How Shall We Learn if We are Alone in the Universe?

Harvard FAS

Do there exist inhabited worlds other than our own? This question has inspired thinking and observation for centuries, but there are reasons to think we may soon have the tools and understanding to reach an answer. This course will begin with a study of the 14 billion year path from the Big Bang to the origin of the chemical elements and the formation of planets. We will then turn to asking what makes some worlds habitable, and others not. Finally, we will discuss different approaches to…