10th March 2003, 3:44 PM
Yeah ABF, I'm afraid scientifically, belief that there simply HAS to be life on other worlds just isn't exactly accurate. The reasoning is this. We have NO idea what the probability is for life developing, should it have been evolution as we know of it now that did it. As a rule, scientists currently have no solid opinion on whether or not there is life on other worlds. Billions of planets is something to go on, that's a lot of chances, but unless they know the chances of life occuring, that number is irrelevent. Billions or even trillions of planets still aren't enough if the chances turn out to be one in a quadrillion. Now, if life is found on Mars (it hasn't actually been found, it's just a hypothetical explanation for certain things they have found on Mars so far, it's not yet the explanation that is the only possibility, or at least a much higher or more likley chance than others, which is needed) then that certainly raises the probability by a HUGE amount, but that has to be done first. Until then, the probability is completely unknown with only a singular "positive" in all the universe to work off of.
"On two occasions, I have been asked [by members of Parliament], 'Pray, Mr. Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, will the right answers come out?' I am not able to rightly apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question." ~ Charles Babbage (1791-1871)