The Drake Equation: Are We Alone in our Galaxy?

And if not Where is Everyone Else?
Frank Drake is a brilliant astronomer and astrophysicist who, inspired by Otto Struve, tried to quantify the chances that humanity is not alone.
Topics discussed will include...
Frank Drake
Otto Struve and the von Struve family
The Drake Equation
The Arecibo Message
The Wow Signal
China's report of an alien signal
Radio astronomy
Infrared astronomy
Lunar telescopes

Shop the Academy store at...

Please help support our channel at...

Topics Discussed

Thank you so much for watching!

Ad Astra Pro Terra

Credits

Artists

Companies

Extra Credit

N = R* x fp x ne x fl x fi x fc x L

Music Credits

Stark Goes Dark by The Whole Other

[erideimos]

Great one! The intro reminds me of Dr. Paul Harvey's "And Now You Know" segments with the voice not being far off. 😉 Well thought out again, very informative, thank you!

[samsleeman]

Hey it's my birthday on 5th July. &4 this year. Keep the good stuff coming and thanks.

[dukenukem]

I for one ... think it arrogant to believe we are alone in such a vast universe ... and i sure hope not !!

[rayoflight]

Thanks for the great video!
You may want to check your audio setup though.
Best Regards from the UK
Anthony

[oldfrend]

U was just the highest the equipment could register meaning the actual signal strength was likely far higher. i'm curiuos how much power U actually translates to compared to terrestrial sources.

[Sora._Cloud]

At least we know the answer is at least 1

[JCStaling]

Like how TSA breaks it all down scientifically.

[GrigoriZhukov]

It would be embarrassing yet unlikely if our species was one of the first to get this far.

[linyenchin]

Dang, I missed it... again... well, have to wait till I catch it live before I superchat...

[jimpiaz]

I've got one for you. Can you explain why gyroscopic propulsion wouldn't work as a constant accelerating force in space.

[azafreak]

Awesome



(VO is a little scratchy btw)

[jimpiaz]

Please make a video about gyroscopic propulsion

[webbiee]

The drake equation, i think needs a update. It leaves out what's in front of us our environment, evolution and natural selection, which is needed to become a civilization. This is the new equation, (yellow star(building blocks)<=10 billion year life span max >( red dwarf star)+ (environment )+ (evolution) + (natural selection)×(2%)+(white dwarf star)= 0.0% nuclear fusion= (AI) alien home world)) . Let me explain, look at the first part of the equation. Most scientists agree that yellow stars have the most building blocks for life. So, life has the quickest fastest chance to form and evolve around yellow stars and not red dwarf stars because of high energy solar flares and radiation strip planets of atmosphere. Yellow stars with all those building blocks for life, for example, can create microbes, bacteria, algae and thur environment (evolution and natural selection) create medium lifeforms, similar to dogs, cats, lions, etc, etc, etc, and eventually thur evolution create higher lifeforms us humanoids. The only real question is how many planets around yellow stars can produce intelligent beings thur evolution and natural selection that can travel to space the stars. Perhaps 1or 2 percent, the rest of the planets around yellow stars will produce medium evolved lifeforms similar to whales, shark's, lizards, etc, etc, etc. But that is where evolution will stop for 98% of creatures living around yellow stars. Not knowing in 10 billion years. There yellow star will puff up like a puffer fish and fry and swallow destroy all the inner planets around the habitable zone of there yellow star. The other 2% will take the next step in evolution, namely (AI) artificial intelligence. They will become half carbon based lifeform, half machine. As a result, increase there lifespan exponentially. The (AI) alien will realize there yellow star is doomed to some disaster, catastrophe. The alien will have allready mastered warp drive and leave. But, you might say, well they will goto another yellow similar star. No, no look at the equation next is (white dwarf star = 0.0%). The alien wants longevity power source and a safe home, eventually thur evolution the yellow star becomes a white dwarf star and loses power nuclear fusion. The (AI) alien wants longevity not 10 billion years. They want 100 or 200 billion years. They will goto a large or medium red dwarf star. They are more advanced than us. They will figure out how to deal with high energy solar flares and put a Dyson sphere (magnifier) around the red dwarf star. Now, the big question is can we
find there home, yes sure we can. Look for the markers. It's the white dwarf star that was once a yellow star home. Look for the
nearest closest large or medium red dwarf star to the white dwarf star, that is the alien new home. Maybe trappist 1 or T01-715 has a Dyson sphere magnifier around the red dwarf star. Also, i would like to talk about seti and it's radio and laser signals approach. The alien hasn't used radio or lasers for communication in perhaps 1 or 3 billion years ago. It's obsolete technology. You might say then what would the alien use. Look at the equation again, it has environment(evolution + natural selection). The (AI) alien is an evolved creature thur natural selection. It will use what's in front of it, it's environment. It can bend the fabric(environment) of space and time, when it chooses to. Perhaps it bends and contracts gravity to create gravitational waves for communication, similar to our obsolete morse code communication. Seti needs to find a way to use all those dishes and pickup gravity waves similar to ligo. Or, maybe the alien uses microscopic warp bubbles to send messages. And finally, why no visit from the alien no first contact. Because the alien is busy terraforming all those planets around red dwarf stars. They terraform all red dwarf planets for resources, power source and home longevity.

[Sora._Cloud]

There is a cut in the beginning of vid audio and maybe video

[charlesspringer]

The Drake equation is a silly thing. It doesn't not matter how many parameters you string together when some of them are just guesses AND you are missing crucial ones. So far all evidence says the likelihood of intelligent life capable of technology is vanishingly small. And if it isn't small, then interstellar/galactic travel is impossibly difficult and dangerous and there is no point in contacting someone a ten thousand years away at extremely low bandwidth. Carl Sagan used to say it is arrogant to think we might be alone. Well, no, it is the evidence. And he was always stoned, as in completely wrecked.

[scottthomas]

How I look at it...I'm standing way out in the middle of Nowhere, Nevada, with a pair of K-Mart binoculars and a 1970s vintage AM transistor radio. I look around, don't see anyone. I turn on the radio and just hear static, and reach the conclusion that I'm the only one around...sort of idiotic, right?
Sort of arrogant to assume we have the universe to ourselves, or that other civilizations might aim a transmitter our way.
My guess is if we do find other civilizations, it will be by accident...
My guess is the reason we haven't seen aliens yet is there's a lot of real estate in the universe, and an incredible amount of distance between that real estate.
Maybe aliens consider Earth to be like...Camden, New Jersey or something...not a pleasant place to visit.
Another in a series of well done videos...

[clementvining]

4 planets in our galaxy nonsense there are a lot more variables than in the drake equation. It would only take 10 million years for one race to populate most of the galaxy at sublight speed. This is assuming warp drive impossble it is not. It is also assuming life can't survive condition different than ours. And also if our understanding of galaxy and star formation is correct.

Now this is speculation on my part but I think there are warp drive ships all over our galaxy. I think warp drive is easier than everyone thinks. Then on top of everything else we are assuming radio signals which is highly unlikely. If warp drive is possible than likely faster than light communication is also possible.

[drds]

I get the reason why Dr. Drake made the equation, it's too foster wonder and imagination. That being said, I kind of find it to be bs. You can put any arbitrary numbers and or variables you want into it and get an answer. Some maybe closer than others but I don't think they are indicative of anything based in reality.

Or maybe I am being over cynical today.

Anyways, great video as always professor. It gives me something to ponder and reassess my ideas.

[danwhiffen]

Wasn’t the WOW signal confirmed to be a then unknown or covert microwave satellite?