Arguably the ultimate question in any discussion about extraterrestrial life has always been this: Is there life in the universe? In trying to find an answer, we know that the Earth is a particularly fine example, and no sensible scientist anywhere on the planet will ever deny this fact. They can see it, and so can everyone else in the world. Life us definitely prevalent on this planet. Where the controversy lies is whether it is feasible to find another Earth-like planet outside our solar system and one that could support life. And if such life could exist, intelligent technical beings would be a logical extension of this. Of course, the existence of just one planet is never enough to convince the more rational types in our community. This is despite the statements of philosophers and thinkers of the past who have pointed out the improbability of our Earth being the only place in the universe capable of supporting life.
The earliest recorded conjectures about extraterrestrial life began in ancient Greece in the 5th century B.C. Formed by a small band of renegade Greek philosophers and mathematicians, there was a time when human curiosity and thought were considered mightier than the sword. New knowledge and the recording of such knowledge during this golden age became a precious commodity, and people could freely debate and argue the knowledge of the day, helping others of the time to see a different perspective on life and the universe.
Among the great thinkers was Leucippus (approximately 480BC - 420BC), regarded by many to be the founder of atomic theory in physics. Another was Democritus (approximately 460BC - 370BC), a mathematician by nature who focused mainly on geometry but held a fervent interest in things relating to the real world around him. After much listening, thinking and debating, he too came to the same view and quickly became an ardent supporter of Leucippus’ view of the atomic world.
When Leucippus and Democritus turned their attention to the heavens and asked whether life could exist, their careful thinking suggested to these men that the answer should be in the affirmative. They summed up their belief by saying that the random collisions of atoms to form the Earth and everything in it could not have been a singular event. There had to be other worlds like the Earth.
Another Greek philosopher who became an atomistic philosopher was Epicurus. He too would give his support to Leucippus and Democritus.
Metrodurus of Chios, an Epicurean philosopher from the school of Democritus in the third and fourth centuries B.C., also gave his staunch support to his mentor, Epicurus, by summarizing the view in a romantic way as follows:
"To consider the Earth the only populated world in infinite space is as absurd as to assert that in an entire field sown with millet, only one grain will grow." (1)
Or, for a more accurate translation as Metrodurus would have said in the Greek language:
"A single ear of corn in a large field is as strange as a single world in infinite space." (2)
Not everyone will agree with this view. Aristotle (384-322 BCE) and Plato were the principal thinkers against any belief in extraterrestrial life. With the question of God firmly in their minds, they had different ideas about how people should view life in the universe. With no direct evidence of extraterrestrial life and with only the Earth to go by, the belief of these men became one of God creating man in his own unique image, and that no other creature could ever exist in the universe that could look like God or create another world like the Earth. The Earth must be seen as a unique and significant event and no other worlds with living beings could ever possibly exist.
Apparently, the Catholic Church found such an argument more convincing than Greek philosophers talking about corns in a field. As a result, religious leaders in Europe embraced this view, and for more than 2,000 years almost no soul was brave enough to take the opposite view on the grounds of heresy.
Indeed the consequences for anyone who tried to challenge the Church's view were quite devastating. Take, for example, the curious thinker named Giordano Bruno. His observations of the universe and careful thinking of the evidence suggested to him that it was time to resurrect the idea of multiple worlds in his book titled On the Infinite Universe and Worlds, published in 1584. Unfortunately, when the Church found out, he was apprehended by the Inquisition on his return to Italy late in his life. He was asked to recant his beliefs. Bruno refused. Not good, considering Bruno's punishment for disobedience and an unwillingness to accept the Church's position was a fiery death at the stake in Rome.
Fortunately, things have improved. People power eventually forced the Church (3) to accept the questioning mind of humans and to allow exploration of the heavens in a more scientific manner. It would begin among the educated and rich people of Europe asking themselves why God, with his immeasurable power, would create a single Earth in a grander infinite Universe? Surely there have to be other Earth-like worlds.
In more modern times, other people have stepped forward to give their opinion on the matter. For example, the renowned French philosopher René Descartes wrote a letter to his friend Hector-Pierre Chanut (1601-1662) on June 6, 1647, in which he explained his difficulty in understanding how it could be impossible for God to have created other intelligent beings out there among the stars. Why should we be the only ones to appear in God's creation? (4)
Astronomers at the time thought so too and soon began to train their telescopes towards the heavens for possible scientific proof of the idea.
Yet such a romantic statement about corns in a field and the beliefs of those who are famous and have influence and authority in society will never convince the more rational members of society, especially those who trust their own eyes. People can always argue in favour of ETs until the cows come home, but at the end of the day, it could all be swept away on the assumption that it is all a fluke of nature. The odds are just mathematically stacked against us and the formation of life on Earth as we see it. The only thing is, something must have happened for us to be here. So was it all a miracle that we are the first to arrive on the scene. Well, somebody has to start first, right? In that case, it might as well be us who has finally showed up in this lonely universe.
With this possibility in mind, the question must change to one that asks, Are we truly alone? In other words, what is the probability of us being the only ones alive in this universe?
And for those scientists looking for more direct evidence, we may be very close to getting it, thanks to SUNRISE publication of Can UFOs Advance Science? A New Look at the Evidence (after 30 September 2013). The discovery in the UFO reports of a new electromagnetic technology based on the Abraham-Lorentz formula should give us the answer.
Until the concept is tested, let us assume that we do not know this. Instead, we will begin this discussion by looking more closely at the indirect and essential scientific evidence available today from scientists who support the existence of extraterrestrial life at this moment in time. Then we will balance this discussion, as should always be done with any controversial topic, with the essential views from the skeptics. Afterwards, we can conclude this discussion by stating just how probable life is in the universe based on the evidence.
As for getting to that final answer, there are several ways to achieve it, as we will see in this section. But if we are willing to open our minds to all possible avenues to extraterrestrial life, then a study of UFO reports should never be ignored.