Florida Today from Cocoa, Florida • Page 6

4A FLORIDA TODAY, Wednesday, October 20, 1999 CONTACT: THE FORUM Mow tes ites with opra mind Experts see life beyond Earth Three panelists at Tuesdays forum offered views on other life in the universe and when human might find it: i uestion: Do you think there Is other life in the universe? By Ed Garland FLORIDA TODAY COCOA There was the 10-year-old boy who dreamed of becoming a rocket scientist, the retired Kennedy Space Center engineer with his head in the stars and the just plain curious. Tuesday's forum on the search for intelligent life beyond Earth drew at least 400 people searching for affirmation, or at least acknowledgment, that civilizations exist on other planets. Ron Hollis of Rockledge arrived an hour early to get a good seat. The retired KSC engineer said he's among the legions of home computer owners helping track extraterrestrial radio signals in the project known as SETIHome. Charles Beichman, chief scientist, NASA's Origins program: "I don't have cer Nearby sat Joe Wyman and his mother, Elsie, of Meritt Island.

They both not only believe in extraterrestrial beings, but are certain that they have made contact with humans. "We're interested in finding out what the government's not divulging," said Joe Wyman, 41. Added Elsie Wyman, "If any alien life form exists and wanted to hurt us, they would have done it a long time ago. There's a lot more than we know and a lot more than (the government) wants us to know. I don't think that the average person could handle that knowledge," Elsie Wyman said.

"They'd freak out." Charlotte Ehrlich of Merritt Island, who described herself as a homemaker, said she has always been intrigued by space. While on a cruise, Ehlrich said, she met a woman who claimed to have been abducted, probed and prodded by an alien race. "She showed me circles on her legs (where tests may have been performed)," Ehrlich said. "I can't say that it can't be. Who knows? It could be." For Werner Grewe, the prospect of distant worlds thousands of light-years away is tainty because that requires scientific knowledge, but I think it's highly probable.

"The more we're learning about where life can exist on Earth and what are the basic requirements for life, the more it looks like those conditions could be replicated elsewhere. never meet. We would be wiped out in less than 1,000 years." Others believe an alien civilization may already have visited Earth. Helen Mamm of Satellite1 Beach cradled a yellowed copy of Zecharia Sitchin's The 12th Planet, the book that triggered her beliefs. According to the book's back cover, humans are descendants of Nefilim, a superior race from Marduk, the 12th planet.

"Very few people refer to this (book) or seem to know about it," she lamented. "You can dig under Africa and find tunnels dug by these people who needed certain minerals for their planet. They have documented proof of all these things." Matthew Higgins, 10, of Melbourne Beach, attended the forum for one simple reason: "I just like space and planets." Does Matthew, who already has his sights set on a career in "advanced propulsion systems," believe in aliens? Sure. "The chances are so small that we're the only ones out there," he said. 1 I 1 The project, headed by the 1 Berkeley, Search for Extraterrestrial Intellgience Michael R.

Brown, FLORIDA TODAY THE AUDIENCE listens at Florida Todays Community Conversations lecture at Brevard Community College in Cocoa on Tuesday. project, enlists the horsepower of thousands of home and office computers to search for alien life while they are in screen-saver mode. "The universe is too vast to think we're the only ones around," Hollis said. "When you look at our galaxy, we're a little speck of dust." Beichman "The basic elements for life are widely distributed throughout the universe. All of these things are forged in stars and sent around the galaxy.

So the basic stuff of life is everywhere we look. "Then you need some form of energy, whether it be light photosynthesis or chemical energy. But we can see from life on Earth that bugs have found ways to make a living using different energy sources in a lot of crazy places. "So life is very robust, the elements of life are widespread and there a lots of different energy sources available. So that gives me a sense that life is probable." Seth Shostak, public programs scientist, SETI Institute: "For me that's really a slam-dunk yes.

"What bothers me is that some of the (radio) signals take thousands of light-years to get here," said Grewe, a semi-retired design engineer specializing in cryogenics. "Another civilization, like ours, we would In only two centuries, Grewe said, the United States has ascended from fighting wars with cannons and swords to launching rockets into space. Maybe, he said, we're progressing too quickly. CHERYL LAWS0N- Y0UNG Guest Columnist I "I think that biology is as universal as chemistry. "We know that chemistry is the same everywhere in the universe, but I suspect that biology pretty much is, too, unless you think biology is a miracle.

"Maybe it's very hard to get started, and conse Shostak Exploration could pay for itself quently, it doesn't happen everywhere. "But I don't think that's the case because we know that biology got started very, very quickly on Earth, so it sounds like it wasn't all that hard." Bart Lipofsky, professor of astronomy and physics, Brevard Community College: "I can't believe that life atJOIttur VII UWJ if II.1RT fees I I I wouldn't exist somewhere else, simply because it's such a large universe and we find tantalizing clues of the (ingredients) for life over such broad places. "We find organic compounds not from living organisms hut rarhnn and Lipofsky hydrogen chemistry throughout the universe. "And with these basic compounds popping up all over the place, it's hard for me to believe that life isn't out there somewhere else." Michael R. Brown, FLORIDA TODAY at BCC in Cocoa while Charles Beichman, left, of NASA's Origins Program, left, and Professor Bart Lipofsky of BCC listen.

SETH SHOSTAK, right, public programs scientist for the SETI Institute, talks to the crowd at Florida Todays Community Conversations Universe still holds many mysteries L0RI LUTZ Guest Columnist Is it right to think there is life beyond Earth and to spend money to find out? This is one of the many things that make you think. After asking many people their opinion of the question, I received a wide range of answers from "Are you crazy?" to "Maybe, maybe not." With such a variety of answers, I had to go to my think tank and make my brain cells start working. I asked myself, what would be the advantages and disadvantages of such an unusual study? Starting with a few disadvantages, my thoughts immediately went to the billions of dollars that would be spent for such a project and the many people on Earth that are homeless, hungry, without medical care and in need of so many necessities. I had to wonder whether this would be a waste of money or whether it would be just down right inconsiderate to those on Earth that could use this funding to improve or provide good quality of life. I must also wonder that once we find life beyond Earth, what will we do with and about it? Maybe we would make them citizens of Earth and add them to our already misunderstood diverse culture base, with the hope they would bring with them some jobs and the necessities of life so we don't increase our problems here on Earth.

Would we just use them for their labor and knowledge and then send them back to outer space? Or would we get them here and discover that their skills, knowledge and talent supersedes ours and they would make Earth a suburb of planet "who-knows-what." After continuing the use of my brain power, I began to think that maybe there could be some real advantages to spending those billions of dollars, such as the possibility of discovering a "planet being" that has the knowledge to find a cure or additional treatment for diseases such as cancer, AIDS, diabetes and many others that are plaguing this great world. Wouldn't it be a grand advantage if the little green men and women of beyond could encourage all people on Earth to "just get along" and help us live in a world of nonviolence, where people are judged by their character and not their skin color, cultural differences or religious choices. If this could happen, then the billions of dollars would be well spent, and I think most of us Earthlings would even consider giving a bonus to this project. Lawson Young is vice mayor of Titusville and the HIVAIDS program director for PREVENT! of Brevayl Inc. more about the stars and planets that orbit them.

We have moved closer to solving what may be the greatest scientific mystery. To determine our fate, we must look within ourselves and explore the present, and more importantly discover the future. During the coming millennium, we must take what we have learned and expand on our findings through the development of the International Space Station and the exploration of Mars. The possibilities of what we could learn from extraterrestrials could be unlimited. They could teach us how to end world hunger, cure cancer and clean up our polluted planet.

This is a story without end. The universe beckons us. The most promising words ever written on the maps of human knowledge are terra incognita unknown territory. Lutz is a senior at Satellite High School with a strong interest in science. made it possible to study distant moons and stars and even discover new planets in ways no astronomer dreamed of at the dawn of the century.

Exploring the solar system and the infinite beyond continues to serve as an enticing goal for humanity. As we continue to search for signs of life, there is a glimmer of hope. Mars has no canals or cities, but it does contain dry river beds. This indicates that long ago the surface had liquid water, which every living organism that we know of needs to exist. Radio signals are another measure used to detect intelligent life.

If today extraterrestrials 30 light years from Earth intercept our signals, they would receive broadcasts from 1969. They might hear reports of the landing of the first astronauts on the moon or watch the World Series between the New York Mets and the Baltimore Orioles. Over the centuries, astronomers have learned more and Are we alone in the universe? This question has intrigued the minds of many people who have gazed up at the night sky. When our human ancestors first traveled across the continents, the sky already formed a blanket over us. The fascinating study of the sun and moon provided a continued source of wonder.

Over the centuries, musicians have sung its praises, and painters and poets still record its glories. Throughout history, astronomers have allowed their minds to roam the far horizons of the universe while their bodies remained on Earth: Kepler, creating three laws of planetary motion; Einstein, calculating the laws of the universe. They freed our minds but not our bodies. It has only been since the creation of the Apollo program that we have participated in human exploration. As President Kennedy said, Question: If there is other life, do you think humans will find it in the next millennium, be it microbes or some Intelligent species? Beichman: "I think that with the exploration of our own solar system, the chances of finding fossil life are quite good.

"As far as the search for life in neighboring planetary systems, that is harder. "But I think we will either have found life or put some very good limits on the probability of life beyond Earth." Shostak: "Not finding anything is the chance you take. "You have to be in it for the long term, and you have to be prepared for the possibility that you're going to do this and never find anything, but maybe the next generation will, or 10 generations from now. "There's this carrot in front of you, and it's not clear that just because you're running you're ever going to get it. "But I do think the chances are good given the fact that in the next 10 years, (with an increase in SETI's work), we'll be able to survey millions of stars." Lipofsky: "I think we will find some trace of primitive life, maybe even in our solar system.

I'm very encouraged about some of the things we've found out about Mars, but the truth is, we know so very little about the rest of the solar system. We're just beginning to explore, and with all of that territory to look in, it's hard to say what's out there. "We've had such surprises about the nature of life and how durable and adaptable it is. I don't think our imaginations are capable of grasping what the possibilities are. So yes, I think we will find some trace of primitive life somewhere in the solar system.

"But beyond that, to find intelligent life is another question. The distances (to other solar systems) are one problem, but just the probability of intelligent life popping up elsewhere is a little bit troubling. "There are so many unknowns. We don't know how long civilizations last. Looking at our own civilization, it doesn't take much to wonder how long we'll be around if we don't solve some of our social problems.

So it may be that intelligent civilizations don't last long, and we won't find others. It's hard to say." "No single space project will be more impressive to mankind or more important in the long range exploration of space" than Apollo. As we approach the 21st century, space can be probed in ways never before possible. Telescopes of unprecedented power can be used not only to visibly view stars and galaxies but also to study their radio waves. By launching satellites into orbit around the Earth, we can observe normally invisible X-rays and other forms of radiation from outer space.

Such satellites have also Search for alien life important, experts say SEARCH, From 1A Forum on TV Brevard Community College taped the forum and will air it at 8 p.m. Oct. 31 on WBCC. Check your local cable listings for the channel. speakers agree the search for alien life is among the most important scientific ventures of our time.

Shostak's SETI group uses radio telescopes to listen for radio waves from intelligent civilizations. Another panel speaker, Charles Beichman, is chief scientist for NASA's Origins program that plans a series of missions to search for other habitable planets. Beichman said finding life elsewhere is critical for people on Earth. "I think what we do by undertaking this kind of exploration and looking for life beyond Earth actually helps illuminate our understanding of life on Earth," he said. After all, humans have existed on Earth for only 2 million of the planet's 4.5 billion years.

So it may be that intelligent species don't show up that often. And if they do, they might not stick around long enough for us to find them. Intelligent civilizations may be destroyed by the social problems that they invent, Lipofsky said. "The chances of finding E.T. depend on how long a civilization is around," he said.

"If a civilization only lives for 100 years, they're only like flashbulbs going off here and there in the galaxy, and the chance of being in the right place at the right time is very slim." Nevertheless; Tuesday's The basic elements of life, such as carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen, are out there in abundance. "These chemical compounds that are the precursors of life are everywhere," said Bart Lipofsky, a panel member who teaches astronomy at Brevard Community College. "They are seeding the universe." Third, life is tough. It can exist in places that seem very unfriendly to fragile humans. Microscopic creatures live deep in the ice of frigid Antarctica.

They exist, too, in the suffocating sand of the world's deserts. It seems likely then, given a Coming Sunday house, the ingredients and the chance, life can sprout. The big question is: Does it naturally lead to intelligent beings that can sit around and wonder who else is in the universe? "Maybe biology is rampant, but intelligence might not be because nature is not really interested in intelligence, it's only interested in survival," Shostak said. On the Perspective Page will be an interview with Seth Shostak of the SETI Institute and columns by William Coleman former director of Project Blue Book, and Lin Osborne, professor of world religions at Brevard Community College..