Nasa discovers life?

[lepage]

Astronomy Hysteria: Is NASAs Thursday Announcement About Life on Other Planets? - TIME NewsFeed

[Werewolf]

I don't think anyone should get their hopes up of little ETs walking around Mars or Europa just yet. "Life" can mean a lot of things to scientists. Anything from bacteria to evidence that suggests fossilized microbes or even molucular and chemicals chains. I remember NASA did something like this a few years ago claiming they had found microbe fossils.

[Adam West]

Nothing like a vague announcement to cause hysteria.

[Werewolf]

Nothing like a vague announcement to cause hysteria.

Lol, yeah, pretty much.

[Brazoo]

Sounds like they'll be announcing a new way of searching for life, like a new technique or something. I can't wait!

[Brazoo]

I don't think anyone should get their hopes up of little ETs walking around Mars or Europa just yet. "Life" can mean a lot of things to scientists. Anything from bacteria to evidence that suggests fossilized microbes or even molucular and chemicals chains. I remember NASA did something like this a few years ago claiming they had found microbe fossils.

Are you talking about the bubbles found in the martian meteorite? To be fair I think NASA just said what it might be and the media went crazy with it.

[Brazoo]

Nothing like a vague announcement to cause hysteria.

Personally I think it's great that NASA is getting more savvy about using PR. For nearly 30 years they bored the crap out of everyone and got nowhere. I think it's about time they learned that getting the general public interested is important - after all - they're paying for it!

[Adam West]

Personally I think it's great that NASA is getting more savvy about using PR. For nearly 30 years they bored the crap out of everyone and got nowhere. I think it's about time they learned that getting the general public interested is important - after all - they're paying for it!

I agree but between this and the Mars exploration team (not sure if that was NASA) or not; it doesn't sound like more than tabloid fodder to me. I would like to hear about the current plans on sending another astronaut to the moon. I think that would really stir some public interest.

[Werewolf]

Not exactly what it was hyped up to be.

NASA Discovers Alien Life In California

[pmwasson]

Still pretty interesting!

[Brazoo]

Not exactly what it was hyped up to be.

NASA Discovers Alien Life In California

That's pretty mind blowing, no? If it evolved totally independently that's pretty huge. Not only that, look at how that will expand the search for life outside of earth.

In any case I'm still looking forward to the press conference today.

[Brazoo]

I agree but between this and the Mars exploration team (not sure if that was NASA) or not; it doesn't sound like more than tabloid fodder to me. I would like to hear about the current plans on sending another astronaut to the moon. I think that would really stir some public interest.

Yeah - well it's kinda hard to tell how much of this hype comes directly from NASA, and how much is the media cycle trying to make a bigger story out of it. Science news is usually reported really really badly.

I would love to see more manned space missions, but (As far as I know) any current plans for sending a NASA astronaut to the moon died with the Constellation Program this year: Constellation program - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Werewolf]

That's pretty mind blowing, no?

Yes and no. I'm pretty sure they've been tossing around the idea of arsenic replacing phosphorus as a chemical chain for a while now. So, yes, it's interesting that they've found arsenic based bacteria. But it's also disappointing NASA is going for tabloid style hype for a finding that should be legitimately news worthy enough on it's own.

Nasa hype amounted to: "Did they find alien life? Earth shattering reveal at their press conference."

Nasa reveal: Bacteria in a lake in California.

I'd say they overplayed their hand.

[Hector]

Arsenic based bacteria is good enough for me...it surely opens the possibility of life outside our world...well...more possible.

We are not as unique as we might like to think.

[Werewolf]

It wasn't even really naturally occuring.

"The researchers collected the bacteria known as GFAJ-1 and exposed it to increasing concentrations of arsenic, which it was able to adapt to and grow.

The microbe does grow better on phosphorous, but showing that it can live with arsenic instead raises the possibility that a life form using arsenic could occur naturally, either elsewhere on Earth or on another planet or moon where arsenic is more common."

Microbe found that can use arsenic as nutrient | Science Headlines | Comcast.net