Exploring the concept of sending messages from Earth to potential extraterrestrial beings, the chapter discusses the technical aspects of transmitting messages, the potential response time, and the limitations of such communication methods. It touches on the idea of broadcasting the entire Internet for aliens to decipher, delving into efficient ways of sending information like radio waves, lasers, and even thumb drives on a rocket. Additionally, it delves into the implications of advanced artificial intelligence surpassing human intellect and potential encounters with aliens in space.
From our narrow vantage point on Earth, how can we see what's out there, beyond our skies? We look to how scientists and scholars have studied eclipses, dark matter, deep-space transmissions from intelligent life and more, all in the hopes of painting a clearer picture of a vast and invisible universe.
Original Air Date: August 19, 2017
Interviews In This Hour:
How Eclipse Chasing Inspires Generations of Scientists — How Do We Investigate The Invisible Parts of the Universe? — Search For Life In All The Wrong Places — What Can You Hear In Space? — The Universe Is Under No Obligation To Make Sense To Us
Guests:
David Baron, Priya Natarajan, Seth Shostak, Don Gurnett, Neil deGrasse Tyson
Further Reading:
NASA: 2024 Eclipse Explorer
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