Professor ignites extraterrestrial lecture at ASU Polytechnic

Nov. 9, 2011
4:30-5:30 p.m.

Whether or not we are alone in the universe is one of philosophy’s oldest questions. Fifty years ago it became part of science when astronomers began sweeping the skies with radio telescopes with hopes of picking up a message from an extraterrestrial civilization.

After half a century of nothing but eerie silence, what can we conclude?

Paul Davies will address this question and whether Earth has ever been visited by extraterrestrials during his lecture “Ignite StarNight: Are We Alone in the Universe?” at 4:30 p.m., Nov. 9, at ASU Polytechnic in the Cooley Ballrooms.

“This is something that everyone thinks about at some point in their life,” said Davies, director of the BEYOND Center for Fundamental Concepts in Sciences at ASU. “If we aren’t alone in this universe, what do we do if we make contact with extraterrestrials? If there is evidence of an alien civilization, what’s next?”

His presentation will draw upon his latest book, “The Eerie Silence: Renewing Our Search for Alien Intelligence.” The book was released in 2010, marking the 50th anniversary of the search for extra-terrestrial intelligence (SETI) program.

“After five decades, there has been nothing but an eerie silence,” said Davies. “There is a range of new ideas for detecting the subtle footprints of alien technology. It is time we widen the search and stop focusing solely on the possibility of deliberately beamed radio messages.”

The “Ignite StarNight: Are We Alone in the Universe?” is free and open to the public. To RSVP please visit http://bit.ly/IgniteStarNight.