What do we think of this (planet discovery)?

He is pulling a number out of his ***. For some reason, this irritates me far more when it comes from actual scientists. The reality is that we have no idea how likely there is to be life on that planet. The existence of an earth-like planet so relatively close to us probably increases the odds significantly for the existence of life and advanced life somewhere in the Milky Way or Universe. There is a formula for this that you can probably find on wiki.
 
The opinions of scientists are as valuable as the opinions of anyone else. Scientists don't get paid for what they believe, but for what they can prove.
 
I'm worried. I don't think I will be able to afford a ticket when we schedule their football team in a road game.
Really, you can't say 100% in science about hardly anything, so the guy should have said highly likely or some similar phrase.
 
But because conditions are ideal for liquid water, and because there always seems to be life on Earth where there is water, Vogt believes "that chances for life on this planet are 100 percent."
__________________________________________________

It is amazing the information they can gather by looking at a spot over 100 trillion light years away through a piece of glass.
 
I heard the guy on Science Friday talking about the quote, which he stressed despite the implication of the percentage it was an opinion, not a conclusion. His central thesis is that he believes that if the conditions are such to support life for a long enough period of time that life will eventually turn up there. As it relates to this planet, its high mass and near circular orbit makes it singularly likely to be geologically active, have a magnetic field and capable of holding on to its atmosphere... all while being in the sweet spot for liquid water, a molecule which appears to be damn near ubiquitous everywhere we've looked for it. Which is to say it is a fairly well reasoned bit of wild conjecture.

I dunno, he should have known that there was no way to put those words together without that being the story, and for that I think it was irresponsible. That said, the dude has a right to his opinion.
 
My semantic observation would be that scientists get paid for what they cannot disprove.

The problem with the 100% claim is that we have never been able to create life from the primordial soup (as I recall, amino acids do get formed which is an important precursor). I have always chalked this up to our inability to spare a billion years to run the experiment, but I do not see how you can accurately predict the likelihood until we see it actually occur (or not) a few times.
 
I am 100% certain that we are all just figments of god's imagination anyway, so it really makes no difference. If he wants to imagine there is some other planet and life there, he will. Or wont. Or can't. We don't know.

And besides, god is probably a figment of our imagination anyway. I am not 100% sure of that though.
 
The only problem with Gliese 581g is that the planet is tidally locked (no rotation) becuase it is so close to its star. Because the parent star is a red dwarf class star, the habital zone is very close and the planet is right in the middle of it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Weekly Prediction Contest

* Predict TEXAS-KENTUCKY *
Sat, Nov 23 • 2:30 PM on ABC

Recent Threads

Prediction Results Threads

2024 Schedules

Back
Top