I am 45 year old chemical engineer. I have always enjoyed space and the exploration of the universe. In about 10 years I plan to retire as an engineer and either have or get a PHD in astrophysics. Then I will either teach or just have fun generating theories ;^}.
My time is currently divided between a full time product development engineering position and maintaining a small farm. ( www.theoaksff.com) This does not leave much time (or ability to stay up late) to lay out in the yard and to watch the sky and to wonder at all the possibilities. However whenever I get the chance I take the opportunity.
Thoughts about SETI and SETI@home
I believe that there are other intelligent civilizations out in the universe.
Theory - we will not truly discover other intelligence until we get a true grand unification theory. I believe this theory will open up ways to transmit information at faster then light speed. No I don't believe in time travel nor will any violation of causality happen. The change will be no more then the change created when communication went from letters to radio waves. (as the old gamblers learned that faster information did not change the out come of a horse race just change on when and how you took bets - take note chaos theorist)
The more advanced civilizations would naturally communicate with each other at the highest speeds possible and I believe once we find how the break the speed of light barrier a whole new intelligent community will be found.
The greatest danger from discovering other life will come ourselves. How will the religions and people in power handle this new knowledge. Will a new base of power be created and be met by resistance.
We have been transmitting signals for several decades now (TV, radio) so a concerted effort will not make much difference. (If ones count high oxygen content in the atmosphere then we have been sending signals for billions of years.
I run SETI for the remote chance that my computer will be the one that finds the first signal.
SETI@home and Astropulse are funded by grants from the National Science Foundation, NASA, and donations from SETI@home volunteers. AstroPulse is funded in part by the NSF through grant AST-0307956.
