What does "SETI" stand for?
Stanford Extraterrestrial Initiative
Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence
Strategic Extraterrestrial Indicators
What makes the Drake Equation different from most other equations?
It has no defined solution
It has more letters and functions
It is the only contribution Frank Drake made to astrobiology
What is the Drake Equation attempting to calculate?
The number of alien life forms in the universe with whom we could make contact
The number of technological civilizations in the Milky Way with whom we could make contact
The number of alien life forms in the Milky Way with whom we could make contact
Why does physicist Philip Morrison call SETI "the archaeology of the future"?
Because SETI is attempting to uncover new civilizations
Because the speed of light is finite, any signals detected from distant technologies will be telling us about their past
Because the idea of alien life is archaic, like the relics of old civilizations
How can the Drake equation be simplified?
By admitting that it's too hard to calculate the possibility of extraterrestrial life
By coming up with definite answers for every value and using those to calculate a precise solution
By showing that the number of civilizations we can make contact with is approximately equal to the longevity of those civilizations