What remained was the possible evolution of intelligence in the universe. Although hampered by a lack of understanding of how this had happened on Earth, discussion of the evolution of intelligence in the universe was spurred on by the famo…The catalyst for the unified research program of cosmic evolution—and for the birth of a new scientific discipline—was the Space Age. No one would claim that a field of extraterrestrial life studies, or cosmic evolution, existed in the firs…19. On Shapley’s uses of cosmic evolution see JoAnn Palmeri, chapter 15 in this volume, and her dissertation, “An Astronomer Beyond the Observatory: Harlow Shapley as Prophet of Science,” (University of Oklahoma, 2000).
20. While Sagan’s v…
Otto Struve
scientist · 3 mentions across 1 reading
In this course
Otto Struve appears as a foundational figure in mid-twentieth-century astrobiology and the search for extraterrestrial life, though he surfaces only tangentially in these excerpts as part of the intellectual genealogy leading toward Sagan and the Space Age. The readings invoke him in the context of how cosmic evolution emerged as a unified research program, suggesting his work helped establish the scientific framework for asking whether intelligence could evolve elsewhere in the universe. His presence marks a transitional moment when astronomy began to entertain questions about life's distribution and evolution on a cosmic scale, enabling later figures like Sagan to develop more systematic approaches to these questions.
Mentioned in 1 reading
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