CH-Week 1

Week 1

What does “Are We Alone?” Mean?

Are we alone? seems like a simple question. But, who is “we”? What does it mean to be alone? Alone where?… in our stellar neighbourhood? the galaxy? the entire universe? Is “Are we alone?” an important question? Have humans always asked this question? How have our ideas about extraterrestrials changed with time? The range of “expert” answers to these questions is enormous.

01:29

1.1.1 Questions

Are we alone? Are we the smartest creatures that ever crawled out of an ocean? Or are we the stupidest creatures that ever launched a rocket? Will the aliens feed us? Eat us? Help us join the Federation of Galactic Civilizations?
02:58

1.1.2 Origin of an Are We Alone Course

The story of how this course came to be. "How can you teach a course on ETs? You don't know ANYTHING about ETs." Charley was convinced that astronomers know much more about the universe and what's out there than the script writers for X files.
04:31

1.1.3 The People We Surveyed

We surveyed many people to find the range of answers to the question: Are we alone?
04:49

1.1.4 Are We Alone? Yes? No? Maybe?

Are we alone? Yes? No? Maybe? What kind of question is that? Can we try to answer this question scientifically or is it too speculative or stupid or naive?
02:26

1.1.5 Who is "We"?

In the question "Are We Alone?", who is "We"? We humans? We animals? We the life forms on Earth?
02:41

1.1.6 Is "Are We alone?" an Important Question?

Some questions are silly and unimportant. Is "Are We Alone?" an important question? The answers ranged from "Yes, it's profound" to "No, it's irrelevant."
06:17

1.2.1 Our Earliest Animistic Views

Contrary to current dogma, humans have NOT always asked the question "Are we alone?" The universes of our animistic ancestors was populated with animistic spirits not easily categorized as either terrestrial life OR extraterrestrial life.
05:30

1.2.2 The Greeks and Romans

Greeks and Romans were divided about the idea of life elsewhere in the universe. Is the Earth unique? Or is there a plurality of worlds?
11:39

1.2.3 Augustine to the Enlightenment

Review of Western views of life elsewhere in the universe: from early christians such as Origen of Alexandria and Augustine of Hippo to the more scientific ruminations of Renaissance and Enlightenment figures: Copernicus, Giordano Bruno, Fontenelle, Huygens, and Herschel.
11:11

1.2.4 HG Wells to the 1950s

Our changing views of aliens from the early 20th century (HG Wells, Schiaparelli, Lowell, and Wallace) to the science fiction of the 1950s.
02:22

1.2.5 Ithaka: Poem by C.P. Cavafy

The Greek poet C.P. Cavafy's poem "Ithaca" resonates with our Odyssey to find life elsewhere: Ithaca and the question "Are We Alone?" both give us a quest, a goal -- or at least something to talk about in the locker room. Without them, we wouldn't have set out.
24:46

1.3.1 Jochen... Are We Alone?

Jochen Brocks (German-Australian geobiologist) tries to get his head around (and answer) what he thinks are non-important but interesting questions: Are We Alone? Who is We? and Is there a difference between "being alone" and "feeling alone"?
05:14

1.4.1 Brian Schmidt: astrophysicist

Brian Schmidt (Nobel-prize-winning astrophysicist and Vice-Chancellor of the Australian National University) opines on human curiosity, his two labradors and being infinitely complex in a very large universe.
05:36

1.4.2 Charles Cockell: astrobiologist

Charles Cockell (Unversity of Edinburgh) has thought deeply about many astrobiological issues. He has created an online astrobiology course. Here he shares his thoughtful insights and optimistically concludes that with a few more beers we will solve the problems of the universe.
05:40

1.4.3 Jill Tarter: radio astronomer

SETI expert and radio astronomer Jill Tarter talks about beachcombing on an uninhabited Florida Key and being inspired by the idea of alien life. She wonders about our place in the universe and SETI false positives. If no one is out there, we ought to be taking even better care of the life on this planet.
09:13

1.4.4 Steven Dick: historian of "Are We Alone?"

Steven Dick (historian of the question Are we alone?) discusses metaphysical preconceptions, ancient Greeks, Copernican and Darwinian presuppositions and post-biological aliens.
05:42

1.4.5 Genevieve Bell: anthropologist/technologist

Genieve Bell (technologist and anthropologist) explains how "we" can include more than just "life forms". The quest to keep the Earth sustainable is as important as the quest to find life elsewhere. We should expect that progress in understanding the human genome and who we are, will be weaponized.
09:22

1.4.6 Martin Rees: Astronomer Royale

Martin Rees (cosmologist and Astronomer Royal) claims that there are many planets more or less like the Earth, but we don't know how life got started. For the first time, serious people are now working on the origin of life and the question Are we alone? Inorganic intelligence may supersede us. If we can survive and our SETI search fails, Earth can seed and colonize the entire galaxy with post-biological life.
05:07

1.4.7 Stephen Wolfram: theoretical physicist/founder of Mathematica

Stephen Wolfram (theoretical physicist and inventor of Mathematica): says we can use the basic science of the computational universe to answer questions like: What is life? What is intelligence? One thing we will achieve for sure is some form of immortality at which point the nature of our civilisation will change considerably.
04:03

1.4.8 Julian Burnside: barrister/human rights advocate

Julian Burnside (barrister, human rights advocate, articulate wit and QC (Queen's Counsel) ): We may just be a fleeting episode in the life of this planet and certainly a fleeting episode in the life of the universe. The human species is an interesting experiment that will fail sooner rather than later.
02:18

1.5.1 Meet Students

Meet 3 students at the Australian National University: Bec, Riley and Murray. Each week they discuss and ask questions about the course.
17:48

1.5.2 Student Discussion

Student discussion of week 1. Are we alone in the multiverse? What's the difference between myth and science? Could the boundary we place between natural and supernatural be a convenient myth? They liked the variety of opinions and seeing experts disagree. Is humanity a set of measure zero? Will SETI succeed?
04:44

1.5.3 Advice for Students

Expert advice for students thinking about becoming astrobiologists: Follow your interests and passions. Be sure you're very good in one aspect of this multidisciplinary field so you can make a contribution, whether its chemistry, biology or astronomy -- but then you want to broaden yourself. Run away. Don't do it. It's too speculative. It's a great interdisciplinary topic with so much boundary-crossing complexity.

Week 1

What does “Are We Alone?” Mean?

1.1.1 Questions

1.1.2 Origin of an Are We Alone Course

1.1.3 The People We Surveyed

1.1.4 Are We Alone? Yes? No? Maybe?

1.1.5 Who is "We"?

1.1.6 Is "Are We alone?" an Important Question?

1.2.1 Our Earliest Animistic Views

1.2.2 The Greeks and Romans

1.2.3 Augustine to the Enlightenment

1.2.4 HG Wells to the 1950s

1.2.5 Ithaka: Poem by C.P. Cavafy

1.3.1 Jochen... Are We Alone?

1.4.1 Brian Schmidt: astrophysicist

1.4.2 Charles Cockell: astrobiologist

1.4.3 Jill Tarter: radio astronomer

1.4.4 Steven Dick: historian of "Are We Alone?"

1.4.5 Genevieve Bell: anthropologist/technologist

1.4.6 Martin Rees: Astronomer Royale

1.4.7 Stephen Wolfram: theoretical physicist/founder of Mathematica

1.4.8 Julian Burnside: barrister/human rights advocate

1.5.1 Meet Students

1.5.2 Student Discussion

1.5.3 Advice for Students

Full Interviews

Brian Schmidt

Charles Cockell

Jill Tarter

Steve Dick

Genevieve Bell

Martin Rees

Stephen Wolfram

Julian Burnside

Additional Videos

Le Voyage dans la Lune (1902) - Georges Méliès - (HQ) - Music by David Short - Billi Brass Quintet

1918 " Himmelskibet " (A trip to Mars) par Holger-Madsen (Danemark)

Day the Earth Stood Still Trailer

'50s Adventures of Superman - Intro

2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY - Trailer

Alien (1979) Trailer

Yoda Explains the Force to Luke - from Empire Strikes Back

Independence Day

Contact (1997) Trailer #1 | Movieclips Classic Trailers

Men in Black (1997) Official Trailer 1 - Will Smith Movie

The X files intro and opening theme

Arrival Trailer (2016) - Paramount Pictures

Jill Tarter: Why the search for alien intelligence matters

Martin Rees - The Origins Podcast with Lawrence Krauss - FULL VIDEO

What We Still Don't Know - Are We Alone (Episode 1)

Is Alien ‘Life’ Weirder Than We Imagine: Who Is Out There?

Alien Life: Will We Know It When We See It?

SETI: Are we alone in the universe?

Universe: Beyond the Millennium - Alien Life

Carl Sagan on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson (full interview, March 2nd 1978)

Additional Readings

When surveyed about the question "Are We Alone?" most people...

When asked about what "we" means in the question "Are We Alone?" popular answers include...

In video "1.2.1 Our Earliest Animistic Views” it is argued that...

In video 1.2.2 and 1.2.3, what does the phrase "plurality of worlds" refer to?

During the first half of the 20th century, aliens seemed very interested in...