Life Beyond Earth

Starring:Life Beyond Earth
Studio: Pbs Paramount
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
The question of whether we are alone in the universe has intrigued humanity for centuries, and journalist Timothy Ferris presents an extensive look at the quandary in this fascinating and beautifully produced program from PBS. Ferris, as an engaging and inquisitive host, begins by discussing the development of life and the theory of evolution, as what we know about life on Earth could indicate whether it's possible for life to have developed elsewhere. Showing how scientists would expect life to exist elsewhere, Ferris then devotes his attention in a section entitled "Is Anybody Listening" to explain how radio telescopes are being used in hopes of making contact with intelligent beings beyond our own solar system. Throughout this documentary Ferris finds creative ways to make fairly complicated material easily understandable, and his offbeat approach to serious science is always entertaining and often fascinating. Experts such as scientist and bestselling author Stephen Jay Gould appear briefly in interviews to offer their insights, but for the most part the presentation is astoundingly visual. Ferris wisely opts to show something rather than merely talk about it, and the DVD is filled with startling and beautiful special effects as well as gorgeous footage shot both on Earth and in space. This is an excellent documentary that also happens to be a pleasure to watch. --Robert J. McNamara

Life Beyond Earth
Average customer rating:

A "Love-Letter" Monument to Carl Sagan's work

A "Love-Letter" Monument to Carl Sagan's work

Stimulating and brilliant!

Great work with a tough topic.

Addresses one of the biggest of the "Big" questions

Life Beyond Earth

Manufacturer: Pbs Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: 0780631323
Release Date: 2000-11-14

Amazon.com

The question of whether we are alone in the universe has intrigued humanity for centuries, and journalist Timothy Ferris presents an extensive look at the quandary in this fascinating and beautifully produced program from PBS. Ferris, as an engaging and inquisitive host, begins by discussing the development of life and the theory of evolution, as what we know about life on Earth could indicate whether it's possible for life to have developed elsewhere. Showing how scientists would expect life to exist elsewhere, Ferris then devotes his attention in a section entitled "Is Anybody Listening" to explain how radio telescopes are being used in hopes of making contact with intelligent beings beyond our own solar system. Throughout this documentary Ferris finds creative ways to make fairly complicated material easily understandable, and his offbeat approach to serious science is always entertaining and often fascinating. Experts such as scientist and bestselling author Stephen Jay Gould appear briefly in interviews to offer their insights, but for the most part the presentation is astoundingly visual. Ferris wisely opts to show something rather than merely talk about it, and the DVD is filled with startling and beautiful special effects as well as gorgeous footage shot both on Earth and in space. This is an excellent documentary that also happens to be a pleasure to watch. --Robert J. McNamara

Description

What does the great beyond hold? Is there extraterrestrial life on other planets? Join Timothy Ferris as he journeys into the unknown, exploring why many scientists believe there is life in the cosmos and how they're searching to make contact. Uncover scientific discoveries that will send chills down your spine and make your mind tingle with excitement. Find out if we really do have fellow travelers among the stars.

Customer Reviews:

A "Love-Letter" Monument to Carl Sagan's work.......2003-03-11

Having seen this glorious program on PBS, I immediately purchased the video. I can't count how many times I've watched this. It is a love-letter to Carl Sagan and pays homage to our most beloved space-scientist. It also explains many things that most people take for granted - LIFE & TIME. How it evolved, branched out, died, and survived; and the millions of years it took to get us to where we are today. All the things on this planet, including us, are gloriously connected. Who needs religion when the wonders of the Universe is at your fingertips.

A "Love-Letter" Monument to Carl Sagan's work.......2003-03-11

Stimulating and brilliant!.......2002-09-07

Timothy Ferris is both a intelligent and humorous guide in our journey through the two parts of this tape. In the first part, the first 60 minutes, he explores how life developed on Earth and if there can be life on other worlds. On the second, he examines how man became intelligent, if intelligence could develop on other worlds and how to communicate with that alien intelligence. Lovely special effects, a great musical sore, interviews with scientists and just plain common sense makes the tape a MUST for any library. From PBS it has nothing that might upset the kiddies, so let them view it also!

"The long twilight of human loneliness may come to an end within our lifetime." - Timothy Ferris.

Great work with a tough topic........2002-05-02

Yes there is or no there isn't. Either way, the logic is presented flawlessly for both arguments.
Are there other civilizations out there? Odds are yes.
Will we ever find them? Odds are no.
Life on our world was a bilion to one shot, but there are billions upon billions of other worlds.
This is the perfect film to learn how to present an argument. Support your facts, lead your listener to the conclusion you want. But don't push.

Addresses one of the biggest of the "Big" questions.......2001-01-08

As our modern day mythology, science fiction has filled the vast emptiness of unexplored space with archetypal symbols which range from our darkest fears to our greatest hopes. Just as our ancestors colored in the austere recesses of nature (such as murky forests and the endless depths of the oceans) with monsters, demons and magical beings, so too have our modern day mythmakers written of hostile alien races and strange and beautiful extra-terrestrial species.

We now live at one of the most pivotal epochs in human history. Through the use of robotic spacecraft and radio telescopes, we are at last able to delve into the perplexing questions of the cosmos; what, exactly, is really "out there?" are we alone? If not, is life frequent in the universe? Or is it sparse?

This is yet another outstanding film by Timothy Ferris of the university of California, Berkeley, which engages these topics. The film is split into two parts. Part 1 deals with the possibility / probablity of life originating on other planets via Darwinian evolution. In doing so, the documentary invokes everything from biology to astronomy. The most exciting aspect of this part is the current projects underway and in the works that have the objective of discerning if there may be microscopic alien life right here in our solar system. Moons such as Titan and Europa hold the best possibility for this scenario. There is also a brief section on the likelihood that there was once life on Mars. Included in this section is a discussion of the Martian meteorites which landed in Antartica, carrying with them what SEEMS to be signs of ancient alien microscopic life.

Part 2 centers on what we are trying to do to contact or at least "listen to" interstellar communications which (we hope) exist somewhere beyond our tiny solar system. The #1 problem with this approach is the sheer size of the universe. The Milky Way galaxy alone is some 100,000 light years across. According to the physicist Andrei Linde of Stanford university, the size of the universe (in centimeters) ranges some 10^10^12 across. The magnitude of this number is simply beyond human comprehension. Therefore, say that there is life out there, but the nearest technologically advanced civilization is some 60,000 light years away. That would mean that any radio emissions from earth (via television, radio or radio telescope) would take 60,000 years to reach the point in space where someone might actually hear it. Nevertheless, there is always the chance that we might hear transmissions which have originated from other civilizations. That remains the more exciting alternative than our listening in on their broadcasts; that way, we would know that they existed, whether they realized our humble patch in the universe, or not.

This is a worthwhile film which elucidates what we know, what we think we know, and what we don't know about the existance of aliens. Ferris constructively utilizes such influential scientists as Harvard's Stephen J. Gould and the legendary Princeton physicists Harold Gott and Freeman J. Dyson in his search for answers.

The enlightened among us will be glad to learn that Ferris does not waste time trying to credit or discredit UFO sightings. That is most certainly NOT the trajectory of this inquiry. Besides, there have been enough TV documentaries which do focus on that phenomenom to make them a dime a dozen. Fermi's "question" aside, we are bereft of any conclusive evidence that this planet has ever been visited by denizens whose origin was someplace elsewhere in the universe.

Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

A "Love-Letter" Monument to Carl Sagan's work.......2003-03-11

Stimulating and brilliant!.......2002-09-07

"The long twilight of human loneliness may come to an end within our lifetime." - Timothy Ferris.

Great work with a tough topic........2002-05-02

Addresses one of the biggest of the "Big" questions.......2001-01-08

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