Profile: Dr David Patterson

Personal background
Greetings fellow "SETIains"
I'm Dave from North Carolina, and have always had a great interest in science. I obtained a BS in Pharmacy in 1972,and Doctor of Pharmacy in 2001, both from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

I am married (30 years-same spouse!), father of two daughters; youngest is Sr in college, eldest is thru school, now married, and is an elementary school teacher. For some reason, I could not get either one of the girls interested in any science or health-science field (but they are happy-that is what counts)

I have been a Pharmacist since 1974, and now own my shop: I spend most of my time in consulting with Nursing homes and Physicians, as well as teaching the profession on location to PharmD Candidates from both schools in the state.

Health care remains a difficult profession, from Physicians, Nurses, EMT, Pharmacists, as well as Hospital and other health care organizations. In the small town- the Pharmacy is the community's "applied science!"

Dave/
Thoughts about SETI and SETI@home
I can see no reason for life not to exist on other planets, in other solar systems. Radio "Contact" with an Alien will not most likely occur for many years to come, and if/when this does happen, it will take Humans over many generations to get a response out-perhaps beyond the lifetime of our own sun. Meeting an alien culture and lifeform would be an event.. but human culture on earth is not mature enough for this encounter. Too, we would have to be patient enough to match our intellengce levels (if these beings flew here, that would answer the science part of the question!) and to establish a basic but very important point: Friend or Foe?
The benefits from knowing and exchanging cultures would enormous, along with the obvious science/technology exchange that each culture could offer. But if two cultures are able to overcome the obvious problems of "friend or foe? (note that we are in a war....here on Earth, no aliens here yet) the dangers of this discovery are still considerable, given bacterial/viral studies on earth (what an alien world could bring with them, and that we could give back! -we may all be killed by microbes!)
Science should send out beacons for others, if they are hunting, to hear.
Humanity best prepare for these events by learning negotiation, diplomacy, religious tolerance, and elimate bigotry from society. Perhaps then would mankind have a small base on which to grow. Dave/
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