Preface; Contents; Chapter 1: Scientists Believe Intelligent Life May Be More Common in the Universe than Previously Considered Possible; Stars and Planets Are Born Together in Collapse of Large Interstellar Gas and Dust Clouds; Astronomers Suddenly Finding Potential Planetary Homes for Alien Life May Be Common in Universe; Once Considered Complex and Fragile, Life Now Believed to Also Be Flexible and Resilient; Chapter 2: When Will Mankind Achieve ``First Contact ́́with Extraterrestrial Life Forms; What Kind of Telescope Could View Small Dim Exoplanets Located Close to Extremely Bright Stars

Although Many ETs May Be ``Alien ́́with Different Chemistries, Science Must Initially Search for Life Forms That Are Dependent...Looking for ``Chemical ́́Rather than ``Visual ́́Signs of Alien Life; Strategies Astrobiologists Will Use to Search for Life on Other Worlds; Scientists Find Evidence that the Chemical ``Stuff of Life ́́May Be More Common in Universe than Previously Believed Possible; Chapter 3: If Other Kinds of Nervous Systems Exist in the Universe, How Do We Locate and Identify Them?; How Nervous Systems on Our Planet Facilitate Their Ownerś Lives

All Nervous Systems on Our Planet, in Spite of Looking Different from Each Other, Appear to Reflect a Single Origin or Be ``Cu...Could Extraterrestrial Nervous Systems Be Radically Different from Each Other as Well as Function in Totally Different Ways?; Chapter 4: Evolution of Intelligent Nervous Systems on Other Worlds in the Universe; How Biological Evolution Works on Planet Earth; Different Forms of Biological Evolution May Operate on Exoplanets with Different Environments; Chapter 5: Are Biological Nervous Systems Just the First Step in the Rise of Intelligence in the Universe?

From Biological Intelligence to Computing MachinesMerger of Computer Science and Brain Science Quickly Revealing How Nervous Systems Work; Could Intelligent Machines Become ``Conscious ́́and ``Self-Replicating ́́as Well as Capable of Some Form of ``Self-Evolution;́́ Chapter 6: Just How Hostile Is Our Universe to the Development and Survival of Life Forms?; Most Common External Threats to Evolution and Survival of Intelligent Life on Planets; Common Internal Threats to Evolution and Survival of Intelligent Life on Planets

Correlations Between Evolution of Intelligence and Rise of Technologies That Can Destroy LifeChapter 7: Some Final Thoughts from This ``Amateur ́́Astronomer on Mankindś Imminent Discovery that We Are Not Alone in the U...; References and Further Suggested Readings; Index