In response to an
article by transhumanist philosopher Nick Bostrom, I wrote
recently about the significance of finding basic life forms on another planet, such as Mars. In summary, if basic life forms are probable in the universe then advanced life forms must also be probable or we're probably doomed. So if we discover basic life forms on another planet, given the alternatives, we should trust, for practical reasons, that advanced life forms are out there somewhere, too. Just yesterday, the Phoenix Mars Mission
reported that they believe they've discovered water on Mars. Are basic life forms next?
