Bradley Pinkston

Phys 1040
07/23/14
Conversation Paper
Astronomy offers so muh to talk a!out that an stimulate the mind of a!out anyone" # $as
e%ited $hen presented the opportunity to hold a onversation for this ourse" # have al$ays !een
fasinated $ith the universe and the fores takin& plae in it" 'ometimes the universe is hard to &rasp
due to it(s si)e and omple%ity* $hih $hy settlin& on a topi $as very hard" # did not $ant somethin&
simple that everyone ould a&ree or disa&ree $ith" # needed to pik a topi that ould spark thou&ht and
+uestions" ,irst # $as thinkin& a!out havin& a onversation a!out our moon* it(s ori&in and it(s role it
has had on earth" # deided a&ainst the moon* # !elieve that it $ould !e a short onversation* $ith not
many t$ist and turns" After thinkin& lon&er a!out $hat # $anted to do* # ame to the topi of -other life
in the universe". /his topi an play on !oth sides of a de!ate $ith sientifi and reli&ious vie$s" /hese
vie$s in my opinion $ould reate a onversation that an take any form* e%pand the onversation to
!oth parties and anyone in !et$een"
,or this onversation # really had to plan around others shedules" /he people # $anted for this
onversation have !usy lives $ith $ork and shool" /he individuals # $anted $ere very speifi and
$ere ruial to a &ood onversation" ,irst person # $anted to this onversation $as my friend 0yle"
0yle is really honest and an !rin& perspetive to all sides of an ar&ument* definitely a non !ias
partiipant" /he ne%t person # hoose $as my !rother Andre$* !eause he has al$ays !een fasinated
$ith our universe and ho$ it $orks" Andre$ al$ays takes siene as the only ans$er* little room for
anythin& else" /he last person # needed for this onversation to !e omplete $as my mother" # $anted
someone that held reli&ion hi&her than siene* my mother $as 1ust that" # !elieve # had a !alane $ith
the people # had hosen* one had hi&h re&ard for siene* one had hi&h re&ard for reli&ion* and the other
$as middle &round understandin&"
Bein& that everyone # $anted to partiipate in this onversation lives lose !y* # hose to hold it
at my parents house" /he 4
th
of 2uly $eekend $as perfet for this !eause everyone had time off from
and my !rother $as in to$n" # $anted the onversation to !e at least and hour at least to &ive time for
all thou&hts and opinions to !e heard" # $as luky and the onversation lasted for nearly t$o hours $ith
very little interruptions" # $as &lad # held the onversation at this time* !eause # do not think that it
$ould have &one as smoothly if # did not"
/hey all kne$ $hy they $ere there and the material # $anted them to ponder a!out prior to the
onversation" # had asked eah one of them to $rite do$n their thou&hts of other life in the universe
and !rin& those thou&hts to the onversation" # first opened the onversation $ith the simple +uestion of
-do you &uys think there is other life out there". # simply $anted a yes and no from my partiipants so #
ould have a !asi startin& point for eah person" 3y !rother +uikly ans$ered yes $ith no hesitation*
this $as no surprise to me" 3y friend 0yle to my surprise said yes* that he did !elieve there $as life
out there" # for sure thou&ht he $ould !e indeisive* !eause # kno$ he usually an see thin&s from to
many an&les" 4e%t $as my mother* she ans$ered my +uestion $ith simply -possi!ly". 5er ans$ered
also took my !y surprise* !eause # had al$ays seen here as more of a reli&ious and !elieved more in
intelli&ent desi&n" 6ith all the simple yes and no ans$ers* # $as ready to ask more in depth +uestions"
3y mother ans$ered $ith the possi!ility of other life* it $as different from $hat # initially
thou&ht" 6hen # asked her to e%plain her thou&hts on $hy she thou&ht it $as possi!le* she $ent he
diretion # ori&inally predited" 'he said that life on earth $as no hane of luk* that it $as planned !y
7od and that if there is any other life out there that it is !eause of 7od" /his is fine for her to think
this* this is more $hat # e%peted and $hy # had here in the onversation" 5er vie$s on intelli&ent
desi&n has al$ays !een stron& and # am happy for her !eliefs" 8ike my mother my friend 0yle is a
devout 8atter 9ay 'aint and his thou&hts $ere similar to hers" 5is thou&hts differed sli&htly thou&h*
!eause he added more siene in his !eliefs" 5e !elieves that 7od uses siene as a tool to reate the
universe and life in it" 0yle is open to the idea of evolution* !ut in the sense that the se+uene of
evolution is intelli&ently desi&ned" 0yle in my opinion has a &reat mi% of reli&ious vie$s and sientifi
reasonin&* that may!e the t$o $ork to&ether"
/he one ma1or pro!lem # kne$ even !efore havin& this onversation is that my !rother and #
stron&ly !elieve in siene over intelli&ent desi&n" # kno$ that my !rother stron&ly !elieves in other life
in the universe from &ro$in& up $ith him" # kne$ that his ans$er $ould !e to$ards the sure fat that
$e are not alone in the universe" 3y !rother has a &reat understandin& of the universe and the sheer
si)e of it* that the possi!ilities are &reat" 6hen # asked him to e%plain $hy he said yes* he ans$ered
$ith simply -the universe is massive* more massive that most people kno$". 5e stated that the
possi!ilities are in favor of life* !eause of the si)e of the universe" 5e !rou&ht up a &ood e%ample of if
you have one hundred apes $ith type $riters* eventually one of them is &oin& to $rite 'hakespeare(s*
5amlet" /hat e%ample $as hard to &rasp for my mother* !ut for 0yle and # it made perfet sense" #f
somethin& is &iven enou&h time $ith plenty of resoures* anythin& is possi!le"
6ith the statements my !rother made a!out the si)e of the universe* my diretion differed from
$hat # ori&inally planned" 4o$ that # kne$ that all three !elieve in other life in the universe one $ay or
the other* # needed to ask somethin& different" # asked the +uestion -'o if you all !elieve in other life*
do you !elieve that us a humans $ill ever meet them". /o help them understand ho$ !i& and vast our
universe is* # simply e%plained $hat a li&ht year $as" # !elieve that understandin& this measure of
distane $ould shine li&ht on $hat $as needed for us to find or !e found in the universe" # e%plained
that one li&ht year is a years $orth of travel at the speed of li&ht" /o help them understand ho$ lon&
that is* # &ave the e%ample of li&ht from our 'un takes ei&ht minutes at li&ht speed to reah :arth" /hey
all understand ho$ far a$ay thin&s in our solar system and the sheer amount of time and resoures
needed to e%plore it" /he only $ay to help them see that even e%plorin& the losest stars* $ould take
many li&ht years to reah" /hat simply to reah one li&ht year of travel* $e $ould have to travel at a
speed that an never !e ahieved for a $hole year none stop"
After e%plained the li&ht year and the speed of li&ht # an really feel in my mother and 0yle a
sense of dou!t" /hey kne$ that there is no intelli&ent life in our solar system and that it $ould take
another star system to produe suh life" /hat if there is intelli&ent life in another star system or &ala%y
for that matter* it $ould !e impossi!le to meet them fae to fae" /hat humans an not travel the speed
of li&ht* and most likely no other speies an either" # $as &lad my !rother understood this and atually
added to the topi" 5e !rou&ht up that travelin& speed of li&ht $ould distort time* that time is only
relative to the one travelin& the speed of li&ht" /he person &oin& li&ht speed $ould e%periene time
faster than those $ho are not" /hat the person travelin& the speed of li&ht $ould leave everyone else in
slo$er time spae" A $eek in li&ht speed may feel like months to those left in normal speed" # am &lad
that he !rou&ht this information to the ta!le* it put more of an impat and $ei&ht on our onversation"
/he onversation in my opinion $ent very $ell* even if it strayed a little form $hat # ori&inally
planned" # feel that everyone learned somethin& and !rou&ht thou&hts and opinions for all to
understand" # $anted them to !e open to the possi!ly of life in our universe* !ein& intelli&ent or simple
life" /hey all understand that 'ientist and Astronomers today !elieve that even in our solar system* life
ould e%ist in a simple forms" #f # had to do this assi&nment a&ain* # think # $ould hoose somethin&
less ontroversial to talk a!out" # respet and en1oy others thou&hts on intelli&ent desi&n* !ut # feel that #
mi&ht say or approah thin&s the $ron& $ay $hih ould offend !eliefs" #f there is a ne%t time for a
Conversation in Astronomy* # $ill pik somethin& loser to home" 3ay!e spark their thou&hts on
urrent events on earth $ith spae pro&rams and e%ploration"
# !elieve that the ;niverse is our ori&in and our future as humans* that e%plorin& and
understandin& it is important" # am &lad that # ould have a onversation $ith my family and peers to
understand their thou&hts" # respet all opinions and thou&hts that anyone is $illin& to share" /his
assi&nment helped me e%pand the minds of others and my o$n* to the possi!ilities of our universe" # am
&rateful for the opportunity it &ave me to teah and to learn" /hat it takes many an&les to truly analy)e
and understand any +uestion possi!ly asked"