The impact of discovering life beyond Earth
By: Steven J. Dick, Former NASA Chief Historian
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Published: 2015
Place of publication: Cambridge
Language: eng
Number of pages: 356
ISBN-13: 9781107109988; 9781316426869
Copyright date: 2015
Subjects: Exobiology; Astrobiologie; Life on other planets
Description: "The search for life in the universe, once the domain of science fiction, is now a robust research program with a well-defined roadmap, from studying the extremes of life on Earth to exploring the possible niches for life in the Solar System and discovering thousands of planets far beyond it. In addition to constituting a major scientific endeavor, astrobiology is one of the most popular topics in astronomy, and is of growing interest to a broad community of thinkers from across the academic spectrum. In this volume, distinguished philosophers, theologians, anthropologists, historians, and scientists discuss the big questions about how the discovery of extraterrestrial life, whether intelligent or microbial, would impact society. Their remarkable and often surprising findings challenge our foundational concepts of what the discovery of alien life may hold for humankind. Written in easily accessible language, this thought-provoking collection engages a wide audience of readers from all backgrounds"--Jacket.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: Introduction: Astrobiology and society / Steven J. Dick; title: Part I. Motivations and approaches: how do we frame the problems of discovery and impact?; title: Current approaches to finding life beyond Earth, and what happens if we do / Seth Shostak; title: The philosophy of astrobiology: the Copernican and Darwinian philosophical presuppositions / Iris Fry; title: History, discovery, analogy: three approaches to the impact of discovering life beyond Earth / Steven J. Dick; title: A multidimensional impact model for the discovery of extraterrestrial life / Clément Vidal; title: Part II. Transcending anthropocentrism: how do we move beyond our own preconceptions of life, intelligence, and culture?; title: The landscape of life / Dirk Schulze-Makuch; title: The landscape of intelligence / Lori Marino; title: Universal biology: assessing universality from a single example / Carlos Mariscal; title: Equating culture, civilization, and moral development in imagining extraterrestrial intelligence: anthropocentric assumptions? / John W. Traphagan; title: Communicating with the other: infinity, geometry, and universal math and science / Douglas A. Vakoch; title: Part III. Philosophical, theological, and moral impact: how do we comprehend the cultural challenges raised by discovery?; title: Life, intelligence, and the pursuit of vale in cosmic evolution / Mark Lupisella; title: "Klaatu barada nikto"; title: or, do they really think like us? / Michael Ruse; title: Alien minds / Susan Schneider; title: The moral subject of astrobiology: guideposts for exploring our ethical and political responsibilities towards extraterrestrial life / Elspeth M. Wilson and Carol E. Cleland; title: Astrobiology and theology / Robin W. Lovin; title: Would you baptize an extraterrestrial? / Guy Consolmagno, SJ; title: Part IV. Practical considerations: how should society prepare for discovery; title: and non-discovery?; title: Is there anything new about astrobiology and society? / Jane Maienschein; title: Preparing for the discovery of extraterrestrial life: are we ready? Considering the potential risks, impacts, and plans / Margaret S. Race; title: Searching for extraterrestrial intelligence: preparing for an expected paradigm break / Michael A.G. Michaud; title: SETI in non-Western perspective / John W. Traphagan and Julian W. Traphagan; title: The allure of alien life: public and media framings of extraterrestrial life / Linda Billings; title: Internalizing null extraterrestrial "signals": an astrobiological app for a technological society / Eric J. Chaisson.