Reflections of a SETI Scientist

About the Author

Dr.

Laurance R. Doyle, a Principal Investigator at the SETI Institute (Search for

Extraterrestrial Intelligence) in Mountain View, CA, became interested in

astronomy at age 6, when his Dad gave him a map of the Solar System with stars

in the background, and told him the stars were other people's suns.

After

receiving his Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Astronomy at San Diego State

University, Laurance earned his Ph.D. in Physics in 1987 at Universitt

Heidelberg. Laurance has authored over 100 scientific journal articles on

topics including extrasolar planet detection, animal communications and ancient

African astronomy.

Laurance

provided expert testimony to the United States Congress' Committee on Space,

Science and Technology in 2013 on "Exoplanet Discoveries: Have We Found

Other Earths?" He has also lectured as a Visiting Professor at Principia

College in Elsah, Illinois, the University of California, Santa Cruz and the

University of Paris' Observatoire de Meudon in France on a

variety of topics, including Bioastronomy, Quantum Physics and Extrasolar

Planets.

Laurance

has appeared on many educational science programs, including "Through the

Wormhole" with Morgan Freeman, "The Universe" with Michio Kaku

and "Cosmic Odyssey" with William Shatner. He also coauthored and

appeared on Richard Segay's "Humpback Whales and the Search for Alien

Intelligence," which won the 2021 Webby Award for Science and Education.

A

triplet, Laurance currently resides in northern California, where he enjoys

reading, writing and expanding his vast and diverse library. He lives by the

motto - "The Universe shows you what you're supposed to be doing by making you

love it!"