The Privileged Planet Look

Comment:  This is a brief in support of a series on UFOs. The science briefs are intended to prepare readers for the series and establish the view from a rational perspective. The Privileged Planet speaks to the limits of science and how the cosmos were designed for human discovery. 

The Privileged Planet

The search for purpose in the universe. Guilermo Gonzalez, PhD and Jay Richards , PhD explore the cosmos and present the case that not only is life a statistical improbabilty off the Earth but they make the preposterous claim that right here on the planet Earth life is an improbability! But sentient and intelligent human life persists.  They go further and claim that the cosmos was designed for human discovery. 

In the works they present many fascinating concepts and demonstrate that the planet Earth is more than a speck of dust floating in the cosmic sea. The planet Earth seemingly is placed with precision and strategy.

The Privileged Planet lists many aspects of Earth that make it just right for life as we know it and therefore a special planet. Some of the findings and claims include:

1. The Earth is just the right distance from the Sun so that water can exist in its liquid state, which is vital for carbon-based life.  If the Earth was 5% closer, our atmosphere would be more like Venus with temperatures up to 900º F.  If it were 5% more distant, then it would be more like the frozen planet Mars.
2. The Moon stabilizes the Earth's axis, thereby giving us the seasons which are vital to life.
3. The atmosphere blocks gamma rays, UV rays, and x-rays.  The light that does penetrate is just what is needed for life.
4. If the Earth's Gravity were increased, then no life larger than a pea could exist.
5. Our solar system has large planets that shield Earth from comet impacts.
6. Earth occupies the right location in the galaxy.
7. Earth has a thin crust that allows plate tectonics.
8. Has oxygen in the atmosphere to support life.
9. The Sun is 400 times larger than the Moon and is also 400 times farther away.  This creates a total eclipse of the Sun where the Moon just covers the Sun.  In 1870, this was used to discover helium.  
10. In 1919, the eclipse was again used to verify Einstein's theory that the gravity from the Sun would bend light passing it.
11. The atmosphere is transparent, allowing us to view the stars and other planets.
12. Many scientific formulas describing the Universe and how it works are incredibly simple, making them easy to discover and understand.

While the argument is made about life in general being statisitical improbability, the argument is not about life in general but is about sentient and intelligent life placed in a universe designed for discovery. 

Reference:

Gonzalez, G. And Richardson, J. (2004). The privileged planet: how our place in the cosmos is designed for discovery. Regnery Publishing Company. USA.

Life on Other Planets CH 03

Commentary: This posting is in a series of posts summarizing the book, "Lights In The Sky and Little Green Men" by Hugh Ross, Kenneth Samples, and Mark Clark. Hugh Ross is a scientist in physics and Clark has a PHd in political science. The other authors specialize in social sciences, philosophies, and international relations.  The full series can be reviewed at UFOs an Alternative Look.

Between Hollywood films and years of indoctrination in the naturalistic worldview have set to conditions for the public to believe the fairy tale that life is spread all over the heavens. Ross makes a call to suspend the assumptions of naturalism and to apply scientific method to the inquiry. These methods shine light on the UFO phenomenon.  The scientific method corrals the UFO mystery through the process of elimination in order to discover what gives rise to the UFO phenomenon. Applying the process of elimination gives rise to three questions:

1. The number of planets in the known universe
2. The probability that some planets have essential life support characteristics
3. The availability of planets where life may reside 

The discussion and investigation of this chapter focuses on these three questions.

Theories regarding the number of planets has migrated from those who thought every star had planets to those who believe that the Sun is a rarity as instruments, techniques, and theoeretical models improved.  Thus, solar system styled planets are not numerous at all. Nonetheless, scientists have found planets outside  our solar system.  These planets are either bathed in the deadliest radiation known in the universe or they are far more massive than Earth.

The measure of star capable of producing a planet to support life is a young metal rich star. Of the stars observed in the Milky Way that can produce an Earth-like planet, fewer than 2 percent are capable and 98 percent are too old or too metal poor. In fact, stars and solar systems that match our solar system becomes exceptional or rare.

Our solar system formed adjacent to a Type I and II supernova that arrayed and commingled their blast with various heavy metals in a nebula before collapsing into our Sun and solar system.  This unusual convergence of circumstances makes the candidates for life even smaller. In other galaxies star formations are older and contain no metal rich stars, hence, no planets. The hubble telescope confirmed that the probability of other planet systems around potential stars to extremely slim. In fact, it found nothing compared to mathematical models that predicted seventeen in 47 Tucanae star cluster.

The statistics in the end indicate are that less than a tenth of a percent of the stars in the cosmos have planets of any size or type and significantly smaller than earlier predictions. Now one must consider those suitable for life.

The only life form sustainable is carbon-based given the periodic table as determined by physicists Robert Dicke. This enabled scientists to organize a list of planetary characteristics necessary to support life.  The current list exceeds 140 parameters. In this list, parameters must fall into specific limits and interdependent ratios to avoid disrupting the planets ability to support life. This gives rise to zoning of the level of life and type possibilities.

1. Zone 1: Unicellar, low metabolism life that persists for brief periods
2. Zone 2: Unicellar, low metabolism life that persists for long periods
3. Zone 3: Unicellar, High metabolism life that persists for brief periods
4. Zone 4: Unicellar, High metabolism life that persists for long periods
5. Zone 5: Advanced, that persists for brief periods
6. Zone 6: Advanced, that persists for long periods

There are complicating factors to be discussed in the next posting.Computing the probability of of life based on the parameters turns out to be a statistical improbability leading many scientists to search for exotic life sites.

An exotic life site would be someplace out of the ordinary such as a moon, comet, or free floating planet. These, when examined, possess harsh environomental conditions that are hostile to carbon based life.  

Commentary:  Another book, The Privileged Panet, postulates the possibility of life elsewhere concluding an impossibility for life even here on Earth. Video Chapters of a Privileged Planet;  Book: The Privileged Planet

This completes the third chapter. I'll summarize chapter four in the next posting. From time-to-time, I may post a commentary section highlighting a specific point.

References:

Ross, H., Samples, K., & Clark, M. (2002). Lights in the sky & little green men: a rational christian look at UFOs and extraterrestrials. Navpress. Colorado.