The Alien Enterprise, Part 2

Curious Cases

BBC

Science

4.8 • 4.1K Ratings

🗓️ 17 August 2018

⏱️ 25 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Do alien civilisations exist? When will ET phone home?

In the second part of our alien double bill, Hannah and Adam boldly go in search of intelligence. They may be some time.

What will aliens look like? Where should we look for them? And what are the chances of finding complex life in the cosmos?

Featuring astronomer Seth Shostak from the SETI Institute in California, exoplanet hunter Sara Rugheimer from the University of St Andrews and zoologist Matthew Cobb from Manchester University,

Presenters: Hannah Fry, Adam Rutherford Producer: Michelle Martin.

Transcript

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0:00.0	I'm Dr Adam Rutherford. And I'm Dr Hannah Fry. And you are going to send us your everyday
0:10.8	mysteries. And we are going to investigate them using the power of science. Science.
0:16.5	I like it. Hello, Curios. This is the second installment of the Hunt for Aliens.
0:25.8	Aliens Part 2. I want to believe. And we'll find out whether Adam Rutherford does believe
0:32.6	after the show. Yes, we will. Right. So in the first part, we went through the solar system
0:37.2	looking for microbial life in places like Enceladus and Europa. And in this episode, we're
0:43.4	looking for proper extraterrestrial intelligence. Clever Aliens, basically. Yes. On with the show.
0:56.3	Greetings, Earthlings. And welcome back visitors from other worlds. Yeah, it's the second part
1:02.4	of our Curious Cases quest to uncover alien life. We're asking how science searches for life in
1:07.3	the universe and what are the chances of finding it. And today, we are looking not just for life,
1:12.2	but for intelligence. Well, don't look at me. Don't worry, I'm not.
1:25.8	Watching stars like those shining on high. That somehow you're that great unknown.
1:35.7	You may find you are not alone. At the first scientific meeting of the search for extra
1:42.8	terrestrial intelligence in 1961, Astrophysicist Frank Drake revealed a new mathematical
1:49.3	equation to calculate the number of civilizations that could make contact.
1:57.4	It required users to input seven figures, including the number of stars in the Milky Way,
2:02.9	the fraction that have planets, the probability those planets contain life,
2:06.9	and whether that life is intelligent enough to broadcast signals into space.
2:11.6	You are not alone.
2:15.9	In 1986, Frank Drake revealed on radio for the conclusion he reached.
2:20.6	About one or more new stars is created in our galaxy each year.
2:26.6	Most of these will have planetary systems. And in these planetary systems,
	...

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