Mixed Signals

Praise for Mixed Signals “With this work the torch passes to a new generation of SETI historians, who analyze not only the science of the search for extraterrestrial intelligence but also its cultural, religious, and political aspects. Focusing on the 1950s through the 1980s, Rebecca Charbonneau brilliantly explores both human and extraterrestrial communication, while vividly portraying CETI/SETI in the context of the Cold War.” Steven J. Dick, former NASA Chief Historian and author of Astrobiology, Discovery, and Societal Impact “Charbonneau has accomplished here the rare hat-trick of innovative research, incisive argument, and delightful writing, making this book an invigorating pleasure to read and a vital view of science history to engage with. A must-read for scientists, historians, and anyone curious about what – and whom – we seek in the stars. Charbonneau offers a new and compelling way to understand the search.” Jaime Green, author of The Possibility of Life: Science, Imagination, and Our Quest for Kinship in the Cosmos “Does intelligent life exist beyond our planet? Scientists have been searching for evidence of it for decades. Now historian and SETI researcher Rebecca Charbonneau offers an engrossing and surprising history of those efforts on both sides of the Iron Curtain and shows that what we seek in outer space has repeatedly led us right back to earth.” Greg Eghigian, author of After the Flying Saucers Came: A Global History of the UFO Phenomenon “Any scientist who attempts to find, or communicate with, alien life possesses curiosity about and openness to hypothetical lives lived very differently from their own. In Mixed Signals, Rebecca Charbonneau offers the first investigation into those scientific attempts as they played out during the Cold War, among American and Soviet humans who were often alien to each other. Mixed Signals is an insightful, rigorously researched history that swirls the celestial and the terrestrial together. Too often, astronomical science is divorced from the earthly conditions it inhabits, eschewing politics for purity; Mixed Signals is an antidote to that attitude, showing science’s influence on politics, politics’ influence on science, and the overlap between communicating on Earth and communicating to the cosmos. The events and people detailed in this book show that humans’ attempts to learn about life in the universe are, in the end, fundamentally about our home planet.” Sarah Scoles, science journalist and author of Making Contact: Jill Tarter and the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence “With clarity and insight, Rebecca Charbonneau has given us a beautifully written tour of the early history of SETI. More than just a description of who did what when, Charbonneau reveals the intricate webs of influence that knitted the deepest questions scientists can ask (Are we alone?) together with the prosaic realities of international politics and conflict. A must-read for anyone interested in SETI or in the intersections of science and culture.” Adam Frank, University of Rochester and author of The Little Book of Aliens “Charbonneau offers a truly fresh take on the often-told story of the origins of SETI, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence. Through interviews and examination of the historical record, she has unearthed fascinating anecdotes about Sagan, Drake, Dyson, Shklovskii, and other SETI pioneers that illuminate how the field emerged from the military and political tangles of the Cold War. Charbonneau shows how the problem of communication and collaboration across the Iron Curtain closely mirrored the problem of communication with alien life. An instant must-read for students of SETI and those who want to know how the quest to answer the biggest question in astronomy truly began.” Jason T. Wright, Director of the Penn State Extraterrestrial Intelligence Center “A fascinating dive into the Cold War-era history of humanity’s search for alien life, filled with a treasure trove of remarkable events and encounters and supported by meticulous research. Charbonneau brings to life the personalities who gave rise to the modern age of SETI. She highlights how SETI is as much a search for the human condition as it is for alien life.” David Kipping, Columbia University “a well-researched and splendidly entertaining account of humanity’s search for alien life in the era of the US-Soviet 'space race'"" Tony Barber, Financial Times