Introduction to Exobiology

You're driving in your car down dark road late one night with your friends. All of a sudden, you see a large circular object with blue lights spinning right in front of your car. A bright spotlight shines down on your car for ten seconds, and then leaves. As the object disappears before your eyes, you are left in amazement, wondering what just happened. Was that really a UFO? Is there really intelligent life out there in the universe? You turn around to ask your friends, only to find that one of them is missingÉ

Sound a little farfetched? OK. How about something a little more down to Earth.

You just got back from a two week vacation in Hawaii with your family. You walk into your room, throw down your suitcase, and sit on your bed. You glance over at the lamp on the table next to your bed. Reaching over to turn on the lamp, you notice a rather unpleasant smell. Looking down, there is a half full glass of what once might have been juice, but now is a nice bluish-green color with fuzz all around the edges. Yuck! Where did that come from?

Scientists have been asking these same questions for a long time now. Come explore the field of exobiology, the search for the origin of life on the Earth, and in the Universe.

Where would you like to go?


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