Are We Being Watched?: The Search for Life in the Cosmos

Description

Are We Being Watched? applies the latest scientific discoveries and theories to enquire whether life exists on other planets and, if so, what forms it might take. Could there be, elsewhere, life as advanced as here on Earth, or are we more likely to find much more primitive life forms, or even no life at all? Can science tell us whether there is something out there? Or are we the sole living organisms in a desolate and boundless cosmos? Are We Being Watched? describes the most recent research and makes cutting-edge astronomical thinking, including cutting-edge research by biologists, astronomers and palaeontologists, accessible to anyone who has wondered whether there is life beyond the Earth. This is an impeccably thorough review of the evidence, making accessible an extraordinary array of scientific findings.

Paul Murdin has degrees from Oxford University and the University of Rochester, New York. In 1971 he discovered the first black hole in our Galaxy. He has been President of the European Astronomical Society, Director of Science in the British National Space Centre and Treasurer of the Royal Astronomical Society. He has published some 150 scientific papers, edited the specialist multi-volume Encyclopedia of Astronomy and Astrophysics, and is the author of a number of popular books on astronomy, including Secrets of the Universe.

'An impeccably thorough review ... makes accessible an extraordinary array of scientific findings ' - Magonia 'Provocative ... Murdin is an excellent and thoughtful guide' - New Scientist 'This is a measured investigation: Murdin, ever clear-eyed, is well prepared to accept that we are unique' - Nature 'Murdin is an experienced and lucid writer ... will be a great addition to the school or college library' - School Science Review