A Belief in Other Minds.- A New Era.- Searching for Intelligence.- Sending Our Own Signals.- Probabilities.- Probabilities: The Astronomical Factors.- Probabilities: Life.- Probabilities: Intelligence.- Probabilities: Civilization, Technology, and Science.- Probabilities: Longevity.- The Drake Equation, Take Two.- Should We Continue the Search?.- Direct Contact.- The UFO Controversy.- The Drake Equation, Take Three.- Why Don’t We See Them?.- Reformulating the Problem.- Thinking Outside the Box.- SETI and Religion.- The Consequences of Contact.- Hopes.- Fears.- Dangers.- Mixed Emotions.- Some Assumptions Examined.- Before Contact.- Assumptions: After Contact.- The Drake Equation, Take Four.- What Is Missing.- Some Conclusions Drawn.- Paradigm Shifts.- The Human Role.- Annex: Preparing.
Michael Michaud served as Director of the U.S. State Department's Office of Advanced Technology and as Counselor for Science, Technology, and Environment at the American embassies in Paris and Tokyo. He led the negotiation of international agreements, played an active role in reviving U.S.-Soviet space cooperation, represented foreign policy interests in interagency discussions of U.S. space policy, and testified before Congress on space-related issues. He has published thirty articles and papers on the implications of contact, as well as sixty articles on other subjects and the book, Reaching for the High Frontier: The American Pro-Space Movement, 1972-1984.
From the reviews: "Will we find extraterrestrial intelligence - and
should we want to? Such are the questions examined in Contact with
Alien Civilizations. Michael A.G. Michaud, a space policy analyst
and former diplomat, provides an engrossing overview of the
probabilities, promises, and risks of encountering smart aliens.
Drawing heavily on the scientific and scholarly literature (he
apologizes for not thoroughly discussing science fiction),
Michaud's approach is to compile diverse expert opinions on
alien-related topics and relentlessly scrutinize premises about
what the extraterrestrials would be like. His analysis suggests
that contact is a serious - and not necessarily pleasant -
possibility....
Space exploration, Michaud suggests persuasively, is a way of
spreading humanity's bets amid the current uncertainty as to who
else might be out there. If intelligent extraterrestrials are
detected, then being a spacefaring civilization will place us in a
stronger position to deal with them, whether cooperatively or not.
And if no contact occurs, then expanding beyond Earth could help
ensure the survival of at least one civilization -our own- in a
universe where civilized life is rare and hard to find."
(Kenneth Silber, The Space Review, Monday, July 9, 2007) "Michaud
deals with what may happen when we finally come face to face with
beings from distant worlds. … A tremendous amount of research has
gone into this book, and the extensive reference lists are by far
the best that I have seen covering this topic. … there is no doubt
that the reference lists alone make the book essential to anyone
setting out to make a serious study of possible intelligent life
elsewhere in the cosmos." (Patrick Moore, BBC Sky at Night, April,
2007) "This wide-ranging book … looks into the possibility of
contact with ET, examines the implications of SETI from all
conceivable angles: scientific, philosophical and cultural. … this
book is a remarkably uplifting one in the context of the
possibilities it describes and the potential for the human race.
Upon reading this superb book, easily the best on the subject that
I have come across, what conclusions will you draw from it?" (Keith
Cooper, Astronomy Now, 2007) "Michael Michaud’s Contact with Alien
Civilizations is a well-informed, impressively researched
presentation of an often fantastical subject. … I’d recommend this
book as ideal for anyone interested in a broad … detailed view of a
thought-provoking subject." (De Witt Douglas Kilgore, Space Times,
July/August, 2007) "Michaud points to the limits of our technology
as well as to SETI searches limited in their coverage. … He
highlights the complexities, difficulties, and disappointments that
go with trying to establish a code of conduct for the legal aspects
of encountering aliens. … This is a timely book; there is not a
dull word in it. Recommended." (P. Chapman-Rietschi, The
Observatory, Vol. 127 (1200), October, 2007) "Michaud explores the
possibility of intelligent extraterrestrial life and whether
humanity should actively pursue or not. … A mind opener to the
possibility of extraterrestrial life, beneficial to any reader.
Well written and organized; extensive bibliography. Summing Up:
Highly recommended. General readers; lower-division
undergraduates." (A. Gider, CHOICE, Vol. 44 (11), July, 2007)
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