Question from Neil Mackie: Has it been confirmed yet that life did exist on Mars?
Seth Shostak: "Alas, Neil, not yet. There is some very suggestive evidence, but a lot of controversy. We may not know for sure for many years."
Question from Steve: Is there any means for sending messages so that they reach other planets more quickly than they do with radio waves?
Seth Shostak: "As far as we know, nothing can beat radio or light for speed - Albert Einstein told us that, and so far there's no reason to disbelieve him."
Question from Kevin Mckay: Would aliens have to be water or carbon based?
Seth Shostak: "Not necessarily, but carbon is exceptional in its ability to hook up with other atoms and make complex molecules, and life, as you are undoubtedly aware, is mostly about complex molecules."
Question from Tania Jones: What would aliens look like?
Seth Shostak: "I haven't the slightest idea!"
Question from Tony Stone: If the aliens are at a state to receive would they not have been broadcasting themselves?
Seth Shostak: "The problem is, we've only been broadcasting for half a century. So our signals haven't reached many star systems yet."
Question from Will: Do you think aliens are listening for us?
Seth Shostak:"That doesn't sound unreasonable to me, to use a cautionary double negative!"
Question from Vill: Seth, do you think that there is life as we know it?
Seth Shostak: "Yes, in the sense that I think that a lot of extra-terrestrial life will be based on carbon chemistry the way ours is, so in that sense, we know it."
Question from Anthony Crolla: How did you get into this field of astronomy?
Seth Shostak: "I was a radio astronomer, and the techniques I was using to study galaxies are exactly those required to listen for ET."
Question from Unlixes Neilstropp: Why is it so many scientists believe alien life would be carbon based?
Seth Shostak: "Again, carbon is good at making complex chemistry. There is also a lot of carbon around, and in any liquid environment, you can expect it to start doing interesting things."
Question from James Carter: If you were listening to our radio/TV channels, and watching for instance the events of World War 2, would you contact Earth?
Seth Shostak: "I don't think that the aliens will be put off by our petty problems any more than Columbus refused to discover America because the American Indians were occasionally at war with one another."
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