Personal background |
I work in computer chip manufaturing. |
Thoughts about SETI and SETI@home |
Do I think there is other life in the universe?
I think the odds are good that life has or will develop somewhere other than just here. I also think it is possible that we may not ever hear from them, but that does not mean they are not there. If we do hear from other life, there is no way for us to know what good or bad could come of it.
Do I think we should transmit a beacon?
No. we do not know what to expect of a completely alien life. I think it would be irresposible for us to announce ourselves until we eigther know who we are anouncing ourselves to, or we have begun to colonize the stars. I think that to announce ourselves to an unknown people, with unknown capabilites, unknown ethical standards, and intent... with all our eggs in one basket (Earth) would be a blind gamble. (no matter what the odds of other intelligent life existing are, there would only have to be one group with an unfavorable response to make the risk too great)
Why do I run Seti@home?
I support research for the sake of research. There is the continuing growth of knowledge, and often, unforseen benefits. I also believe that if we do ever hear from ET, it will be a very weak signal that we will not see without deep inspection of the data, and seti at home adds at least some chance of this happening. Finally, I also see the methods being used by this program (in deapth calculations of large amounts of data, by many seperate processors), as having the potential to be used in other areas that may be able to yield more immediate benefits. |
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