This is planetary radio goes far beyond our own solar system.

The planetary society is a long-time supporter of the search for extraterrestrial intelligence,

SETI, a multi-project scientific effort to seek out new civilizations.

If you'll pardon our theft of the Starship Enterprise's mission statement,

lacking warp drive, we can't actually fly around the galaxy making house calls

at likely planets but we can listen and watch for the signs of intelligence reaching

across the stars.

Our guest today is David Anderson, a SETI pioneer and head of the SETI at home project.

We'll also find substantial evidence of intelligence when we make one of our regular visits to Bruce Betts for his

what's up segment. But let's get started by learning how CEDI really got started, quite possibly

long before you thought. I'll be back in just a minute.

Hi I'm Emily Lochuwala, science and technology coordinator for the Planetary Society with Random Space Facts.

Before the SETI program began listening for signals from outside Earth, human suggested

broadcasting signals in the hopes of contacting alien civilizations.

Carl Gouse, the German mathematician and astronomer, was one of the first to suggest contacting Martians by planting strips of pine trees in Siberia to enclose a huge right-angled triangle revealing Earthling intelligence via the universal language of mathematics.

Viennese astronomer Joseph von Littro suggested getting the Martian's attention by digging a 24 mile wide circular ditch in the

Sahara desert, then filling it with water, pouring kerosene on top, and lighting

it to signal Earthlings presence.

Other large flaming ditches carved out in the forms of squares or triangles could also indicate

intelligent life on earth.

In 1869, French poet and inventor Charles Crow

suggested sending a signal by constructing a huge mirror to focus sunlight

...