Are We Alone In the Universe? New Analysis Says Maybe. In a new paper published on arXiv.org, astrophysicist David Spiegel at Princeton University and physicist Edwin Turner at the University of Tokyo argue...using a statistical method called Bayesian reasoning...that the life here on Earth could be common, or it could be extremely rare — there's no reason to prefer one conclusion over the other. [more inside]
posted by Potomac Avenue on Jul 28, 2011 - 111 comments

Dr. Hoover has discovered evidence of microfossils similar to Cyanobacteria in freshly fractured slices of the interior surfaces of the Alais, Ivuna, and Orgueil CI1 carbonaceous meteorites. The scientist's conclusion is that the fossilized bacteria are not Earthly contaminants but are the fossilized remains of living organisms which lived in the parent bodies of these meteors, e.g. comets, moons, and other astral bodies. The implications are that life is everywhere, and that life on Earth may have come from other planets.
posted by Surfin' Bird on Mar 5, 2011 - 150 comments

"At the end of March 2010, I found out that I was apparently a central figure in a conspiracy theory regarding aliens and a government cover up." David Levine's Contact Project was an early web game (1995!) in which message forum members would collaborate to translate increasingly elaborate "extraterrestrial" messages. What Levine didn't expect was that, over the course of several years, a convoluted conspiracy theory would spring up around the Contact Project based on the notion that Levine actually received transmissions from Tau Ceti, and lied to cover it up! (via gameshelf)
posted by speicus on May 8, 2010 - 13 comments

Who Speaks for Earth? "After decades of searching, scientists have found no trace of extraterrestrial intelligence. Now, some of them hope to make contact by broadcasting messages to the stars. Are we prepared for an answer?"
posted by homunculus on Jan 1, 2008 - 63 comments

The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence at HOME This isn't a new site, but there is a new version of the software. It's nice to be able to use your CPU to find ETs while your away from your machine. It is simple and doesn't crash. Check it out! I'm running in on both my NT box and my MAC G4
posted by brdesign on Jan 27, 2000 - 0 comments