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Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-19775-5 - the Astrobiological Landscape: Philosophical Foundations of the Study of Cosmic Life Milan M Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-19775-5 - The Astrobiological Landscape: Philosophical Foundations of the Study of Cosmic Life Milan M. Ćirković Index More information Index Page numbers in italic denote figures. A-Life (artificial life) 96 navigation errors 104 age of universe 53 role of astrobiology 95–98 Aguirre, Anthony, ‘cold’ Big Bang model 98–99 ‘Archipelago of Observership’ 146 altitude weighting 101–102 Areoparadise Lost 11, 82, 207 amino acids, L-enantiomeres 12–13, 207 Aristotle (384–322 BC), cosmology 37 Anaxagoras of Clazomenae (5th century BC), Arnold, Luc, detection of artificial transits 195–196, worldview 42, 46 200 Anaximandros (6th century BC), cosmology 42 artificial transit detection, work of Luc Arnold Annis, James, global regulation mechanism 159–161 195–196, 200 anthropic argument see Carter, Brandon, anthropic artificial vs. natural 188–196, 212 argument asteroid impacts 187 anthropic fine-tuning 66–72 mass extinctions 117–118, 187 anthropic principle 30–31, 88 role of Jupiter 135–137 alternative life forms 95–96 astrobiological landscape 23, 80, 78–85, 181 Davies–Tipler argument 38–39, 40 constraints 81–84 misconstruction 100 astrobiology misuse 102 anthropic reasoning 70 participatory 68 and Copernicanism 21 Signor–Lipps effect 64 and cosmology 23, 28–55, 208, 211–212 strong 142 early days 49–51 anthropic reasoning 69–72 historical parallel 49–55, 173 astrobiology 70 philosophy 51–52 as last resort 105–106 research discourse 52–53 Olum’s problem 72–78 critical theses 15–19 Simplicio–Salviati ‘dialogue’ on 102–107 and Darwinism 129 anthropocentrism 39, 100 ‘deep questions’ 208 overcoming 25 definition 9–10 religious, criticism of SETI 162–163 discoveries, importance to evolutionary theory 127 see also exceptionalism, human dynamics 167 anthropomorphism 184 extended mandate 21, 23, 206, 203–215 antimatter burning, gamma-ray search 177, 178–179, and future studies 210 200 and laws of physics 204–205, 208 apeiron 42 and mapping Archipelago of Habitability 95–98 apparent design 188–189 misunderstandings 21–22 Archipelago of Habitability 23, 91, 89–93, 208, neo-Copernican synthesis 205–208 211–212 numerical simulation 121–122 basic conditions 96 pace of discovery 15, 16 changing parameters of physics 98 and philosophy 19–20, 52, 150 259 © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-19775-5 - The Astrobiological Landscape: Philosophical Foundations of the Study of Cosmic Life Milan M. Ćirković Index More information 260 Index astrobiology (cont.) Carter, Brandon popularization 53 anthropic argument 150, 156–161 revolution 8, 207 criticism by Wilson 158–159 self-reflection 208 catastrophes strangeness 208 destruction of life forms 74, 159–161 testability of hypotheses 17 extinction probability 83, 84 unifying concept 209 ceteris paribus, unphysical 134–135, 180 work of Sir Fred Hoyle 54 Rare Earth hypothesis 135–138 astroengineering, strangeness 198–202 Chaisson, Eric, on cosmic evolution 144, 209 astronomy, extragalactic 60–61 chirality 12–13, 114–115, 207 asymmetry, biological 12–13, 207 circumstellar habitable zone, Rare Earth hypothesis asymptotic giants 60 131 atoms, formation of 35 civilizations, work of Ken Olum 72–74, 75–77, 104 cognitive distance 128 Bacon, Francis (1561–1626), view of legitimate coherence gap 134, 135 science 106 cold Big Bang model 98–99 Barnard’s Star 60 communication, extraterrestrial, radio waves 187–188 Basalla, George, Civilized Life in the Universe (2006) complexity, Archipelago of Habitability 96 163–164, 170–172, 174–175 consilience 22, 55, 206–207 Bayesian formulations 61 contamination, extraterrestrial 8 Benner, Steven, on astrobiology and philosophy 19 contingency 116–117 Bertka, Constance, on origin of life 11 biological 150, 151–156 BigBangtheory vs. convergence argument 119–125 cold 98–99 continuity thesis 132, 141–143, 168–169 relativistic hot 34–36 extended 143–144 vs. steady state theory 33–34 and Rare Earth hypothesis 146–147 biodiversity, Mars 110–111 resistance to 182 biogenesis 11–12, 82–83, 120, 207 convergence 119–125 continuity thesis 132, 141–143 vision 123–124 low probability of random assembly 142, 143 work of Geerat J. Vermeij 122–123 ‘lucky accident’ argument 120, 142, 143 Conway Morris, Simon, convergence 119–120, 123 Rare Earth hypothesis 132 Copernican Principle 7 biology Copernican revolution 20–21, 56, 211 universal concepts 111 Copernicanism 56, 161, 205–206, 210 universal laws 110 and astrobiology 21 impact on astrobiology and SETI 128 and Rare Earth hypothesis 133, 144 biosphere, shadow 127 see also neo-Copernicanism ‘Black Clouds with a Vengeance’ scenario 81 Cosmic Habitable Age 158 Boltzmann brains problem 104–105 cosmic microwave background 34 Boltzmann–Zermelo debate 33 cosmogony, ‘perennial problems’ 40–41 Bolzmann, Ludwig see Boltzmann–Zermelo debate cosmological constant 90, 93–94 bombardment see asteroid impacts cosmology Bondi, Hermann (1919–2005), steady state theory and astrobiology 23, 28–55, 208, 211–212 47–49 early days 49–51 Bostrom, Nick, Anthropic Bias 103 historical parallel 49–55, 173 boundary conditions 113–114 philosophy 51–52 Brin, G. D., Great Silence paradox 178–179 research discourse 52–53 Brownlee, Donald, Rare Earth hypothesis 130, work of Wallace 28–29 131–133 biophysical 27 bubble universes 49, 88 cyclic, Empedocles of Acragas (5th century BC) Burgess Shale, ‘rewinding the tape of life’ 115–116 39–40, 41 see also Gould, Stephen Jay factual 50 ‘Great Controversy’ 33–34, 49, 133 cabin of contact, intelligent species detectable by observation selection humans 154, 155–156 anthropic fine-tuning 66–72 Cambrian Explosion 115 Signor–Lipps effect 64 see also ‘rare’ Cambrian explosion analogues philosophy of 51–52, 182 Canonical Three 11–12 physical, modern 32–36 © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-19775-5 - The Astrobiological Landscape: Philosophical Foundations of the Study of Cosmic Life Milan M. Ćirković Index More information Index 261 popularization 53 Empedocles of Acragas (5th century BC), cyclic work of Wallace 29–32 cosmology 39–40, 41, 46 counterfactuals 66 encephalization quotient 154 historical causation 134–135 end-Permian mass extinction 154 creationism 138, 142 Enlightenment quest 207, 208–209, 211, 212 Cuzanus, Nicolas, De docta ignorantia (1440) 37 equilibrium, punctuated 161 Ernst, Max (1891–1976), Anthropomorphic Figure ‘Daisyworld’ thought experiment 122 with Shell Flower (1931) 184, 185 dark energy 34 eschatology, physical 210, 213 dark matter 93 eternity, distinction from time 37 Darwin, Charles (1809–1882), entangled bank Euclid, definitions 9 metaphor 78–79, 109 eukaryotes, Earth without 125, 126 Darwinism 20, 23 Europa, ocean 125, 126 and astrobiology 129 everlasting, distinction from eternity 37 and Newtonian mechanics 109–110 evolution universalism 112–113 Charles Darwin, entangled bank metaphor 78–79 Davies–Tipler argument 38–39, 40 convergence 119–125 de Sitter spacetime 104–105 cosmic 34–36 de Sitter, Willem, empty universe model 33 work of Eric Chaisson 144, 209 ‘Dead Space’ scenario 80, 81, 84 Darwinian 10, 112–113 decoupling, of matter and radiation 35 and extended continuity thesis 144 definitions 9–10 numerical simulation 121–122 design see apparent design; Intelligent Design; postbiological 174, 200 intentional design evolutionary theory, importance of astrobiological design hypothesis 68–69 discoveries 127 detectability, of extraterrestrial intelligence 178–179, exaptation 22 189, 200, 202 exceptionalism, human 211 Dick, Steven J. expanding universe 33 postbiological evolution and SETI 174, 200 ‘Extinct Galactic Club’ scenario 81 The Biological Universe (1996) 27–28, 174 extinction probability 83, 84 Dirac, Paul (1902–1984), large number near-equality extinctions see gamma-ray bursts; mass extinctions 66–67 extragalactic distances, determination 60–61 diversity, see also biodiversity extrasolar planets, evolutionary simulation 121–122 Drake equation 164, 165, 169–170, 176 extraterrestrial civilizations 101 dynamical parameters 79 detection 199 Dyson, Freeman on astroengineering 198–199, 200–202 ‘False Precision’ scenario 80, 81 detection of extraterrestrial civilizations 199 Fermi’s paradox 46, 83, 83–84, 149, 178–179, 211 extraterrestrial infrared radiation 177, 199 criticism by Pigliucci 178 Dyson shell 127, 128, 177, 178–179, 199, 200, 201 Henry Stop thought experiment 178, 179–181 work of Stanislaw Lem 214 Earth see also Great Silence paradox influence of Jupiter 135–137 Fiasco argument 154–156 influence of Moon on obliquity and rotation 137 final causes, ideas of Hutton 43–44 loss of water 125–126 fine-tuning, anthropic 66–72 ‘Earthsea’ 94 brute fact explanation 67–68 Eddington, Sir Arthur (1882–1944) co-emergent with observers 68 cosmology 33 intentional design 68–69 Malmquist bias 59 multiverse hypothesis 69 popularization of cosmology 50 finiteness, human history 41–42 Eddington–Lemaˆıtre universe 45–47 Flatland 73 effective past, finite 46 flux-limited samples 60 Einstein, Albert (1880–1952), static universe model football, observation selection, fine tuning 65 33, 45 fossil record, extinctions 61–64, 65 electrons 35 freak observers 104–105 elements Friedmann, Alexander (1888–1925) 33 formation 35–36 Friedmann universe 88, 93, 105 four classic, of Empedocles 39 Fry, Iris, continuity thesis 132, 141–143, 168–169 © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-19775-5 - The Astrobiological Landscape: Philosophical
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