The Great Silence: Science and Philosophy of Fermi's Paradox

by Milan M. Cirkovic

Overview

The Great Silence explores the multifaceted problem named after the great Italian physicist Enrico Fermi and his legendary 1950 lunchtime question "Where is everybody?" In many respects, Fermi's paradox is the richest and the most challenging problem for the entire field of astrobiology and the Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence (SETI) studies.

This book shows how Fermi's paradox is intricately connected with many fields of learning, technology, arts, and even everyday life. It aims to establish the strongest possible version of the problem, to dispel many related confusions, obfuscations, and prejudices, as well as to offer a novel point of entry to the many solutions proposed in existing literature. Ćirković argues that any evolutionary worldview cannot avoid resolving the Great Silence problem in one guise or another.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780199646302
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	07/10/2018
Pages:	432
Product dimensions:	6.40(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Milan M. Ćirković, Research Professor, Astronomical Observatory Belgrade and Research Associate, Future of Humanity Institute, Oxford University

Milan M. Ćirković is a research professor at the Astronomical Observatory of Belgrade, and a research associate of the Future of Humanity Institute at Oxford University. His primary research interests are in the fields of astrobiology (Galactic habitable zone, SETI studies, catastrophic episodes in the history of life), risk analysis (global catastrophes, observation selection effects, epistemology of risk), and philosophy of science (anthropic principles, philosophy of physics, future studies).

Table of Contents

1. Fermi's Paradox / Great Silence problem2. What's past is prologue: Cosmological and astrophysical background3. Underlying philosophy: Realism, naturalism, Copernicanism, and all that4. L'Annee derniere a Marienbad - Solipsist solutions5. Terra Nostra - "Rare Earth" and related solutions6. In the Mountains of Madness - Neocatastrophic solutions7. The Cities of the Red Night - Logistic solutions8. The tournament: How to rate solutions and avoid exclusivity9. The last challenge for Copernicanism?

Editorial Reviews

"First and foremost, it offers the most extensive, meticulously researched, and scientifically current analysis of Fermi's paradox to date. It is also likely to become the go-to text on the theoretical foundations of SETI research. Ćirković expounds complicated scientific concepts in instructive and clear language without over-simplification, an achievement that makes the book accessible to a wide non-specialist audience." — Cansu Hepçağlayan, Aja Watkins, Russell Powell, Acta Biotheoretica

"It is a book that dreams bigly and boldly in space and time-a paragon of ambitious philosophy of science that does not rely on excessive quantification to be taken seriously. With this valuable study, Ćirković has sealed his place as a leading proponent of SETI research and, more importantly, as a preeminent champion of the scientific imagination." — Russell Powell, Department of Philosophy, Boston University, The Quarterly Review of Biology

"Ćirković brings an encyclopedic familiarity of the professional and popular literature and history of the Fermi Paradox, including important contributions from science fiction... He also brings a wide background to the discussion, using a broad range of artistic and popular references to illustrate points." —Jason T. Wright, Origins of Life and Evolution of Biospheres Journal

"This is a delightful and thought-provoking book that cleared my mind of clutter and confusion concerning Fermi's Paradox and the Drake Equation." —Simon Mitton, St Edmunds College Cambridge

"I warmly recommend The Great Silence to any curious reader." — CERN Courier

"A much-needed critical analysis of the many logical and philosophical fallacies that pervade this field - the most important scientific topic that lacks any known subject matter... [a] speculative extravaganza." — American Journal of Physics

"If you've already read a few books about the search for extra-terrestrial intelligence, and you're looking for something a little deeper, then this would be a great book for you." — Andrew May, The Fortean Times Magazine

"A detailed, logical, impartial and much-needed exploration, examining one of the most fascinating controversies of this (or any) era." — David Brin, author of Earth and The Postman

From the Publisher