Sentience, Culture, and Religion: SETI
Explores the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) and its relationship to culture and religion. One central question is whether SETI is a product of particular cultural and historical trands that have arisen in the US and that are evident through other cultural constructs such as Star Trek. Considers key ideas such as the Drake Equation and the Incommensurability Problem and looks at meanings and motivations behind issues like Percival Lowell’s quest to prove the existence of canals on Mars and the development of Scientology.
For further information, see the John W. Traphagan courses page in the Department of Religious Studies.
