Profile: neubaum

Personal background
Born in Sweden 1942 and psychologist (psychoanalyst) by profession I have always been deeply interested not only in the ontogeny of the human mind but also in the evolution of human language and customs, of life on Earth and in Cosmology as well. Being an SF-fan since my youth I've always been fascinated by the possibility of life in outer space and of finding evidence of that. When that day comes we may eventually gain that much sobering sense of proportions and humility to pave the way towards global justice and peace, something neither our religions nor science have accomplished hitherto.
Thoughts about SETI and SETI@home
Hopefully I can contribute to the finding of evidence of life in outer space, i.e. as an exploratory project and not motivated by any need for testing such a possibility in principle. The SETI@home project is an enterprise that join people all over the world, both scientists and laymen, in questing for the wonders of Nature within the realms of critical science, and I like to think of that as one of many possible influences to counteract the tides of irrationality that seem to never subside. The American philosopher Pierce was motivated in his work by the conviction of a fundamental (internal) connection between science and ethics, mediated by language, and I cannot help but find the thought comforting even if the hope for an ultimate grounding of either must be given up. It has been suggested that SETI and the rationales behind the project don't pass the test of being scientific in a popperian sense. I think such criticism is motivated only as far as the rational for SETI could be seen as an urgent need for finding evidence for life elsewhere in the universe — i. e. because, and only because, life, as an empirical phenomenon, and according to the theory tested, must in a fundamental and crucial and (therefore) interesting way be thought of as depending of what else could be considered strictly unique about Earth. Of course there is nothing whatever to corroborate such a view in a nontrivial sense. So — like ancient seamen, motivated by reasonable doubts about the flatness of earth — we may enjoy our fascinating journey, not on the earthly oceans this time, but in the sea of electromagnetic radiation that surges our world.
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