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Are We Alone?
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We Are Probably Alone
Universe is Designed for Life
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05-08-04 |
Host: |
Art Bell |
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Professor of astronomy and physics, Guillermo Gonzales (privilegedplanet.com(1)), discussed the odds of life in the universe and explained his Privileged Planet hypothesis. According to Gonzales, the places in the universe that can host intelligent life (like Earth) are also the best places for viewing and analyzing the universe. He believes such "privileged" places are extremely rare in the universe.
To prove his point, Gonzales refactored the Drake Equation -- a mathematical method to determine how many intelligent civilizations are in our own Milky Way galaxy. After citing a less than 1% chance of intelligent life Gonzales concluded, "In my opinion, we're alone in the galaxy." He went on to say that while there could be as many as one billion civilizations in the rest of the universe, "we're probably alone."
Gonzales asserts that the chances for intelligent life increase greatly if the universe was designed. This is because "the Designer would have created the conditions for life on other planets." This does not necessarily mean there are other civilizations, but it certainly opens up more possibilites than a purely materialistic view of the universe, Gonzales said.
1. http://www.privilegedplanet.com/
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Anthropic Principle |
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In 1973, astrophysicist and cosmologist Brandon Carter of Cambridge University proposed the Anthropic Principle, a theory which attempts to explain why our solar system seems to be finely tuned for intelligent life. That is, the universe gives the appearance of having been specifically designed to allow for human life on planet Earth. In their book The Anthropic Cosmological Principle(1), John Barrow and Frank Tipler define the most basic form of this concept: 1. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0192821474/ctoc/104-2720055-5891967 |
