they make stories more interesting and TV more eye-catching. But what of scientific accuracy? A professor offers his advice about “How to Build an Alien” at http://people.msoe.edu/~tritt/sf/BuildAnAlien.pdf.
g Aftermath - Book alert: You may have to really scour used book stores for this one: 1976’s “ETI: The First Encounter” considers the consequences to man's view of himself and his world of the first proven contact — when it comes — with beings from another planet. Edited by James L. Christian, this book led the way in reflecting on the next stage in man's gradual self-discovery. For the table of contents and ISBN, see http://www.skeptic.de/b/0074.php4.
g Stars - Analysis of Hubble observations of the massive globular cluster NGC 2808 provides evidence that it has three generations of stars that formed early in the cluster's life. This is a major upset for conventional theories as astronomers have long thought that globular star clusters had a single "baby boom" of stars early in their lives and then settled down into a long, quiet middle age. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0705/02babybooms/.
g Abodes - Mars is a very windy place—so windy, in fact, that bright, oxidized Martian soil is being scoured away by Martian winds and dust devils to reveal darker, sub-surface soil with the end result of making the whole planet warmer. Mars is experiencing its own brand of climate change. Is this related to planet Earth’s greenhouse gas driven climate change? No. Is understanding the process important for our understanding of how planets evolve and change over time? Absolutely. See http://www.seti.org/site/apps/nl/content2.asp?c=ktJ2J9MMIsE&b=194993&ct=3827357.
g Life - Unless someone or something stops it soon, the mysterious killer that is wiping out many of the nation's honeybees could have a devastating effect on America's dinner plate, perhaps even reducing us to a glorified bread-and-water diet. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070502_bees_food.html.
g Intelligence - Defects in the brain's white matter, which is responsible for communication between parts of the brain, may be a key genetic factor contributing to schizophrenia, a new study suggests. See http://www.livescience.com/healthday/603946.html.
g Message - In 1974, astronomers sent the "Arecibo message," a binary-coded signal that decodes to a graphic illustrating some basic characteristics of Earth. The message was intended more to demonstrate the power of the telescope than to contact distant civilizations. Cornell's 25th anniversary announcement includes a decoded explanation and more information about what the scientists were thinking. See http://www.news.cornell.edu/Chronicle/99/11.11.
99/Arecibo_message.html.
g Cosmicus - Bears conk out for up to seven months during the Wisconsin winters, a snooze that would turn a human's muscles into Jell-O. But when nature's alarm clock signals it's time to awaken from hibernation, black bears have just as much muscle mass as when they tucked themselves in for the deep slumber, a new study finds. The discovery could ultimately help astronauts and the bed-ridden maintain their skeletal muscles. In fact, the research was initially spurred by astronauts who had trouble recovering after a trip to space. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070503_bear
_hibernators.html.
g Learning - Here’s a neat Web site to introduce kids who go ga-ga over movie aliens to the science of astrobiology: http://www.riverdeep.
net/current/2002/03/031802_extraterrestrials.jhtml.
g Imagining - Many science fiction story lines involve alien life forms. From a literary prospective, aliens often serve as metaphors for something more familiar. From a practical prospective, they make stories more interesting and TV more eye-catching. But what of scientific accuracy? A professor offers his advice about “How to Build an Alien” at http://people.msoe.edu/~tritt/sf/BuildAnAlien.pdf.
g Aftermath - Book alert: You may have to really scour used book stores for this one: 1976’s “ETI: The First Encounter” considers the consequences to man's view of himself and his world of the first proven contact — when it comes — with beings from another planet. Edited by James L. Christian, this book led the way in reflecting on the next stage in man's gradual self-discovery. For the table of contents and ISBN, see http://www.skeptic.de/b/0074.php4.
Sunday, May 06, 2007
Young stars are destroying their natal dust cloud, liquid water possibly on exoplanet and astrobiology’s fundamental questions and
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 Stars - Two rambunctious young stars are destroying their natal dust cloud with powerful jets of radiation, in an infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. The stars are located approximately 600 light-years away in a cosmic cloud called BHR 71. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0705/03hiddenstars/.
g Abodes - Astronomers have discovered the most Earth-like planet outside our Solar System to date, an exoplanet with a radius only 50% larger than the Earth and possibly having liquid water on its surface. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2311mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Life - Even though they had the ability to evolve and survive for hundreds of millions of years - since before the time of the dinosaurs and through many climatic regimes - the massive, worldwide decline of amphibians can best be understood by their inability to keep pace with the current rate of global change, a new study suggests. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070501075044.htm.
g Intelligence - Despite decades of research , there is no proven link between video game violence and real-world violence. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070425_bad_video.html.
g Message - Visiting another civilization on a distant world would be fascinating, but at present such a trip is beyond our capabilities. However, it is perfectly within our capabilities to develop a communications system using a powerful transmitter and a sensitive receiver, and using it to search the sky for alien worlds whose citizens have a similar inclination. See http://www.vectorsite.net/taseti.html.
g Cosmicus - How do you get rid of the body of a dead astronaut on a three-year mission to Mars and back? See http://www.space.com/ap_070502_nasa_death.html.
g Learning - Here’s a cool introduction to astrobiology: A concept map of the field’s fundamental questions with links to each one: http://electra.ihmc.us/servlet/SBReadResourceServletrid=
1025201081978_2008951983_2137&partName=htmltext.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read C.M. Kornbluth’s short story "The Silly Season," originally published in F&SF (Fall 1950).
g Aftermath - If you could send a message to an extraterrestrial somewhere across the galaxy, what would you say? Post your own message or read some of the highlighted submissions at this Web site.
g Stars - Two rambunctious young stars are destroying their natal dust cloud with powerful jets of radiation, in an infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. The stars are located approximately 600 light-years away in a cosmic cloud called BHR 71. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0705/03hiddenstars/.
g Abodes - Astronomers have discovered the most Earth-like planet outside our Solar System to date, an exoplanet with a radius only 50% larger than the Earth and possibly having liquid water on its surface. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2311mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Life - Even though they had the ability to evolve and survive for hundreds of millions of years - since before the time of the dinosaurs and through many climatic regimes - the massive, worldwide decline of amphibians can best be understood by their inability to keep pace with the current rate of global change, a new study suggests. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070501075044.htm.
g Intelligence - Despite decades of research , there is no proven link between video game violence and real-world violence. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070425_bad_video.html.
g Message - Visiting another civilization on a distant world would be fascinating, but at present such a trip is beyond our capabilities. However, it is perfectly within our capabilities to develop a communications system using a powerful transmitter and a sensitive receiver, and using it to search the sky for alien worlds whose citizens have a similar inclination. See http://www.vectorsite.net/taseti.html.
g Cosmicus - How do you get rid of the body of a dead astronaut on a three-year mission to Mars and back? See http://www.space.com/ap_070502_nasa_death.html.
g Learning - Here’s a cool introduction to astrobiology: A concept map of the field’s fundamental questions with links to each one: http://electra.ihmc.us/servlet/SBReadResourceServletrid=
1025201081978_2008951983_2137&partName=htmltext.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read C.M. Kornbluth’s short story "The Silly Season," originally published in F&SF (Fall 1950).
g Aftermath - If you could send a message to an extraterrestrial somewhere across the galaxy, what would you say? Post your own message or read some of the highlighted submissions at this Web site.
Saturday, May 05, 2007
Determining age of stars, heavenly answer to earthly problem and what it’s like to be a SETI astronomer
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 Stars - A new method has been developed for accurately determining the ages of stars, and it may also help astronomers understand how planetary systems and their host stars change over time. See article.
g Abodes - If global warming sizzles out of control, could 16 trillion small disks deflect enough sunlight to cool the planet? Astronomer Roger Angel proposes to find out. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload&name
=News&file=article&sid=2309mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Life - Scientists unveiled bones from two 82-foot behemoths they said were the largest dinosaurs ever found in Australia. See http://
www.livescience.com/animalworld/070504_ap_giant_bones.html.
g Intelligence - You don't have to be smart to be rich. Individuals with below-average IQ test scores were just as wealthy as brainiacs, finds a national survey. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070424_rich_smart.html.
g Message - What’s it like to be a SETI astronomer, listening for alien radio signals? See http://msnbc.msn.com/id/3077998/. Note: This article is from 2000.
g Cosmicus - An astronaut glove stitched together on a Maine engineer's dining room table won a cool $200,000 Thursday in a NASA competition. See http://www.space.com/businesstechnology/070504_
astronaut_glove_win.html.
g Learning - A complaint lodged again and again against science fiction aliens is that they look too much like us. Is that complaint valid? Is it so unlikely that extraterrestrials would look at least similar (though not identical) to humans? If so, then what would beings, intelligent or not so intelligent, who evolved on another world look like? That's what Cliff Pickover explores in The Science of Aliens.Though the book is a few years old, it’s still worth reading. There’s a review of it at http://ufos.about.com/library/weekly/aa110998.htm and an interview with the author at http://ufos.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htmsite=
http://sprott.physics.wisc.edu/pickover/soa.htm.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read David Bischoff’s "The Xaxrling of J. Arnold Boysenberry," anthologized in “First Contact,” edited by Martin H. Greenberg & Larry Segriff (published by DAW, 1997).
g Aftermath - As SETI's scientists plan for their first contact with other worlds, who better to consult with than anthropologists, who specialize in encounters with exotic cultures? And thus, over the past several years the SETI Institute has repeatedly brought together anthropologists and scholars from other disciplines, in an attempt to bridge the gap between humans and extraterrestrials. See http://www.space.com/searchforlife/seti_culture_070503.html.
g Stars - A new method has been developed for accurately determining the ages of stars, and it may also help astronomers understand how planetary systems and their host stars change over time. See article.
g Abodes - If global warming sizzles out of control, could 16 trillion small disks deflect enough sunlight to cool the planet? Astronomer Roger Angel proposes to find out. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload&name
=News&file=article&sid=2309mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Life - Scientists unveiled bones from two 82-foot behemoths they said were the largest dinosaurs ever found in Australia. See http://
www.livescience.com/animalworld/070504_ap_giant_bones.html.
g Intelligence - You don't have to be smart to be rich. Individuals with below-average IQ test scores were just as wealthy as brainiacs, finds a national survey. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070424_rich_smart.html.
g Message - What’s it like to be a SETI astronomer, listening for alien radio signals? See http://msnbc.msn.com/id/3077998/. Note: This article is from 2000.
g Cosmicus - An astronaut glove stitched together on a Maine engineer's dining room table won a cool $200,000 Thursday in a NASA competition. See http://www.space.com/businesstechnology/070504_
astronaut_glove_win.html.
g Learning - A complaint lodged again and again against science fiction aliens is that they look too much like us. Is that complaint valid? Is it so unlikely that extraterrestrials would look at least similar (though not identical) to humans? If so, then what would beings, intelligent or not so intelligent, who evolved on another world look like? That's what Cliff Pickover explores in The Science of Aliens.Though the book is a few years old, it’s still worth reading. There’s a review of it at http://ufos.about.com/library/weekly/aa110998.htm and an interview with the author at http://ufos.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htmsite=
http://sprott.physics.wisc.edu/pickover/soa.htm.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read David Bischoff’s "The Xaxrling of J. Arnold Boysenberry," anthologized in “First Contact,” edited by Martin H. Greenberg & Larry Segriff (published by DAW, 1997).
g Aftermath - As SETI's scientists plan for their first contact with other worlds, who better to consult with than anthropologists, who specialize in encounters with exotic cultures? And thus, over the past several years the SETI Institute has repeatedly brought together anthropologists and scholars from other disciplines, in an attempt to bridge the gap between humans and extraterrestrials. See http://www.space.com/searchforlife/seti_culture_070503.html.
Friday, May 04, 2007
Planetary climate catastrophes, rock-etching microorganisms and ‘After Contact, Then What?’
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 Stars - Studying our solar neighbors, Mars and Venus, can provide climate scientists with valuable insights into the way climate catastrophes affect planets. The knowledge that scientists are gaining from current missions like Mars Express and Venus Express may help us understand the future of life on our planet. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2314mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Abodes - Micron-sized cavities created by the actions of rock-etching microorganisms known as euendoliths are explored as a biosignature for life on early Earth and perhaps Mars. Rock-dwelling organisms can tolerate extreme environmental stresses and are excellent candidates for the colonization of early Earth and planetary surfaces. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0122.
g Intelligence - If you’re looking for a quick memory fix, move your eyes from side-to-side for 30 seconds, researchers say. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070425_eyes_memory.html.
g Message - The next generation of big radio telescopes won't look anything like today's massive dishes. Instead of giant steel constructions towering into the sky, the future will belong to more economical arrays of many small antennas hugging the ground. And, in a historic role reversal, searchers for extraterrestrial intelligence are blazing a trail for conventional radio astronomy to follow. See http://skyandtelescope.com/printable/resources/seti/
article_256.asp.
g Learning - From Astrobiology Magazine, European Edition comes a story of a now legendary meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science in Oxford. On June 30, 1860, Darwin’s Bulldog, Thomas Huxley, strode into the meeting and faced a large and eager audience. His opponent for the evening was Bishop Wilberforce of Oxford - a fervent public speaker who was nicknamed Soapy Sam for his habit of rubbing his hands together as he sermonized. But Wilberforce was about to meet his match. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload&
name=News&file=article&sid=2222mode=thread&order=
0&thold=0.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Jeff Berkwits’ story "First Contact," which appeared in the August 1996 issue of “Keen!”
g Aftermath - Though an older Web posting, “After Contact, Then What?” (http://www.setileague.org/askdr/whatnext.htm) shows how little we’ve thought about this question.
g Stars - Studying our solar neighbors, Mars and Venus, can provide climate scientists with valuable insights into the way climate catastrophes affect planets. The knowledge that scientists are gaining from current missions like Mars Express and Venus Express may help us understand the future of life on our planet. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2314mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Abodes - Micron-sized cavities created by the actions of rock-etching microorganisms known as euendoliths are explored as a biosignature for life on early Earth and perhaps Mars. Rock-dwelling organisms can tolerate extreme environmental stresses and are excellent candidates for the colonization of early Earth and planetary surfaces. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0122.
g Intelligence - If you’re looking for a quick memory fix, move your eyes from side-to-side for 30 seconds, researchers say. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070425_eyes_memory.html.
g Message - The next generation of big radio telescopes won't look anything like today's massive dishes. Instead of giant steel constructions towering into the sky, the future will belong to more economical arrays of many small antennas hugging the ground. And, in a historic role reversal, searchers for extraterrestrial intelligence are blazing a trail for conventional radio astronomy to follow. See http://skyandtelescope.com/printable/resources/seti/
article_256.asp.
g Learning - From Astrobiology Magazine, European Edition comes a story of a now legendary meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science in Oxford. On June 30, 1860, Darwin’s Bulldog, Thomas Huxley, strode into the meeting and faced a large and eager audience. His opponent for the evening was Bishop Wilberforce of Oxford - a fervent public speaker who was nicknamed Soapy Sam for his habit of rubbing his hands together as he sermonized. But Wilberforce was about to meet his match. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload&
name=News&file=article&sid=2222mode=thread&order=
0&thold=0.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Jeff Berkwits’ story "First Contact," which appeared in the August 1996 issue of “Keen!”
g Aftermath - Though an older Web posting, “After Contact, Then What?” (http://www.setileague.org/askdr/whatnext.htm) shows how little we’ve thought about this question.
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Venus Express at one year, ‘Wow!’ signal hunting and ‘Life on the Edge’
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 Stars - One of the largest panoramic images ever taken with Hubble's cameras has been released to celebrate the 17th anniversary of the launch and deployment of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. The image shows a 50 light-year-wide view of the tumultuous central region of the Carina Nebula where a maelstrom of star birth - and death - is taking place. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/24hubble17/.
g Abodes - One year has passed since Venus Express, Europe's first mission to Venus and the only spacecraft now in orbit around the planet, reached its destination. Since then, this advanced probe, born to explore one of the most mysterious planetary bodies in the Solar System, has been revealing planetary details never caught before. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/15venusexpress/.
g Intelligence - The human brain's ability to process information declines with age, but knowledge about the world through experiences tends to rise over time. So how do these shifts affect a person's ability to make sound decisions? See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070426093412.htm.
g Message - Veteran "Wow!" signal hunter Robert Gray recently turned south in his efforts to track down the elusive signal. In collaboration with the University of Tasmania, Gray used the 26-meter dish in Hobart, Tasmania, to record radio signals from the "Wow!" location for long hours at a time. See what they found at http://www.planetary.org/html/news/articlearchive/headlines/2002/
g Cosmicus - A new robot named Domo may be the next step forward in artificial intelligence. The robot is able to analyze its environment and manipulate objects in ways similar to humans. These abilities may one day help robots explore distant planets and perform complicated scientific studies. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2318mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Learning - Here’s a neat classroom activity: “Life on the Edge.” The lesson plans examine the question, “Is there life on other planets in our solar system? No one knows, but if there is it's probably a microorganism that thrives in extreme environments. Students will follow a dog sled team to a high mountain peak, make "Planets in a Bottle," and learn more about nature's extremophiles. See http://www.thursdaysclassroom.com/index_09sep99.html.
g Imagining - What is panspermia, a concept that appears in a number of science fiction stories, and how plausible is it? See http://www.daviddarling.info/encyclopedia/D/dirpans.html.
g Aftermath - Among scientists involved in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, it’s quite common to be focused on the future, ever mindful that it could take years, or even decades, to find a signal from otherworldly intelligence. But if historian Steve Dick has his way, astronomers will also turn their attention toward the past as they search for life beyond Earth — to discover the aftereffects of contact between two intelligent cultures. See http://www.space.com/searchforlife/seti_vakoch_history_030612.html. Note: This article is from 2003.
g Stars - One of the largest panoramic images ever taken with Hubble's cameras has been released to celebrate the 17th anniversary of the launch and deployment of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. The image shows a 50 light-year-wide view of the tumultuous central region of the Carina Nebula where a maelstrom of star birth - and death - is taking place. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/24hubble17/.
g Abodes - One year has passed since Venus Express, Europe's first mission to Venus and the only spacecraft now in orbit around the planet, reached its destination. Since then, this advanced probe, born to explore one of the most mysterious planetary bodies in the Solar System, has been revealing planetary details never caught before. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/15venusexpress/.
g Intelligence - The human brain's ability to process information declines with age, but knowledge about the world through experiences tends to rise over time. So how do these shifts affect a person's ability to make sound decisions? See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070426093412.htm.
g Message - Veteran "Wow!" signal hunter Robert Gray recently turned south in his efforts to track down the elusive signal. In collaboration with the University of Tasmania, Gray used the 26-meter dish in Hobart, Tasmania, to record radio signals from the "Wow!" location for long hours at a time. See what they found at http://www.planetary.org/html/news/articlearchive/headlines/2002/
g Cosmicus - A new robot named Domo may be the next step forward in artificial intelligence. The robot is able to analyze its environment and manipulate objects in ways similar to humans. These abilities may one day help robots explore distant planets and perform complicated scientific studies. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2318mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Learning - Here’s a neat classroom activity: “Life on the Edge.” The lesson plans examine the question, “Is there life on other planets in our solar system? No one knows, but if there is it's probably a microorganism that thrives in extreme environments. Students will follow a dog sled team to a high mountain peak, make "Planets in a Bottle," and learn more about nature's extremophiles. See http://www.thursdaysclassroom.com/index_09sep99.html.
g Imagining - What is panspermia, a concept that appears in a number of science fiction stories, and how plausible is it? See http://www.daviddarling.info/encyclopedia/D/dirpans.html.
g Aftermath - Among scientists involved in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, it’s quite common to be focused on the future, ever mindful that it could take years, or even decades, to find a signal from otherworldly intelligence. But if historian Steve Dick has his way, astronomers will also turn their attention toward the past as they search for life beyond Earth — to discover the aftereffects of contact between two intelligent cultures. See http://www.space.com/searchforlife/seti_vakoch_history_030612.html. Note: This article is from 2003.
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
Black holes as givers of life, help SETI discover aliens and seeing beneath planetary surfaces
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 Stars - Black holes are often portrayed as the ultimate destroyers, but warm gas escaping the clutches of black holes could be one source of chemical elements important for life. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2310mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Abodes - Scientists using NASA satellite data have found strong evidence that a major earthquake can lead to a nearly immediate increase in regional volcanic activity. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/19earthquakes/.
g Intelligence - A distinguishing feature of human intelligence is our ability to understand the goals and intentions of others. This ability develops gradually during infancy, and the extent to which it is present in other animals is an intriguing question. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070426145103.htm.
g Message - Want to help SETI discover alien life? If you haven’t already done so, download the free SETI at Home software. Using Internet-connected computers, the program downloads and analyzes radio telescope data on your desktop when it is idle. The program has been so successful in plowing through data that other scientific researchers, especially in medicine, are adopting it to their fields. See http://setiathome.ssl.berkeley.edu/ for the program.
g Cosmicus - University of Arkansas researchers will develop a probe for future planetary rovers that will help scientists study the history of the solar system by examining the properties of layers of material beneath the surface of the moon, Mars, comets and other planetary bodies. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2317mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Learning - Here’s a neat classroom activity courtesy of DiscoverSchool.com: “Extraterrestrials.” In the activity, a digital radio message, intended to alert any intelligent life in space to the existence of intelligent life on Earth, has been electronically transmitted into space by the Arecibo radio dish in Puerto Rico. Students must ensure the message is effective by showing that the senders (humans from Earth) are capable of advanced thinking — but it must not depend on the ability of extraterrestrials to understand any Earth language. See http://school.discovery.com/lessonplans/programs/extraterrestrials/
extraterrestrials.rtfprograms/extraterrestrials.rtf.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Arthur C. Clarke’s short story "Loophole," appearing in the April 1946 issue of Astounding.
g Aftermath - If SETI is successful in detecting an extraterrestrial civilization, it will raise the question of whether and how humanity should attempt to communicate with the other civilization. How should that decision be made? What should be the content of such a message? Who should decide? The same questions would apply to proposals that signals be sent in the absence of detection, in the hope that they might be detected by an extraterrestrial civilization. See http://www.iaanet.org/p_papers/seti.html. Note: This paper was presented in October 1995.
g Stars - Black holes are often portrayed as the ultimate destroyers, but warm gas escaping the clutches of black holes could be one source of chemical elements important for life. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2310mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Abodes - Scientists using NASA satellite data have found strong evidence that a major earthquake can lead to a nearly immediate increase in regional volcanic activity. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/19earthquakes/.
g Intelligence - A distinguishing feature of human intelligence is our ability to understand the goals and intentions of others. This ability develops gradually during infancy, and the extent to which it is present in other animals is an intriguing question. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070426145103.htm.
g Message - Want to help SETI discover alien life? If you haven’t already done so, download the free SETI at Home software. Using Internet-connected computers, the program downloads and analyzes radio telescope data on your desktop when it is idle. The program has been so successful in plowing through data that other scientific researchers, especially in medicine, are adopting it to their fields. See http://setiathome.ssl.berkeley.edu/ for the program.
g Cosmicus - University of Arkansas researchers will develop a probe for future planetary rovers that will help scientists study the history of the solar system by examining the properties of layers of material beneath the surface of the moon, Mars, comets and other planetary bodies. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2317mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Learning - Here’s a neat classroom activity courtesy of DiscoverSchool.com: “Extraterrestrials.” In the activity, a digital radio message, intended to alert any intelligent life in space to the existence of intelligent life on Earth, has been electronically transmitted into space by the Arecibo radio dish in Puerto Rico. Students must ensure the message is effective by showing that the senders (humans from Earth) are capable of advanced thinking — but it must not depend on the ability of extraterrestrials to understand any Earth language. See http://school.discovery.com/lessonplans/programs/extraterrestrials/
extraterrestrials.rtfprograms/extraterrestrials.rtf.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Arthur C. Clarke’s short story "Loophole," appearing in the April 1946 issue of Astounding.
g Aftermath - If SETI is successful in detecting an extraterrestrial civilization, it will raise the question of whether and how humanity should attempt to communicate with the other civilization. How should that decision be made? What should be the content of such a message? Who should decide? The same questions would apply to proposals that signals be sent in the absence of detection, in the hope that they might be detected by an extraterrestrial civilization. See http://www.iaanet.org/p_papers/seti.html. Note: This paper was presented in October 1995.
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
Planetary danger zones, Medusa hydrothermal vent field and finding Mars’ underground caves
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 Stars - Scientists have developed the first maps of planetary 'danger zones', where powerful winds and radiation from hot stars can strip neighboring stars of their planet-forming materials. The findings show that potential planets can safely form around cooler stars that are at least 1.6 light-years away from their hotter counterparts. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload&name
=News&file=article&sid=2308mode=thread&
order=0&thold=0.
g Abodes - Scientists have discovered a new 'black smoker' 8,500 feet underwater along the Pacific Ocean floor off Costa Rica. Now dubbed the Medusa hydrothermal vent field, this deep sea environment supports many unique organisms, including some species that may be previously undiscovered. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload&name
=News&file=article&sid=2306mode=thread&
order=0&thold=0.
g Life - Vitamin C is possibly the most important small molecule whose biosynthetic pathway remained a mystery. That is until now. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070427172924.htm.
g Intelligence - Scores on elementary school achievement tests have a lot to do with IQ and where kids end up later in life, a new study shows. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070416_achievement_iq.html.
g Message - If some day we decide to transmit intentional messages to the stars, rather than solely listen as current SETI programs do, what would we say? What sort of first impression would we want to give our celestial correspondents? See http://www.space.com/searchforlife/seti_code_vakoch_030116.html.
g Cosmicus - Underground caves could prove ideal as places for future human explorers to live on Mars. But first, someone has to find them. Jut Wynne is trying to figure out how. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload&name
=News&file=article&sid=2316mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Learning - Here’s a neat classroom activity: “Moons of Jupiter.” In this lesson plan, students build model rovers to learn about engineering and evidence of alien life. See http://www.adlerplanet/arium.org/education/teachers/
plans/alien/Lesson_Plan.pdfarium.org/education/teachers/
plans/alien/Lesson_Plan.pdf.
g Imagining - Like stories about alien anthropology/cultures? Be sure to scour your favorite used bookstores for C.J. Cherryh’s series “The Foreigner Universe,” which includes “Foreigner” (1994), “Invader” (1995) and “Inheritor” (1996). The series traces our dealings with the proud Atevi from first contact, as the single ambassador they will allow on planet tries to prevent war.
g Aftermath - The discovery that alien life exists would mean that we are not the center of the universe. While most religions now recognize that the Earth is just a lump of rock, they still believe that we human beings are the most important thing in creation, that we occupy a special place in God's plan. The existence of aliens would seem to make this implausible especially if they are more advanced than we are (on all levels, intellectually, spiritually) This would mean that God has acted in the development of the aliens in a way he did not act in ours, which in turn would mean that we do not occupy the paramount role in God's creation, which is a fundamental idea in religions. See http://www.philosophos.com/knowledge_base/
archives_10/philosophy_questions_1041.html.
g Stars - Scientists have developed the first maps of planetary 'danger zones', where powerful winds and radiation from hot stars can strip neighboring stars of their planet-forming materials. The findings show that potential planets can safely form around cooler stars that are at least 1.6 light-years away from their hotter counterparts. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload&name
=News&file=article&sid=2308mode=thread&
order=0&thold=0.
g Abodes - Scientists have discovered a new 'black smoker' 8,500 feet underwater along the Pacific Ocean floor off Costa Rica. Now dubbed the Medusa hydrothermal vent field, this deep sea environment supports many unique organisms, including some species that may be previously undiscovered. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload&name
=News&file=article&sid=2306mode=thread&
order=0&thold=0.
g Life - Vitamin C is possibly the most important small molecule whose biosynthetic pathway remained a mystery. That is until now. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070427172924.htm.
g Intelligence - Scores on elementary school achievement tests have a lot to do with IQ and where kids end up later in life, a new study shows. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070416_achievement_iq.html.
g Message - If some day we decide to transmit intentional messages to the stars, rather than solely listen as current SETI programs do, what would we say? What sort of first impression would we want to give our celestial correspondents? See http://www.space.com/searchforlife/seti_code_vakoch_030116.html.
g Cosmicus - Underground caves could prove ideal as places for future human explorers to live on Mars. But first, someone has to find them. Jut Wynne is trying to figure out how. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload&name
=News&file=article&sid=2316mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Learning - Here’s a neat classroom activity: “Moons of Jupiter.” In this lesson plan, students build model rovers to learn about engineering and evidence of alien life. See http://www.adlerplanet/arium.org/education/teachers/
plans/alien/Lesson_Plan.pdfarium.org/education/teachers/
plans/alien/Lesson_Plan.pdf.
g Imagining - Like stories about alien anthropology/cultures? Be sure to scour your favorite used bookstores for C.J. Cherryh’s series “The Foreigner Universe,” which includes “Foreigner” (1994), “Invader” (1995) and “Inheritor” (1996). The series traces our dealings with the proud Atevi from first contact, as the single ambassador they will allow on planet tries to prevent war.
g Aftermath - The discovery that alien life exists would mean that we are not the center of the universe. While most religions now recognize that the Earth is just a lump of rock, they still believe that we human beings are the most important thing in creation, that we occupy a special place in God's plan. The existence of aliens would seem to make this implausible especially if they are more advanced than we are (on all levels, intellectually, spiritually) This would mean that God has acted in the development of the aliens in a way he did not act in ours, which in turn would mean that we do not occupy the paramount role in God's creation, which is a fundamental idea in religions. See http://www.philosophos.com/knowledge_base/
archives_10/philosophy_questions_1041.html.
Monday, April 30, 2007
Symphonic sun, digging into Martian subsurface and asteroid probe
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 Stars - Astronomers have recorded heavenly music bellowed out by the Sun’s atmosphere. See http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/070418_solar_music.html.
g Abodes - Ahead of the Phoenix spacecraft's launch in August, scientists are analyzing images of the Martian surface in order to select a safe and rock-free landing site for the craft on the northern plains of Mars. Once on the ground, Phoenix will dig into the Martian subsurface and help determine if the planet was ever hospitable for life. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop
=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=2305mode=thread
&order=0&thold=0.
g Life - Scientists exploring a mine have uncovered a natural Sistine chapel showing not religious paintings, but incredibly well preserved images of sprawling tree trunks and fallen leaves that once breathed life into an ancient rainforest. See http://www.livescience.com/othernews/070423_fossil_forest.html.
g Intelligence - Since the human-chimp split about 6 million years ago, chimpanzee genes can be said to have evolved more than human genes, a new study suggests. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070417_chimps_evolve.html.
g Message - A technique used to discover the small rocky world that was announced last year also could be used to detect a transmitter with the power of your local TV station at a distance of a hundred light-years, even if the alien broadcasters weren’t beaming our way. See http://space.com/searchforlife/seti_shostak_grail_060202.html.
g Cosmicus - A small Japanese asteroid probe riddled by a streak of bad luck began its slow limp home Wednesday, but officials still face a myriad of challenges to bring the craft back in 2010. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/25hayabusa/.
g Learning - What are university students learning about astrobiology? Check out "An Introduction to Astrobiology." Compiled by a team of experts, this textbook has been designed for elementary university courses in astrobiology. It begins with an examination of how life may have arisen on Earth and then reviews the evidence for possible life on Mars, Europa and Titan. The potential for life in exoplanetary systems and the search for extraterrestrial intelligence are also discussed. The text contains numerous useful learning features such as boxed summaries, student exercises with full solutions, and a glossary of terms. It is also supported by a Web site hosting further teaching materials. Written in an accessible style that avoids complex mathematics, this book is suitable for self-study and will appeal to amateur enthusiasts as well as undergraduate students. It contains numerous helpful learning features such as boxed summaries, student exercises with full solutions, and a glossary of terms. The book is also supported by a Website hosting further teaching materials. See http://www.sciencedaily./com/cgibin/apf4/amazon_
products_feed.cgiOperation=ItemLookup&ItemId=
0521546214.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Paul Dellinger’s short story "Absolution," anthologized in “First Contact” (edited by Martin H. Greenberg & Larry Segriff and published by DAW in 1997).
g Aftermath - Scientists should pay greater attention to discussing the social implications of discovering extraterrestrial life - even though many researchers shy away from the subject because they don't consider it "hard" science. See http://www.astrobio.net/ news/article163.html.
g Stars - Astronomers have recorded heavenly music bellowed out by the Sun’s atmosphere. See http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/070418_solar_music.html.
g Abodes - Ahead of the Phoenix spacecraft's launch in August, scientists are analyzing images of the Martian surface in order to select a safe and rock-free landing site for the craft on the northern plains of Mars. Once on the ground, Phoenix will dig into the Martian subsurface and help determine if the planet was ever hospitable for life. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop
=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=2305mode=thread
&order=0&thold=0.
g Life - Scientists exploring a mine have uncovered a natural Sistine chapel showing not religious paintings, but incredibly well preserved images of sprawling tree trunks and fallen leaves that once breathed life into an ancient rainforest. See http://www.livescience.com/othernews/070423_fossil_forest.html.
g Intelligence - Since the human-chimp split about 6 million years ago, chimpanzee genes can be said to have evolved more than human genes, a new study suggests. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070417_chimps_evolve.html.
g Message - A technique used to discover the small rocky world that was announced last year also could be used to detect a transmitter with the power of your local TV station at a distance of a hundred light-years, even if the alien broadcasters weren’t beaming our way. See http://space.com/searchforlife/seti_shostak_grail_060202.html.
g Cosmicus - A small Japanese asteroid probe riddled by a streak of bad luck began its slow limp home Wednesday, but officials still face a myriad of challenges to bring the craft back in 2010. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/25hayabusa/.
g Learning - What are university students learning about astrobiology? Check out "An Introduction to Astrobiology." Compiled by a team of experts, this textbook has been designed for elementary university courses in astrobiology. It begins with an examination of how life may have arisen on Earth and then reviews the evidence for possible life on Mars, Europa and Titan. The potential for life in exoplanetary systems and the search for extraterrestrial intelligence are also discussed. The text contains numerous useful learning features such as boxed summaries, student exercises with full solutions, and a glossary of terms. It is also supported by a Web site hosting further teaching materials. Written in an accessible style that avoids complex mathematics, this book is suitable for self-study and will appeal to amateur enthusiasts as well as undergraduate students. It contains numerous helpful learning features such as boxed summaries, student exercises with full solutions, and a glossary of terms. The book is also supported by a Website hosting further teaching materials. See http://www.sciencedaily./com/cgibin/apf4/amazon_
products_feed.cgiOperation=ItemLookup&ItemId=
0521546214.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Paul Dellinger’s short story "Absolution," anthologized in “First Contact” (edited by Martin H. Greenberg & Larry Segriff and published by DAW in 1997).
g Aftermath - Scientists should pay greater attention to discussing the social implications of discovering extraterrestrial life - even though many researchers shy away from the subject because they don't consider it "hard" science. See http://www.astrobio.net/ news/article163.html.
Sunday, April 29, 2007
‘Scientists Debate Gaia,’ human brain’s origin and the unlikeliness of anthropomorphic aliens
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 Stars - A giant cloud of superheated gas 6 million light years wide might be formed by the collective sigh of several supermassive black holes, scientists say. See http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/070420_plasma_cloud.html.
g Abodes - In this book review of "Scientists Debate Gaia," Charley Lineweaver discusses what astrobiology and the Gaia hypothesis have in common. Both are trying to recognize new forms of life by seeking universal connections between different kinds of systems. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2302mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Life - Parasites are by definition bad for you. Some, such as malaria, can kill. Others, like microbes known as Wolbachia that are found in more than one-fifth of all insects, often make female hosts less fertile. Now scientists discover parasites can evolve surprisingly rapidly to become helpful instead of harmful. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070426_good_parasite.html.
g Intelligence - The origin of the human brain has been traced back to primitive central nervous systems in worms and bugs, researchers now say. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070421
_worm_brain.html.
g Message - Swiss scientist Michel Mayor, who heads the European team that announced the discovery of a new potentially habitable planet, has his sights set on an even bigger target, detecting signs of extraterrestrial life. Mayor predicts that top researchers are less than two decades away from being able to detect real signs of such life - if it exists. See http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/070425_ap_life_search.html.
g Cosmicus - Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) has been granted a five-year license to launch from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Air Station, the U.S. Air Force Space Command announced April 26. http://www.space.com/news/070426_spacex_capecanaveral.html.
g Learning - Along with personality and peer relationships, a school’s culture also influences whether a child resolves an issue peacefully or goes off the deep end and resorts to violence, a new study finds. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070427_school_culture.html.
g Imagining - Hollywood loves movies about extraterrestrials, but most silver screen aliens - from E.T. to Star Wars - are remarkably anthropomorphic. Scientists say the real aliens may be far stranger than we think. Find out why intelligent life elsewhere in the universe won't resemble Tinseltown's take. See http://www.podcasting
news.com/details/podcast.seti.org/index.html/view.htm for a podcast of this SETI Institute “Are We Alone?” program.
g Aftermath - How's your math? Well, you may want to brush up on it - that is, if you hope to be conversant with ET. Scientists say that any signal we receive from intelligent life is rather unlikely to be in English, but in the language of math. Find out why algebra truly may be an alien concept - just as you suspected in high school - and what a message from another planet might be. See http://www.podcasting
news.com/details/podcast.seti.org/index.html/view.htm for a podcast of this SETI Institute “Are We Alone?” program.
g Stars - A giant cloud of superheated gas 6 million light years wide might be formed by the collective sigh of several supermassive black holes, scientists say. See http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/070420_plasma_cloud.html.
g Abodes - In this book review of "Scientists Debate Gaia," Charley Lineweaver discusses what astrobiology and the Gaia hypothesis have in common. Both are trying to recognize new forms of life by seeking universal connections between different kinds of systems. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2302mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Life - Parasites are by definition bad for you. Some, such as malaria, can kill. Others, like microbes known as Wolbachia that are found in more than one-fifth of all insects, often make female hosts less fertile. Now scientists discover parasites can evolve surprisingly rapidly to become helpful instead of harmful. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070426_good_parasite.html.
g Intelligence - The origin of the human brain has been traced back to primitive central nervous systems in worms and bugs, researchers now say. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070421
_worm_brain.html.
g Message - Swiss scientist Michel Mayor, who heads the European team that announced the discovery of a new potentially habitable planet, has his sights set on an even bigger target, detecting signs of extraterrestrial life. Mayor predicts that top researchers are less than two decades away from being able to detect real signs of such life - if it exists. See http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/070425_ap_life_search.html.
g Cosmicus - Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) has been granted a five-year license to launch from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Air Station, the U.S. Air Force Space Command announced April 26. http://www.space.com/news/070426_spacex_capecanaveral.html.
g Learning - Along with personality and peer relationships, a school’s culture also influences whether a child resolves an issue peacefully or goes off the deep end and resorts to violence, a new study finds. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070427_school_culture.html.
g Imagining - Hollywood loves movies about extraterrestrials, but most silver screen aliens - from E.T. to Star Wars - are remarkably anthropomorphic. Scientists say the real aliens may be far stranger than we think. Find out why intelligent life elsewhere in the universe won't resemble Tinseltown's take. See http://www.podcasting
news.com/details/podcast.seti.org/index.html/view.htm for a podcast of this SETI Institute “Are We Alone?” program.
g Aftermath - How's your math? Well, you may want to brush up on it - that is, if you hope to be conversant with ET. Scientists say that any signal we receive from intelligent life is rather unlikely to be in English, but in the language of math. Find out why algebra truly may be an alien concept - just as you suspected in high school - and what a message from another planet might be. See http://www.podcasting
news.com/details/podcast.seti.org/index.html/view.htm for a podcast of this SETI Institute “Are We Alone?” program.
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Observing atmospheres of alien worlds, meta-cognitive monkeys and how aliens might search for us
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 Stars - The race for the first direct detection of dark matter will move into a new phase in the coming months as the ZEPLIN-II instrument is joined by ZEPLIN-III, the world’s most sensitive dark matter detector. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070419110643.htm.
g Abodes - In 2005, the Deep Impact spacecraft released a probe that blasted a crater in comet Tempel 1, spilling its elements into space so scientists could discover its composition. The assault was justified because comets are thought to be leftovers from the formation of our solar system, so learning more about them helps to understand how our solar system came to be. Now, a proposed extended mission for the spacecraft would observe the atmospheres of alien worlds, and to visit another comet. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/12deepimpact/.
g Life - The bones of a camel between eight and 10,000-years-old have been unearthed near Phoenix by a construction crew building a new Wal-Mart store. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/upi/index.php?feed=Science&article=UPI-1-20070428-09550400-bc-us-camelbones.xml.
g Intelligence - New research from Columbia's Primate Cognition Laboratory has demonstrated for the first time that monkeys could acquire meta-cognitive skills: the ability to reflect about their thoughts and to assess their performance. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070420133813.htm.
g Message - Can aliens find us? With a really nice pair of binoculars, the Great Wall of China (not to mention less romantic constructions, such as interstate highways) does become visible from orbit. Any curious aliens that made it to within a few hundred miles of Earth would have no trouble seeing the artifacts of our civilization. They would know, without doubt, that technologically competent beings roamed our world. But how visible are we to aliens that are farther away? See http://www.space.com/searchforlife/seti_shostak_aliens_031023. html. Here’s the follow-up to the article from 2003: http://www.space.com/searchforlife/seti_shostak_seeing_031120. html.
g Cosmicus - The private rocket company, UP Aerospace, launched their suborbital booster April 28 from New Mexico’s Spaceport America. All indications suggest a highly successful flight and payload recovery - although severe bad weather in the area delayed retrieval operations until Monday. See http://www.livescience.com/blogs/author/leonarddavid.
g Learning - Kurt Fischer and his colleagues looked at the revolution in brain scanning, genetics, and other biological technologies and decided that most teachers and students weren’t getting much benefit from them. Brain scans are now available to watch what’s going on when someone is learning — or not learning. Finding genes that are involved in leaning disabilities is a hot area. Why, they asked, aren’t the powers of such technologies helping teachers in classrooms? See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070426125321.htm.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Isaac Asimov’s “The Gods Themselves” (published by Ballentine in 1972).
g Aftermath - Could religions survive contact with extraterrestrials? The Medieval Church didn't think so, as this would challenge mankind's central role in the cosmos. Today such ideas are considered old fashioned, and many theologians welcome the discovery of life - even intelligent life - among the stars. But if scientists were to find microscopic Martians or a signal from another world, would established religions really take it in stride? See http://www.podcastingnews.com/details/podcast.seti.org/index.
html/view.htm for a podcast of this SETI Institute “Are We Alone?” program.
g Stars - The race for the first direct detection of dark matter will move into a new phase in the coming months as the ZEPLIN-II instrument is joined by ZEPLIN-III, the world’s most sensitive dark matter detector. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070419110643.htm.
g Abodes - In 2005, the Deep Impact spacecraft released a probe that blasted a crater in comet Tempel 1, spilling its elements into space so scientists could discover its composition. The assault was justified because comets are thought to be leftovers from the formation of our solar system, so learning more about them helps to understand how our solar system came to be. Now, a proposed extended mission for the spacecraft would observe the atmospheres of alien worlds, and to visit another comet. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/12deepimpact/.
g Life - The bones of a camel between eight and 10,000-years-old have been unearthed near Phoenix by a construction crew building a new Wal-Mart store. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/upi/index.php?feed=Science&article=UPI-1-20070428-09550400-bc-us-camelbones.xml.
g Intelligence - New research from Columbia's Primate Cognition Laboratory has demonstrated for the first time that monkeys could acquire meta-cognitive skills: the ability to reflect about their thoughts and to assess their performance. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070420133813.htm.
g Message - Can aliens find us? With a really nice pair of binoculars, the Great Wall of China (not to mention less romantic constructions, such as interstate highways) does become visible from orbit. Any curious aliens that made it to within a few hundred miles of Earth would have no trouble seeing the artifacts of our civilization. They would know, without doubt, that technologically competent beings roamed our world. But how visible are we to aliens that are farther away? See http://www.space.com/searchforlife/seti_shostak_aliens_031023. html. Here’s the follow-up to the article from 2003: http://www.space.com/searchforlife/seti_shostak_seeing_031120. html.
g Cosmicus - The private rocket company, UP Aerospace, launched their suborbital booster April 28 from New Mexico’s Spaceport America. All indications suggest a highly successful flight and payload recovery - although severe bad weather in the area delayed retrieval operations until Monday. See http://www.livescience.com/blogs/author/leonarddavid.
g Learning - Kurt Fischer and his colleagues looked at the revolution in brain scanning, genetics, and other biological technologies and decided that most teachers and students weren’t getting much benefit from them. Brain scans are now available to watch what’s going on when someone is learning — or not learning. Finding genes that are involved in leaning disabilities is a hot area. Why, they asked, aren’t the powers of such technologies helping teachers in classrooms? See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070426125321.htm.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Isaac Asimov’s “The Gods Themselves” (published by Ballentine in 1972).
g Aftermath - Could religions survive contact with extraterrestrials? The Medieval Church didn't think so, as this would challenge mankind's central role in the cosmos. Today such ideas are considered old fashioned, and many theologians welcome the discovery of life - even intelligent life - among the stars. But if scientists were to find microscopic Martians or a signal from another world, would established religions really take it in stride? See http://www.podcastingnews.com/details/podcast.seti.org/index.
html/view.htm for a podcast of this SETI Institute “Are We Alone?” program.
Friday, April 27, 2007
Photographing exoearths, chimp vs. human evolution and first contact stories
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 Stars - An Anglo-American team of astronomers have used the Advanced Camera for Surveys on the Hubble Space Telescope to obtain the first direct optical images of the aftermath of a recent titanic explosion that took place in a star system 5,000 light years from Earth. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070419122852.htm.
g Abodes - NASA researchers have demonstrated that a space telescope rigged with the right equipment could actually photograph an Earth-like planet orbiting a nearby star. The accomplishment is a major step forward in the search for habitable environments beyond the Solar System. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2301mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Intelligence - Put a human and a chimpanzee side by side, and it seems obvious which lineage has changed the most since the two diverged from a common ancestor millions of years ago. Such apparent physical differences, along with human speech, language and brainpower, have led many people to believe that natural selection has acted in a positive manner on more genes in humans than in chimps. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070420153635.htm.
g Message - While advanced civilizations might be tempted to use optical means such as lasers to send information between the stars, there are some good reasons that nearly all the major Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence experiments are looking for radio waves instead. See http://www.coseti.org/tps_01.htm.
g Cosmicus - The Mars Desert Research Station is a simulated Mars habitat in the Utah desert established to prepare humans for exploring the red planet. This Web site documents the experience of Kate Harris, who as a university sophomore spent two weeks on Mars in Utah during 2003. See http://genmars.com/desert/.
g Learning - Here’s a neat classroom activity: “Alien Safari.” New from NASA PlanetQuest, Alien Safari can be used in your classrooms or informal education settings to help kids discover some of the most extreme organisms on our planet, and find out what they are telling astrobiologists about the search for life beyond Earth. See http://planetquest.jpl.nasa.gov/AlienSafari_launch_page.html.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Linda P. Baker’s short story "The Allure of Bone and Ice." It’s in the anthology “First Contact,” edited by Martin H. Greenberg & Larry Segriff (published by DAW in 1997).
g Aftermath - In its simplest and shortest definition, astrobiology may be summed up as, “The study of life in the universe.” There's just one problem when it comes to studying life in the universe. So far, we're it. See http://bennun.biz/features/astro.html.
g Stars - An Anglo-American team of astronomers have used the Advanced Camera for Surveys on the Hubble Space Telescope to obtain the first direct optical images of the aftermath of a recent titanic explosion that took place in a star system 5,000 light years from Earth. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070419122852.htm.
g Abodes - NASA researchers have demonstrated that a space telescope rigged with the right equipment could actually photograph an Earth-like planet orbiting a nearby star. The accomplishment is a major step forward in the search for habitable environments beyond the Solar System. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2301mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Intelligence - Put a human and a chimpanzee side by side, and it seems obvious which lineage has changed the most since the two diverged from a common ancestor millions of years ago. Such apparent physical differences, along with human speech, language and brainpower, have led many people to believe that natural selection has acted in a positive manner on more genes in humans than in chimps. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070420153635.htm.
g Message - While advanced civilizations might be tempted to use optical means such as lasers to send information between the stars, there are some good reasons that nearly all the major Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence experiments are looking for radio waves instead. See http://www.coseti.org/tps_01.htm.
g Cosmicus - The Mars Desert Research Station is a simulated Mars habitat in the Utah desert established to prepare humans for exploring the red planet. This Web site documents the experience of Kate Harris, who as a university sophomore spent two weeks on Mars in Utah during 2003. See http://genmars.com/desert/.
g Learning - Here’s a neat classroom activity: “Alien Safari.” New from NASA PlanetQuest, Alien Safari can be used in your classrooms or informal education settings to help kids discover some of the most extreme organisms on our planet, and find out what they are telling astrobiologists about the search for life beyond Earth. See http://planetquest.jpl.nasa.gov/AlienSafari_launch_page.html.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Linda P. Baker’s short story "The Allure of Bone and Ice." It’s in the anthology “First Contact,” edited by Martin H. Greenberg & Larry Segriff (published by DAW in 1997).
g Aftermath - In its simplest and shortest definition, astrobiology may be summed up as, “The study of life in the universe.” There's just one problem when it comes to studying life in the universe. So far, we're it. See http://bennun.biz/features/astro.html.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Determining chances of extraterrestrial life, humongous fungus and ‘Anvil of Stars’
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 Stars - Stunning simulations that give a multi-dimensional glimpse into the interior of stars show that material bubbling around the convection zone induces a rich spectrum of internal gravity waves in the stable layers above and below. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070419121540.htm.
g Abodes - When exposed to intense XUV fluxes, atmospheres with CO2/N2 mixing ratios lower than 96 percent will show an increase in exospheric temperatures and expanded thermosphere–exosphere environments. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0128.
g Life - Scientists have solved a mystery surrounding one of the most unique organisms that ever lived on Earth. For more than a century scientists have been debating about whether the ancient organism is a plant or a fungus. Now researchers have used chemical evidence from fossils to solve the question once and for all. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload&name
=News&file=article&sid=2312mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Intelligence - Childhood memories might best be kept in a photo album, not in your mind. Turns out, storing old memories can make you forget an important appointment or what you needed to buy at the store today. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology
/070409_memory_overload.html.
g Message - The Allen Telescope Array, formerly known as the One Hectare Telescope, is a joint effort by the SETI Institute and the Radio Astronomy Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley to construct a radio interferometer that will be dedicated to astronomical and simultaneous search for extra-terrestrial intelligence observations. It is being constructed at the Hat Creek Radio Observatory, 290 miles northeast of San Francisco, California and will be composed of 350 antennas at completion. See http://www.answers.com/topic/allen-telescope-array.
g Cosmicus - Could we make a "solar still" on Mars? See http://www.bautforum.com/showthread.php?t=36629.
g Learning - Science, even by reputable practitioners, proceeds in fits, starts, and frequent excursions down blind alleys. See http://www.seti.org/site/apps/nl/content2.asp?c=ktJ2J9MMIsE&b=194993&ct=3816161.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Greg Bear’s “Anvil of Stars,” published by Tor in 1992.
g Aftermath - As we look toward exploring other worlds, and perhaps even bringing samples back to Earth for testing, astrobiologists have to wonder: could there be alien pathogens in those samples that will wreak havoc on our world? See http://euro.astrobio.net/news/article570.html.
g Stars - Stunning simulations that give a multi-dimensional glimpse into the interior of stars show that material bubbling around the convection zone induces a rich spectrum of internal gravity waves in the stable layers above and below. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070419121540.htm.
g Abodes - When exposed to intense XUV fluxes, atmospheres with CO2/N2 mixing ratios lower than 96 percent will show an increase in exospheric temperatures and expanded thermosphere–exosphere environments. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0128.
g Life - Scientists have solved a mystery surrounding one of the most unique organisms that ever lived on Earth. For more than a century scientists have been debating about whether the ancient organism is a plant or a fungus. Now researchers have used chemical evidence from fossils to solve the question once and for all. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload&name
=News&file=article&sid=2312mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Intelligence - Childhood memories might best be kept in a photo album, not in your mind. Turns out, storing old memories can make you forget an important appointment or what you needed to buy at the store today. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology
/070409_memory_overload.html.
g Message - The Allen Telescope Array, formerly known as the One Hectare Telescope, is a joint effort by the SETI Institute and the Radio Astronomy Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley to construct a radio interferometer that will be dedicated to astronomical and simultaneous search for extra-terrestrial intelligence observations. It is being constructed at the Hat Creek Radio Observatory, 290 miles northeast of San Francisco, California and will be composed of 350 antennas at completion. See http://www.answers.com/topic/allen-telescope-array.
g Cosmicus - Could we make a "solar still" on Mars? See http://www.bautforum.com/showthread.php?t=36629.
g Learning - Science, even by reputable practitioners, proceeds in fits, starts, and frequent excursions down blind alleys. See http://www.seti.org/site/apps/nl/content2.asp?c=ktJ2J9MMIsE&b=194993&ct=3816161.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Greg Bear’s “Anvil of Stars,” published by Tor in 1992.
g Aftermath - As we look toward exploring other worlds, and perhaps even bringing samples back to Earth for testing, astrobiologists have to wonder: could there be alien pathogens in those samples that will wreak havoc on our world? See http://euro.astrobio.net/news/article570.html.
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Atmospheres of M-dwarf planets, friendly soil bacteria and spectrum environment of the Allen Telescope Array
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 Stars - An international team of astronomers have collaborated to create the most detailed image ever produced of the Rosette Nebula (NGC 2237), a giant stellar nursery. The new image was assembled using data from INT Photometric H-Alpha Survey of the Northern Galactic Plane and covers four square degrees of sky, equivalent in size to about twenty times the size of the full moon. See article.
g Abodes - Planets orbiting in the habitable zone of M dwarf stars are subject to high levels of galactic cosmic rays, which produce nitrogen oxides (NOx) in Earth-like atmospheres. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0129.
g Intelligence - Exposure to friendly soil bacteria could improve mood by boosting the immune system just as effectively as antidepressant drugs, a new study suggests. See http://www.
livescience.com/humanbiology/070411_happy_bacteria.html.
g Message - Here’s something neat albeit technical: A slide show presentation of "Spectrum Environment of the Allen Telescope Array": http://astro.uchicago.edu/ursi-comm-J/ursi2005/spectrum-management/davis/.
g Learning - Here’s a great educational tool for teaching astrobiology and various principles of science: COTI. COTI is an educational experiment in creation — students design an integrated world, alien life form and culture, and simulate contact with a future human society. One team constructs a solar system, a world and its ecology, an alien life form and its culture, basing each step on the previous one and utilizing the principles of science as a guide to imagination. The other team designs a future human colony, planetary or spacefaring, "creating and evolving" its culture as an exercise in cultural structure, dynamics and adaptation. Through a structured system of progressive revelation, the teams then simulate — and experience — contact between the two cultures in real time, exploring the problems and possibilities involved in inter-cultural encounters. See http://www.contact-conference.com/archive/educoti.html.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read David Bischoff’s "The Xaxrling of J. Arnold Boysenberry," anthologized in “First Contact,” edited by Martin H. Greenberg & Larry Segriff (published by DAW, 1997).
g Aftermath - Alien encounters and science fiction permeate pop culture, but what would it really mean if scientists found life beyond Earth? If even a single-celled organism on another planet was discovered, for many, this would be the last thread of evidence proving that life is simply chemistry. See http://www.aaas.org/news/releases/2003/0402doser.shtml. Note: This article is from 2003.
g Stars - An international team of astronomers have collaborated to create the most detailed image ever produced of the Rosette Nebula (NGC 2237), a giant stellar nursery. The new image was assembled using data from INT Photometric H-Alpha Survey of the Northern Galactic Plane and covers four square degrees of sky, equivalent in size to about twenty times the size of the full moon. See article.
g Abodes - Planets orbiting in the habitable zone of M dwarf stars are subject to high levels of galactic cosmic rays, which produce nitrogen oxides (NOx) in Earth-like atmospheres. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0129.
g Intelligence - Exposure to friendly soil bacteria could improve mood by boosting the immune system just as effectively as antidepressant drugs, a new study suggests. See http://www.
livescience.com/humanbiology/070411_happy_bacteria.html.
g Message - Here’s something neat albeit technical: A slide show presentation of "Spectrum Environment of the Allen Telescope Array": http://astro.uchicago.edu/ursi-comm-J/ursi2005/spectrum-management/davis/.
g Learning - Here’s a great educational tool for teaching astrobiology and various principles of science: COTI. COTI is an educational experiment in creation — students design an integrated world, alien life form and culture, and simulate contact with a future human society. One team constructs a solar system, a world and its ecology, an alien life form and its culture, basing each step on the previous one and utilizing the principles of science as a guide to imagination. The other team designs a future human colony, planetary or spacefaring, "creating and evolving" its culture as an exercise in cultural structure, dynamics and adaptation. Through a structured system of progressive revelation, the teams then simulate — and experience — contact between the two cultures in real time, exploring the problems and possibilities involved in inter-cultural encounters. See http://www.contact-conference.com/archive/educoti.html.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read David Bischoff’s "The Xaxrling of J. Arnold Boysenberry," anthologized in “First Contact,” edited by Martin H. Greenberg & Larry Segriff (published by DAW, 1997).
g Aftermath - Alien encounters and science fiction permeate pop culture, but what would it really mean if scientists found life beyond Earth? If even a single-celled organism on another planet was discovered, for many, this would be the last thread of evidence proving that life is simply chemistry. See http://www.aaas.org/news/releases/2003/0402doser.shtml. Note: This article is from 2003.
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
M dwarf biosignatures, evolution of the bite and orangutan video game whiz
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 Stars - For the past three years a satellite has circled the Earth, collecting data to determine whether two predictions of Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity are correct. Over the weekend, at the American Physical Society meeting in Jacksonville, Fla., Professor Francis Everitt, a Stanford University physicist and principal investigator of the Gravity Probe B Relativity Mission, a collaboration of Stanford, NASA and Lockheed Martin, provided the first public peek at data that will reveal whether Einstein's theory has been confirmed by the most sophisticated orbiting laboratory ever created. See article.
g Abodes - The changing view of planets orbiting low mass stars, M stars, as potentially hospitable worlds for life and its remote detection was motivated by several factors, including the demonstration of viable atmospheres and oceans on tidally locked planets, normal incidence of dust disks, including debris disks, detection of planets with masses in the 5–20 M_ range, and predictions of unusually strong spectral biosignatures. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0125.
g Life - The ability of ferocious land animals to bite prey evolved in ancient fish, a new study finds. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070416_fish_bite.html.
g Intelligence - Four-year-old Bernas isn't the computer wizard his mom is, but he's learning. Just the other day he used his lips and feet to play a game on the touch-screen monitor as his mom, Madu, swung from vines and climbed trees. The two Sumatran orangutans at Zoo Atlanta are playing computer games while researchers study the cognitive skills of the orange and brown primates. See http://
www.livescience.com/animalworld/070412_ap_orangutan_games.
html.
g Message - Should we modify the Drake Equation to account for civilizations which actually engage in deliberate interstellar transmission? See http://lnfm1.sai.msu.ru/SETI/koi/articles/DrakeEquation.htm.
g Learning - Americans love science in their movies and TV shows, yet recent reports indicate we are losing our scientific dominance to the rest of the world. Can science-themed entertainment get Americans off the couch and into the lab? See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.php?op=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=1032.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Hal Clement’s novel “Cycle Of Fire,” published by Ballantine in 1957.
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 http://www.rense.com/general48/aliens.htm. Note: This article is from 2004.
g Stars - For the past three years a satellite has circled the Earth, collecting data to determine whether two predictions of Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity are correct. Over the weekend, at the American Physical Society meeting in Jacksonville, Fla., Professor Francis Everitt, a Stanford University physicist and principal investigator of the Gravity Probe B Relativity Mission, a collaboration of Stanford, NASA and Lockheed Martin, provided the first public peek at data that will reveal whether Einstein's theory has been confirmed by the most sophisticated orbiting laboratory ever created. See article.
g Abodes - The changing view of planets orbiting low mass stars, M stars, as potentially hospitable worlds for life and its remote detection was motivated by several factors, including the demonstration of viable atmospheres and oceans on tidally locked planets, normal incidence of dust disks, including debris disks, detection of planets with masses in the 5–20 M_ range, and predictions of unusually strong spectral biosignatures. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0125.
g Life - The ability of ferocious land animals to bite prey evolved in ancient fish, a new study finds. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070416_fish_bite.html.
g Intelligence - Four-year-old Bernas isn't the computer wizard his mom is, but he's learning. Just the other day he used his lips and feet to play a game on the touch-screen monitor as his mom, Madu, swung from vines and climbed trees. The two Sumatran orangutans at Zoo Atlanta are playing computer games while researchers study the cognitive skills of the orange and brown primates. See http://
www.livescience.com/animalworld/070412_ap_orangutan_games.
html.
g Message - Should we modify the Drake Equation to account for civilizations which actually engage in deliberate interstellar transmission? See http://lnfm1.sai.msu.ru/SETI/koi/articles/DrakeEquation.htm.
g Learning - Americans love science in their movies and TV shows, yet recent reports indicate we are losing our scientific dominance to the rest of the world. Can science-themed entertainment get Americans off the couch and into the lab? See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.php?op=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=1032.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Hal Clement’s novel “Cycle Of Fire,” published by Ballantine in 1957.
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 http://www.rense.com/general48/aliens.htm. Note: This article is from 2004.
Monday, April 23, 2007
Brown dwarf pulsars, planetary embryos and savannah chimps
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 Stars - Brown dwarfs, thought just a few years ago to be incapable of emitting any significant amounts of radio waves, have been discovered putting out extremely bright "lighthouse beams" of radio waves, much like pulsars. A team of astronomers made the discovery using the National Science Foundation's Very Large Array (VLA) radio telescope. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/17browndwarf/.
g Abodes - The water content and habitability of terrestrial planets are determined during their final assembly, from perhaps 100 1,000-km “planetary embryos” and a swarm of billions of 1–10-km “planetesimals.” During this process, we assume that water-rich material is accreted by terrestrial planets via impacts of water-rich bodies that originate in the outer asteroid region. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.06-0126.
g Life - High temperatures can reverse the sex of dragon lizards before they hatch, turning males into females. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070419_lizard_sex.html.
g Intelligence - Savannah chimpanzees, which can make weapons to hunt other primates for meat, can also seek refuge in caves, much like our earliest human ancestors. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070411_chimps_cave.html.
g Message - A number of searches for extraterrestrial intelligence actually have occurred, are ongoing and are planned. Here’s one of the more famous ones: Project BETA, at Harvard University. See http://seti.harvard.edu/seti/beta.html.
g Cosmicus - UCLA scientists are now reporting a promising new approach to designing super-hard materials, which are very difficult to scratch or crack. Their findings appear in the April 20 issue of the journal Science. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070419181733.htm.
g Learning - How are key concepts of astrobiology treated in science fiction? See http://www.ibiblio.org/astrobiology/index.php?page=lesson05. Note: This article is from 2001 and intended to be used as part of a classroom lesson.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Ray Bradbury’s "Here There Be Tygers,” which appeared in the April-May 1953 issue of Amazing magazine.
g Aftermath - The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence cannot guarantee success in a trivial, superficial sense (that is in the form of the discovery of an alien civilization). But at its deeper levels SETI certainly stimulates and influences our thoughts and transforms our society in profound ways. See http://astro.elte.hu/~bab/seti/ias1.htm.
g Stars - Brown dwarfs, thought just a few years ago to be incapable of emitting any significant amounts of radio waves, have been discovered putting out extremely bright "lighthouse beams" of radio waves, much like pulsars. A team of astronomers made the discovery using the National Science Foundation's Very Large Array (VLA) radio telescope. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/17browndwarf/.
g Abodes - The water content and habitability of terrestrial planets are determined during their final assembly, from perhaps 100 1,000-km “planetary embryos” and a swarm of billions of 1–10-km “planetesimals.” During this process, we assume that water-rich material is accreted by terrestrial planets via impacts of water-rich bodies that originate in the outer asteroid region. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.06-0126.
g Life - High temperatures can reverse the sex of dragon lizards before they hatch, turning males into females. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070419_lizard_sex.html.
g Intelligence - Savannah chimpanzees, which can make weapons to hunt other primates for meat, can also seek refuge in caves, much like our earliest human ancestors. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070411_chimps_cave.html.
g Message - A number of searches for extraterrestrial intelligence actually have occurred, are ongoing and are planned. Here’s one of the more famous ones: Project BETA, at Harvard University. See http://seti.harvard.edu/seti/beta.html.
g Cosmicus - UCLA scientists are now reporting a promising new approach to designing super-hard materials, which are very difficult to scratch or crack. Their findings appear in the April 20 issue of the journal Science. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070419181733.htm.
g Learning - How are key concepts of astrobiology treated in science fiction? See http://www.ibiblio.org/astrobiology/index.php?page=lesson05. Note: This article is from 2001 and intended to be used as part of a classroom lesson.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Ray Bradbury’s "Here There Be Tygers,” which appeared in the April-May 1953 issue of Amazing magazine.
g Aftermath - The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence cannot guarantee success in a trivial, superficial sense (that is in the form of the discovery of an alien civilization). But at its deeper levels SETI certainly stimulates and influences our thoughts and transforms our society in profound ways. See http://astro.elte.hu/~bab/seti/ias1.htm.
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Happy Earth Day, purple life forms and SETI Declaration protocols
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 Stars - Astronomers have found the lowest mass white dwarf known in our galaxy: a Saturn-sized ball of helium containing only about one-fifth the mass of the Sun. In addition, they have spotted the source of the white dwarf's radical weight-loss plan. An unseen companion, likely another white dwarf, has sucked away much of the tiny white dwarf's material, leaving it a shadow of its former self. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/17whitedwarf/.
g Abodes - Our planet's prospects for environmental stability are bleaker than ever with this year’s Earth Day. Global warming is widely accepted as a reality by scientists and even by previously doubtful government and industrial leaders. And according to a recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), there is a 90 percent likelihood that humans are contributing to the change. See http://www.livescience.com/environment/070419_earth_timeline.html.
g Life - The earliest life on Earth might have been just as purple as it is green today, a scientist claims. See http://www.livescience.com/environment/070410_purple_earth.html.
g Intelligence - Auditory and visual information in the brain can conspire to trick us into seeing things that are not there, according to new research that suggests our senses are more intimately linked than previously suspected. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070411_visual_illusion.html.
g Message - The spectral approach is a universal tool of both astronomical observations and SETI. Furthermore, it has a clear physical meaning – a spectrometer finds the energy distribution of photons, in human sensing it is color and pitch. Under the hypothesis on identity of physical laws in our part of universe, it may be proposed that spectrometry also are using by those aliens, who know radio and lead theirs own SETI, too. See http://www.cplire.ru/html/ra&sr/irm/radio-signals.html.
g Learning - In field of exobiology entails many different disciplines. Physicists, biologists, and chemists are just a few of the types of occupations that have a place in exobiology. Indeed, exobiology is one of the most inter-disciplinary fields in the realm of science. With so many different types of jobs, exobiology is a fascinating field to work in, and because it is relatively new, it will be thriving for a long time to come. See http://www.chem.duke.edu/~jds/cruise_chem/Exobiology/careers.html.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Octavia Butler’s novel “Dawn,” published by Warner in 1987.
g Aftermath - Book alert: Science fiction writers have given us many fine novels contemplating humankind's first contact with intelligent extraterrestrials. But our nonfiction world has not thought much about what to do if we are actually faced with this situation. In “Extraterrestrial Intelligence,” Jean Heidmann, chief astronomer at the Paris Observatory (and self-styled bioastronomer), offers a book on the subject that is at once serious and fun. Heidmann's obvious joy in raw speculation - all of it grounded in real science - is contagious. If aliens send us a message from many light years away, for example, how should we respond? Heidmann reviews the protocols established in the SETI Declaration and then offers his own suggestion: send them the entire contents of the Encyclopedia Britannica. See http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0521585635/002-7400457-0983229?v=glance&n=283155.
g Stars - Astronomers have found the lowest mass white dwarf known in our galaxy: a Saturn-sized ball of helium containing only about one-fifth the mass of the Sun. In addition, they have spotted the source of the white dwarf's radical weight-loss plan. An unseen companion, likely another white dwarf, has sucked away much of the tiny white dwarf's material, leaving it a shadow of its former self. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/17whitedwarf/.
g Abodes - Our planet's prospects for environmental stability are bleaker than ever with this year’s Earth Day. Global warming is widely accepted as a reality by scientists and even by previously doubtful government and industrial leaders. And according to a recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), there is a 90 percent likelihood that humans are contributing to the change. See http://www.livescience.com/environment/070419_earth_timeline.html.
g Life - The earliest life on Earth might have been just as purple as it is green today, a scientist claims. See http://www.livescience.com/environment/070410_purple_earth.html.
g Intelligence - Auditory and visual information in the brain can conspire to trick us into seeing things that are not there, according to new research that suggests our senses are more intimately linked than previously suspected. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070411_visual_illusion.html.
g Message - The spectral approach is a universal tool of both astronomical observations and SETI. Furthermore, it has a clear physical meaning – a spectrometer finds the energy distribution of photons, in human sensing it is color and pitch. Under the hypothesis on identity of physical laws in our part of universe, it may be proposed that spectrometry also are using by those aliens, who know radio and lead theirs own SETI, too. See http://www.cplire.ru/html/ra&sr/irm/radio-signals.html.
g Learning - In field of exobiology entails many different disciplines. Physicists, biologists, and chemists are just a few of the types of occupations that have a place in exobiology. Indeed, exobiology is one of the most inter-disciplinary fields in the realm of science. With so many different types of jobs, exobiology is a fascinating field to work in, and because it is relatively new, it will be thriving for a long time to come. See http://www.chem.duke.edu/~jds/cruise_chem/Exobiology/careers.html.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read Octavia Butler’s novel “Dawn,” published by Warner in 1987.
g Aftermath - Book alert: Science fiction writers have given us many fine novels contemplating humankind's first contact with intelligent extraterrestrials. But our nonfiction world has not thought much about what to do if we are actually faced with this situation. In “Extraterrestrial Intelligence,” Jean Heidmann, chief astronomer at the Paris Observatory (and self-styled bioastronomer), offers a book on the subject that is at once serious and fun. Heidmann's obvious joy in raw speculation - all of it grounded in real science - is contagious. If aliens send us a message from many light years away, for example, how should we respond? Heidmann reviews the protocols established in the SETI Declaration and then offers his own suggestion: send them the entire contents of the Encyclopedia Britannica. See http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0521585635/002-7400457-0983229?v=glance&n=283155.
Saturday, April 21, 2007
Yellow caution tape for stars, shortlist of stars where extraterrestrial life might be found and experimental magnetic shield
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 Stars - Astronomers have laid down the cosmic equivalent of yellow "caution" tape around super hot stars, marking the zones where cooler stars are in danger of having their developing planets blasted away. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/18dangerzone/.
g Abodes - Coral reefs, like tree rings, are natural archives of climate change. But oceanic corals also provide a faithful account of how people make use of land through history. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070410182848.htm.
g Life - The varying shapes of flowers found in tropical forests, from broadly blooming to delicately narrow, may have to do with what has stuck its nose in there to pollinate in past evolutionary eras. See http://www.livescience.com/othernews/070420_flower_shapes.html.
g Intelligence - Just why the outermost surface of our brains is covered in folds and wrinkles is a mystery to scientists, but a new tool is helping researchers see how these folds develop. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070412_brain_folds.html.
g Message - A U.S. astronomer has announced her shortlist of stars where extraterrestrial life might be found. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/upi/index.phpfeed=Science&article=
UPI12006021909215000bcusstars.xml. For related story, see “Shortlist of stellar candidates for habitable worlds” at http://www.spaceflightnow.com/news/n0602/18habitable/.
g Cosmicus - A team of scientists are preparing to construct an experimental magnetic shield that could be used to protect astronauts from radiation during long-duration space missions and possibly while on the surface of the Moon and Mars. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2307mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Learning - We learn better when the material meshes with what we already know, according to a new study of rats that researchers say could help explain human learning. See http://www.livescience.
com/humanbiology/070416_memory_consolidation.html.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read John W. Campbell’s (writing as Don A. Stuart) short story, "Who Goes There?" it first appeared in August 1938’s Astounding magazine.
g Aftermath - In the last quarter of the 20th century, an international social movement — Communication with Extraterrestrial Intelligence — has emerged which advocates an attempt to achieve communication with extraterrestrial intelligence, and many of its most active members have been leading scientists. Modest efforts to detect radio signals from intelligent extraterrestrials already have been made, both under government aegis and privately funded, and the technical means for a more vigorous search have been developed. If a CETI project were successful, linguists would suddenly have one or more utterly alien languages to study, and some consideration of linguistic issues is a necessary preparation for it. See http://mysite.verizon.net/wsbainbridge/dl/ceti.htm.
g Stars - Astronomers have laid down the cosmic equivalent of yellow "caution" tape around super hot stars, marking the zones where cooler stars are in danger of having their developing planets blasted away. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/18dangerzone/.
g Abodes - Coral reefs, like tree rings, are natural archives of climate change. But oceanic corals also provide a faithful account of how people make use of land through history. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070410182848.htm.
g Life - The varying shapes of flowers found in tropical forests, from broadly blooming to delicately narrow, may have to do with what has stuck its nose in there to pollinate in past evolutionary eras. See http://www.livescience.com/othernews/070420_flower_shapes.html.
g Intelligence - Just why the outermost surface of our brains is covered in folds and wrinkles is a mystery to scientists, but a new tool is helping researchers see how these folds develop. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070412_brain_folds.html.
g Message - A U.S. astronomer has announced her shortlist of stars where extraterrestrial life might be found. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/upi/index.phpfeed=Science&article=
UPI12006021909215000bcusstars.xml. For related story, see “Shortlist of stellar candidates for habitable worlds” at http://www.spaceflightnow.com/news/n0602/18habitable/.
g Cosmicus - A team of scientists are preparing to construct an experimental magnetic shield that could be used to protect astronauts from radiation during long-duration space missions and possibly while on the surface of the Moon and Mars. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2307mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Learning - We learn better when the material meshes with what we already know, according to a new study of rats that researchers say could help explain human learning. See http://www.livescience.
com/humanbiology/070416_memory_consolidation.html.
g Imagining - Like first contact stories? Then be sure to read John W. Campbell’s (writing as Don A. Stuart) short story, "Who Goes There?" it first appeared in August 1938’s Astounding magazine.
g Aftermath - In the last quarter of the 20th century, an international social movement — Communication with Extraterrestrial Intelligence — has emerged which advocates an attempt to achieve communication with extraterrestrial intelligence, and many of its most active members have been leading scientists. Modest efforts to detect radio signals from intelligent extraterrestrials already have been made, both under government aegis and privately funded, and the technical means for a more vigorous search have been developed. If a CETI project were successful, linguists would suddenly have one or more utterly alien languages to study, and some consideration of linguistic issues is a necessary preparation for it. See http://mysite.verizon.net/wsbainbridge/dl/ceti.htm.
Friday, April 20, 2007
Searching atmospheres for signs of life, extrasolar photosynthesis and forward contamination
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 - ESA's Darwin mission aims to discover extrasolar planets and examine their atmospheres for signs of life, particularly for the presence of certain life-related chemicals such as oxygen and carbon dioxide. The major technical challenge lies in distinguishing, or resolving, the light from an extrasolar planet from the hugely overwhelming radiation emitted by the planet's nearby star. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070412100834.htm.
g Life - Why do plants reflect in the green and have a “red edge” in the red, and should extrasolar photosynthesis be the same? See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0105.
g Intelligence - Like an invisible brass ring or dangling piece of bacon, subliminal rewards can drive people to work harder without them even knowing it. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/
070412_hidden_incentive.html.
g Message - In late 1997, after almost 40 years of operation, the Ohio State University Radio Observatory and its "Big Ear" radio telescope — which picked up the famous “Wow!” signal — ceased operation. The land on which the observatory was sitting (owned by the Ohio Wesleyan University, Delaware, Ohio) was sold in 1983 to land developers who later claimed their rights to develop the property. The telescope was destroyed in early 1998. For a Web page memorial to Big Ear, see http://www.bigear.org/.
g Learning - Here’s a neat Web site with excellent graphics: “The Origin of Life and Evolution of the Cosmos.” It explores events that led to the origin of life on Earth. See http://www.originoflife.org.uk/.
g Imagining - Quantum physics and biochemistry is real, hard as nails science, say many physicists and also, it appears, those who write SF books and screenplays. But, reproductive biologist Jack Cohen asks, “Is biology a science?” And what affect does the answer have on our ability to imagine and recognize extraterrestrial life? See http://www.concatenation.org/articles/cohen~isbiologya.html.
g Aftermath - There is a good deal of apprehension among the general public that samples returned from other worlds such as Mars - just might - contain alien germs capable of turning into a worldwide plague, or at least wreaking havoc with the Earth's natural environment. Beside this fear of "back contamination," there is also a fear of "forward contamination" - the possibility that spacecraft might contaminate the worlds they land on with Earth microbes, destroying scientifically priceless alien lifeforms before we even have a chance to study them. See http://www.spacedaily.com/news/life-99e.html. Note: This article is from 1999.
g Abodes - ESA's Darwin mission aims to discover extrasolar planets and examine their atmospheres for signs of life, particularly for the presence of certain life-related chemicals such as oxygen and carbon dioxide. The major technical challenge lies in distinguishing, or resolving, the light from an extrasolar planet from the hugely overwhelming radiation emitted by the planet's nearby star. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070412100834.htm.
g Life - Why do plants reflect in the green and have a “red edge” in the red, and should extrasolar photosynthesis be the same? See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0105.
g Intelligence - Like an invisible brass ring or dangling piece of bacon, subliminal rewards can drive people to work harder without them even knowing it. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/
070412_hidden_incentive.html.
g Message - In late 1997, after almost 40 years of operation, the Ohio State University Radio Observatory and its "Big Ear" radio telescope — which picked up the famous “Wow!” signal — ceased operation. The land on which the observatory was sitting (owned by the Ohio Wesleyan University, Delaware, Ohio) was sold in 1983 to land developers who later claimed their rights to develop the property. The telescope was destroyed in early 1998. For a Web page memorial to Big Ear, see http://www.bigear.org/.
g Learning - Here’s a neat Web site with excellent graphics: “The Origin of Life and Evolution of the Cosmos.” It explores events that led to the origin of life on Earth. See http://www.originoflife.org.uk/.
g Imagining - Quantum physics and biochemistry is real, hard as nails science, say many physicists and also, it appears, those who write SF books and screenplays. But, reproductive biologist Jack Cohen asks, “Is biology a science?” And what affect does the answer have on our ability to imagine and recognize extraterrestrial life? See http://www.concatenation.org/articles/cohen~isbiologya.html.
g Aftermath - There is a good deal of apprehension among the general public that samples returned from other worlds such as Mars - just might - contain alien germs capable of turning into a worldwide plague, or at least wreaking havoc with the Earth's natural environment. Beside this fear of "back contamination," there is also a fear of "forward contamination" - the possibility that spacecraft might contaminate the worlds they land on with Earth microbes, destroying scientifically priceless alien lifeforms before we even have a chance to study them. See http://www.spacedaily.com/news/life-99e.html. Note: This article is from 1999.
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Habitable zones around M- and K-type stars, nanonauts and ‘The Embedding’
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 Stars - Low mass M- and K-type stars are much more numerous in the solar neighborhood than solar-like G-type stars. Therefore, some of them may appear as interesting candidates for the target star lists of terrestrial exoplanet (i.e., planets with mass, radius, and internal parameters identical to Earth) search programs like Darwin (ESA) or the Terrestrial Planet Finder Coronagraph/Inferometer (NASA). The higher level of stellar activity of low mass M stars, as compared to solar-like G stars, as well as the closer orbital distances of their habitable zones, means that terrestrial-type exoplanets within HZs of these stars are more influenced by stellar activity than one would expect for a planet in an HZ of a solar-like star. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0127.
g Abodes - Scientists have found one of the largest fields of seafloor vents gushing super-hot, mineral-rich fluids on a mid-ocean ridge that, until now, remained elusive to the ten-year hunt to find them. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070413151129.htm.
g Life - The biologically destructive effects of atmospheric transit can generate entirely novel and improved endolithic habitats for organisms on the destination planetary body that survive the dispersal filter. The experiment advances our understanding of how island biogeography works on the interplanetary scale. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0038.
g Intelligence - The first primate to get rocketed into space and to be cloned, the rhesus monkey, has now had its genome sequenced, promising to improve research into health and yield insights into human evolution. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/
070412_rhesus_monkeys.html.
g Message - When the Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft were launched in 1977, they each included a gold-plated phonograph record (a "golden record") of natural sounds, greetings in human voices, and a variety of music. The record cover has symbolic instructions that show how to use and understand the record, though scientists still debate whether other civilizations will be able to decipher them. For info on Voyager’s golden record, see http://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/spacecraft/goldenrec.html. For an explanation of the record cover diagram, see http://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/spacecraft/goldenrec1.html. For an interactive module that contains greetings, sounds, and pictures included on the record (requires Flash plug-in), see http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/flash/voyager_record/index_voyager.html.
g Cosmicus - Engineers are designing a new breed of planetary explorers: tiny, shape-shifting devices that can be carried on the wind like dust but can also communicate, fly in formation and take scientific measurements. 'Smart dust' may one day provide a unique method of studying locations interesting to astrobiology, such as Mars and Venus. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2304mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Learning - With creationism and intelligent design continuing to battle evolution for supremacy in our schools, here’s a quality site that considers the science that supports the theory of evolution — from the National Academy of Sciences. See http://bob.nap.edu/readingroom/books/creationism/.
g Imagining - Like stories about communicating with aliens? Scour your used bookstore for Ian Watson’s “The Embedding” (1973).
g Aftermath - While formal principles have been adopted for the eventuality of detecting intelligent life in our galaxy, no such guidelines exist for the discovery of non-intelligent extraterrestrial life within the solar system. Current scientifically based planetary protection policies for solar system exploration address how to undertake exploration, but do not provide clear guidance on what to do if and when life is detected. Considering that Martian life could be detected under several different robotic and human exploration scenarios in the coming decades, it is appropriate to anticipate how detection of non-intelligent, microbial life could impact future exploration missions and activities, especially on Mars. See http://www.seti.org/atf/cf/{B0D4BC0E-D59B-4CD0-9E79-113953A58644}/m_race_guidelines.pdf.
g Stars - Low mass M- and K-type stars are much more numerous in the solar neighborhood than solar-like G-type stars. Therefore, some of them may appear as interesting candidates for the target star lists of terrestrial exoplanet (i.e., planets with mass, radius, and internal parameters identical to Earth) search programs like Darwin (ESA) or the Terrestrial Planet Finder Coronagraph/Inferometer (NASA). The higher level of stellar activity of low mass M stars, as compared to solar-like G stars, as well as the closer orbital distances of their habitable zones, means that terrestrial-type exoplanets within HZs of these stars are more influenced by stellar activity than one would expect for a planet in an HZ of a solar-like star. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0127.
g Abodes - Scientists have found one of the largest fields of seafloor vents gushing super-hot, mineral-rich fluids on a mid-ocean ridge that, until now, remained elusive to the ten-year hunt to find them. See http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070413151129.htm.
g Life - The biologically destructive effects of atmospheric transit can generate entirely novel and improved endolithic habitats for organisms on the destination planetary body that survive the dispersal filter. The experiment advances our understanding of how island biogeography works on the interplanetary scale. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0038.
g Intelligence - The first primate to get rocketed into space and to be cloned, the rhesus monkey, has now had its genome sequenced, promising to improve research into health and yield insights into human evolution. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/
070412_rhesus_monkeys.html.
g Message - When the Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft were launched in 1977, they each included a gold-plated phonograph record (a "golden record") of natural sounds, greetings in human voices, and a variety of music. The record cover has symbolic instructions that show how to use and understand the record, though scientists still debate whether other civilizations will be able to decipher them. For info on Voyager’s golden record, see http://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/spacecraft/goldenrec.html. For an explanation of the record cover diagram, see http://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/spacecraft/goldenrec1.html. For an interactive module that contains greetings, sounds, and pictures included on the record (requires Flash plug-in), see http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/flash/voyager_record/index_voyager.html.
g Cosmicus - Engineers are designing a new breed of planetary explorers: tiny, shape-shifting devices that can be carried on the wind like dust but can also communicate, fly in formation and take scientific measurements. 'Smart dust' may one day provide a unique method of studying locations interesting to astrobiology, such as Mars and Venus. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2304mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Learning - With creationism and intelligent design continuing to battle evolution for supremacy in our schools, here’s a quality site that considers the science that supports the theory of evolution — from the National Academy of Sciences. See http://bob.nap.edu/readingroom/books/creationism/.
g Imagining - Like stories about communicating with aliens? Scour your used bookstore for Ian Watson’s “The Embedding” (1973).
g Aftermath - While formal principles have been adopted for the eventuality of detecting intelligent life in our galaxy, no such guidelines exist for the discovery of non-intelligent extraterrestrial life within the solar system. Current scientifically based planetary protection policies for solar system exploration address how to undertake exploration, but do not provide clear guidance on what to do if and when life is detected. Considering that Martian life could be detected under several different robotic and human exploration scenarios in the coming decades, it is appropriate to anticipate how detection of non-intelligent, microbial life could impact future exploration missions and activities, especially on Mars. See http://www.seti.org/atf/cf/{B0D4BC0E-D59B-4CD0-9E79-113953A58644}/m_race_guidelines.pdf.
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Life around M dwarf stars, Mega-Channel Extraterrestrial Assay and microorganisms in Venus’ battery-acid clouds
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 Stars - A group of scientists believe M dwarf stars shouldn’t be so easily dismissed as havens for extraterrestrial life. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/
ast.2006.0124.
g Abodes - For the first time ever, NASA researchers have successfully demonstrated in the laboratory that a space telescope rigged with special masks and mirrors could snap a photo of an Earth-like planet orbiting a nearby star. This accomplishment marks a dramatic step forward for missions like the proposed Terrestrial Planet Finder, designed to hunt for an Earth twin that might harbor life. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/11planetfinder/.
g Life - Spiders love to fly. Hundreds can touch down in an acre of land on a day when conditions are right. And before casting out a silk thread and swooping miles through the air, a spider checks the weather just as a human pilot might do during a pre-flight routine, a new study finds. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070412_spider_weather.html.
g Intelligence - A woman prefers a more masculine man when she is fertile and looking for a fling rather than a mate for life, according to a new study. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070412_fertile_women.html.
g Message - SETI research isn’t limited to a single facility listening to radio signals. Another dimension of the program is The Mega-Channel Extraterrestrial Assay, which searched the Southern Hemisphere's skies briefly during the 1990s. To learn more about it, see http://www.planetary.org/html/UPDATES/seti/META2/META-story.html.
g Cosmicus - Every month the Moon passes through the magnetic field of the Earth and becomes charged with static electricity. A new model suggests that this charging may increase after the year 2012, which could have implications for human lunar missions that are currently being planned for around 2020. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2303mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Learning - If science communications in astrobiology is about researchers sharing their results, the audience for new findings may well turn out to be a surprising finding in itself. John Horack, one of the principal Internet architects for how a Webby-award winning NASA site found its audience, explains new ways to view the problem of sharing science. See article. Note: This article is from 2004.
g Imagining - Venus's battery-acid clouds might very well support microbial life - like the "extremophile" microorganisms that Earth scientists have found thriving near volcano outflows. See http://www.missouri.edu/~chemrg/current_news/Article_Hell.html. Note: This article is from 2004.
g Aftermath - Clearly, if we are not alone in the universe, there are some unavoidable theological and philosophical consequences. We should reflect on the consequences of a positive result of either finding extraterrestrial microorganisms, or receiving a radio message form an extraterrestrial source: When such discovery occurs, the implications are likely to have an impact on our culture requiring adjustments possibly more radical than those arising form the evidence that humans descend from microorganisms. See http://www.ictp.trieste.it/~chelaf/searching_for_ascent.html.
g Stars - A group of scientists believe M dwarf stars shouldn’t be so easily dismissed as havens for extraterrestrial life. See http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/
ast.2006.0124.
g Abodes - For the first time ever, NASA researchers have successfully demonstrated in the laboratory that a space telescope rigged with special masks and mirrors could snap a photo of an Earth-like planet orbiting a nearby star. This accomplishment marks a dramatic step forward for missions like the proposed Terrestrial Planet Finder, designed to hunt for an Earth twin that might harbor life. See http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0704/11planetfinder/.
g Life - Spiders love to fly. Hundreds can touch down in an acre of land on a day when conditions are right. And before casting out a silk thread and swooping miles through the air, a spider checks the weather just as a human pilot might do during a pre-flight routine, a new study finds. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070412_spider_weather.html.
g Intelligence - A woman prefers a more masculine man when she is fertile and looking for a fling rather than a mate for life, according to a new study. See http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070412_fertile_women.html.
g Message - SETI research isn’t limited to a single facility listening to radio signals. Another dimension of the program is The Mega-Channel Extraterrestrial Assay, which searched the Southern Hemisphere's skies briefly during the 1990s. To learn more about it, see http://www.planetary.org/html/UPDATES/seti/META2/META-story.html.
g Cosmicus - Every month the Moon passes through the magnetic field of the Earth and becomes charged with static electricity. A new model suggests that this charging may increase after the year 2012, which could have implications for human lunar missions that are currently being planned for around 2020. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2303mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Learning - If science communications in astrobiology is about researchers sharing their results, the audience for new findings may well turn out to be a surprising finding in itself. John Horack, one of the principal Internet architects for how a Webby-award winning NASA site found its audience, explains new ways to view the problem of sharing science. See article. Note: This article is from 2004.
g Imagining - Venus's battery-acid clouds might very well support microbial life - like the "extremophile" microorganisms that Earth scientists have found thriving near volcano outflows. See http://www.missouri.edu/~chemrg/current_news/Article_Hell.html. Note: This article is from 2004.
g Aftermath - Clearly, if we are not alone in the universe, there are some unavoidable theological and philosophical consequences. We should reflect on the consequences of a positive result of either finding extraterrestrial microorganisms, or receiving a radio message form an extraterrestrial source: When such discovery occurs, the implications are likely to have an impact on our culture requiring adjustments possibly more radical than those arising form the evidence that humans descend from microorganisms. See http://www.ictp.trieste.it/~chelaf/searching_for_ascent.html.
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