From Yahoo News:
Humans could well be alone in the observable universe, a statistical study has suggested. The evolution of intelligent life is a wildly improbable fluke, research by Oxford University’s Future of Humanity Institute showed. The researchers said that the unlikeliness of the series of “evolutionary transitions” that led to intelligent life means it is likely to be “exceptionally rare”. They believe that there is between a 53% and 96% chance that humans are alone in our Milky Way galaxy, Discover magazine reported. Aliens may have once existed, but could already have been wiped out, the researchers said. Anders Sandberg, of the Future of Humanity Institute, said: “An empty sky doesn’t mean we are doomed.” (Read more.)
Interesting. On another note, what is not a fluke regarding intelligence is statistically there is a 'regression to the mean' which, as I get older, seems to be rampant. Either I am getting smarter or the 'mean' is getting dumber, or, I went to school when students were really being educated.
ReplyDelete