Introduction

A diagnosis of SETI efforts in Brasil

Although the community of astronomers at the Brazilian universities and institutes outnumbers 300, no one is expert on bioastronomy or committed to it even in part time. In a dozen of graduate programs carried out here, no one contemplates bioastronomy in any aspect. There are also several radioastronomers and since early 70's a 43-ft radiotelescope operates at centimeter wavelengths, but SETI is not brought even to a mere discussion level.

The inevitable conclusion is that SETI is not a research field recognized by the local academic and scientific institutions of astronomy. However the profile of the institutions is shaped by the persons sharing them. So the inferior reputation of SETI among astronomers is clearly more a cultural than a financial or technical problem.

The hypothesis of extraterrestrial life has been clearly stated and closes most of astronomical textbooks in the world. However in Brasil this chapter seldom takes part in the textbooks and is not teached and discussed in classroom. As a consequence, few people are able to state correctly the hypothesis of the extraterrestrial life, and to defend SETI as a legitimate effort to check experimentally that hypothesis. So bioastronomy and SETI are both discredited, not because there exist explicit and robust arguments discrediting them, but because of a fashionable avoidance of such subjects.

Although astronomy is essentially interdisciplinary, in this case the interdisciplinarity cannot be blamed of raising problems for the development of any field of the astronomy, including bioastronomy. The orthodox astronomical research involves observations and their interpretation in mathematical, physical and chemical terms. But we know historically that the marriage of astronomy with physics, that gave place to astrophysics in late XIX century, was initially rejected as spurious. In spite of the formal acceptance by the International Astronomical Union creating the 51^st. Commission, bioastronomy still suffers a segregation perhaps because biology is envisaged farther away from astronomy than mathematics or physics.

Another source of the discredit is the widespread crude confusion of bioastronomy with a class of noisy, panic disseminating ufology. UFOs are conceptually acceptable as a logical corollary of extraterrestrial life. But some ufologists insist on descriptions of amazing contacts with extraterrestrials, abductions etc with a very meager set of informations on the circumstances and lacking of essential evidences. On the other hand the scientific institutions, before any examination, systematically ignore or deny such reports, or insult the ufologists saying that intelligent people are not allowed to believe on ETs or UFOs. Thus after half a century of a dialogue among deaf persons, this issue remains confusing and unclear as it was in the beginning.

Nevertheless SETI in Brasil was the subject of a Master's and Ph.D. thesis at the Department of History of Science from the University of São Paulo. Recently another M.Sc. thesis on a sociological aspect of SETI was presented at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. This meeting also is taking place here thanks to the open-minded people working at the Museum of Astronomy of Rio de Janeiro. And we possibly will welcome soon the installation of a modest SETI radiotelescope at some official institution of divulgation of astronomy. Therefore the institutional support for bioastronomy and SETI is starting to come, not from the local astronomical academic and scientific community, but from institutions related to astronomy through the history of science, scientific education and divulgation.

So a precious support for the institutional development of exobiological research does exist here. Under the strategical viewpoint the SETI enthusiasts should put their efforts at this moment in institutions which by their own nature are devoted more to the interdisciplinary aspects of the astronomy, than to astronomy itself. It seems foreseeable that a respectable astrobiologial message can be spread out from such sources to the general public as well as to the scientific community, so creating a favorable ambient for astrobiology and SETI.

Proposing a concrete program

So, from outset I would not like to propose any kind of polemics or attacks, but a program of affirmative actions. I wish to focus the potential efforts imediately available here towards a small, modest result, but effectively contributing for the clarification of astrobiology and SETI.

This program should be understood as an initial step for a period extending no more than 2 years.

An informal community of SETI enthusiasts is starting to grow right now thanks to the recent availability of the site https://www.angelfire.com/mi/SETI publicized by Dr. Mauro Cavalcanti, a biologist from the National Museum from Rio de Janeiro. I can state that this seminal effort already brought forth this event gathering us here and now.

A program for the development of bioastronomy

As I see SETI more as an experimental method constituting only part of a broader discussion encompassing the extraterrestrial life, I would propose that our efforts should emphasize a broader discussion on bioastronomy instead of SETI.

A virtual lab for bioastronomy

This virtual lab for bioastronomy should stay outside the space of formal research institutes and academy. I propose that this incipient community of enthusiasts would gather, still informally and virtually at least initially, specialists from different areas of science with the main purpose of promoting cooperatively high standard bioastronomical researches and critical discussions. Of course, in order to succeed, the research plans should be locally feasible. Although informal, this lab should have a leader elected for a limited term to coordinate the actions, assisted by a board of counselors. The only credential for sharing the community would be the skill for scientific activity, the strict observance of the scientific method, to be sincerely concerned about bioastronomy and, of course, politeness. The scientific output of this virtual lab should be presented, as much as possible, at prestiged and well-reputed scientific meetings and magazines.

A text-book on bioastronomy

An effort of this incipient community should be the publication of an attracting and serious book for the general public clarifying the very basic concepts of bioastronomy. There are few publications on this subject, but in general they are scattered in chapters of more comprehensive books. This text-book will be entirely dedicated to the subject, and should become a prime reference on the subject. To attain this objective, this book should be well written in didatic terms and must be authoritative in its content. This book is intended to clarify most of prejudices and misunderstandings. I am aware of the plan from Dr. Cavalcanti to publish such kind of a book. I should not rob his priority, but I would like his plan could fit in the context of the program I am proposing.

Public opinion concerning extraterrestrial life

A census could be carried out by electronic means in order to survey the real status of the Brasilian public opinion concerning SETI and bioastronomy. This could be done through the distribution of a short questionnaire quickly repliable. From the responses we should be able to build a statistical map of the notions, judgments, interests and informational sources among scientists, astronomers, biologists, sociologists, linguists, teachers, artists, professionals of communications, laymen etc. The results of this census could guide us in the next actions. Maybe better the census precede the publication of the book.

Concluding remarks

Also as an astronomer I would dare to propose some possible interdisciplinary themes for future research plans:

I my view, the Rare Earth hypothesis is discussed in terms of the life in Earth. Conditions in the Earth for this specific type of life are, of course, fine tuned, and one can argue that probability is very low of another niche in the Universe fitting into these conditions. On the other hand the multiplicity of life in Earth, the ability for certain types of bacterial life for thriving in environments formerly imagined inhospitable, without outrageous extrapolations opens ample possibilities for a discussion in terms of diverse and inimaginable life forms emerging and evolving through pathways very distinct than that one that took place in our Planet. Fine tuning is thus a consequence of the selective evolution, not a prerequisite. Then, if other kinds of life can emerge, they should be prone to succeed elsewhere.

Also among bioastronomers, a crucial distinction lies between a casual and a causal process. In which sense a cosmic collision with a planet is more casual than the very formation of a star? The casuality seems to be more in our minds, or in the probabilistic modeling of the collisional processes than in the reality itself. It seems that this distinction deserves a kind of epistemological criticism.

Another far reaching bioastronomical subject is the past biological influence of the Earth's rotation slowing-down on the cycles of daily and annual illumination, ocean tides etc, as well as of the formation, evolution and cyclic variation of the Earth's magnetic field concerning life forms sensitive to the geomagnetic field, the modulation it causes on the biological action of the solar wind and the cosmic rays.

Closing this presentation, I would like to compliment the Organizers of this Meeting for the ample interest it raised, and express the hope that it will be the very first step for a solid implantation of bioastronomical researches in Brasil.

Potential adherents of this strategical plan and people wishing to offer suggestions may contact the author through the above quoted electronic address.

²Although I acknowledge the importance of SETI@Home to publicize SETI in large scale, I do not see it as a way to promote directly a long-lasting effort here. So I am not taking into account the about 27,000 Brazilian participants of this program.

Mauro J. Cavalcanti
maurobio@acd.ufrj.br

SETI League Regional Coordinator

SETI@Home Teams

Academic Researchers

Independent Group