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Scientists in the Field
Looking for Life in the Universe: The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence
Human beings have always looked at the heavens and Are we alone? Is there life elsewhere in the universe? What is that life like? Unfortunately, people can't actually travel to other solar systems. Even the closest stars are too far away to visit.Today, astrophysicists such as Jill Tarter are looking for other ways to search for extraterrestrial life. Jill is the director of Project Phoenix at the SETI Institute in Mountain View, California. SETI stands for Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence. Twice a year, Jill and her team travel to the mountains of Puerto Rico where they use the world's largest radio telescope to examine nearby stars. They search the sky, listening for radio signals that, if found and verified, would provide strong evidence that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe.Author Ellen Jackson and photographer Nic Bishop introduce us to a dedicated scientist and her thrilling, rigorous, and awe-inspiring work in the field.
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First published January 1, 2002
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
November 8, 2018
A little bit outdated now in 2018 (it was published in 2002), but still interesting. Dr. Jill Tarter, the astrophysicist featured in most of the book has since retired (2012). It would be great if author Jackson could update the book, especially with updates on some of the projects that were mentioned as being worked on.
March 13, 2018
This is a nonfiction text about Jill Tarter and her search for extraterrestrial intelligence. She uses technology such as the Arecibo Telescope to scan stars for target signals on the radio spectrum. It also recounts her life story and how she fell in love with astronomy. I like this book because it reads like a story instead of a bunch of facts. It is interesting, has detailed charts and photos, and could easily be used as a read aloud in classrooms. This story could be used to teach about the solar system or women in science.
March 18, 2017
How have I heard of Carl Sagan but not Jill Cornell Tarter who Contact was loosely based on? Her story is amazing and her work is fascinating!
December 6, 2011
Genre: Informational Junior Book
Readers follow Jill Tarter, an astrophysicist, on her search for extraterrestrial life, as well as learn about several different technology used for the process.
a.) A major strength of this book is the relatable writing style used by the author.
b.) This is extremely important for the targeted audience of this book, which would more than likely be for students in middle school. Sometimes informational books can be deemed boring and an endless list of facts after facts without any enjoyment or soaking of the information. However, the style and word choice of the text in this book allows for a much more pleasurable experience. It is as if the book is talking to you instead of talking at you. Because of this conversational style, readers are better able to relate and maintain focus.
c.) The interview between Jill Tarter, the director of Project Phoenix at the SETI Institute in California, helps to break up any potential monotonous moment. It is like you are reading a conversation between the author and the interviewee. For example, on page 11, the author of this book sets up the scene by describing Jill’s everyday duties at work, then adds in the commentary from Jill: “Jill arrives a few minutes before midnight to begin her shift. Nearby, a large glass window reveals the night sky…Before sitting down, Jill puts on a CD of Latin jazz and does a little dance around the room…’People are so concerned about whether others are black or white, male or female,’ says Jill. ‘We’re really all the same. I think if we found life on the other planets, we’d see ourselves as just human. And that would be a very good thing.’”
Curriculum Connection: There are obvious science connections with this book about space. I think there are several writing topics available for this book. The students could put themselves in the shoes of Jill and write about an encounter with an alien. This could get the students creativity really flowing because they could create an entirely new creature.
Readers follow Jill Tarter, an astrophysicist, on her search for extraterrestrial life, as well as learn about several different technology used for the process.
a.) A major strength of this book is the relatable writing style used by the author.
b.) This is extremely important for the targeted audience of this book, which would more than likely be for students in middle school. Sometimes informational books can be deemed boring and an endless list of facts after facts without any enjoyment or soaking of the information. However, the style and word choice of the text in this book allows for a much more pleasurable experience. It is as if the book is talking to you instead of talking at you. Because of this conversational style, readers are better able to relate and maintain focus.
c.) The interview between Jill Tarter, the director of Project Phoenix at the SETI Institute in California, helps to break up any potential monotonous moment. It is like you are reading a conversation between the author and the interviewee. For example, on page 11, the author of this book sets up the scene by describing Jill’s everyday duties at work, then adds in the commentary from Jill: “Jill arrives a few minutes before midnight to begin her shift. Nearby, a large glass window reveals the night sky…Before sitting down, Jill puts on a CD of Latin jazz and does a little dance around the room…’People are so concerned about whether others are black or white, male or female,’ says Jill. ‘We’re really all the same. I think if we found life on the other planets, we’d see ourselves as just human. And that would be a very good thing.’”
Curriculum Connection: There are obvious science connections with this book about space. I think there are several writing topics available for this book. The students could put themselves in the shoes of Jill and write about an encounter with an alien. This could get the students creativity really flowing because they could create an entirely new creature.
December 4, 2012
Genre- Informational
This is a great educational book about further research on life in the universe. Jill Tarter, an astrophysicists, looks for different ways to search for extraterrestrial life. She is director of the SETI program which stands for Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence. She discusses the different types of machines that are used and gives some background about herself and how she got where she is. She has always been interested in the outside world, so it is interesting to see that interest grow as she did.
A. Area of comment- paper size
B. Although it was a great book, I feel the size was awkward and inappropriate. I feel it maybe could have been more beneficial as a smaller size. The book was a little lenghty, so the size of the paper made it seem like it would be short, but it was not.
C. Example, pages 30-31 have a good amount of information that I feel would be more appropriate in a smaller frame. That is my personal opinion, but she may have chose this for a better reason than I am seeing.
This is a great science curriculum connection for the upper grades. It is a little too complex for the younger kids. I would suggest this for a homework reading or for personal interest. I would use some parts for educational purposes, but I would not refer to the whole book.
This is a great educational book about further research on life in the universe. Jill Tarter, an astrophysicists, looks for different ways to search for extraterrestrial life. She is director of the SETI program which stands for Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence. She discusses the different types of machines that are used and gives some background about herself and how she got where she is. She has always been interested in the outside world, so it is interesting to see that interest grow as she did.
A. Area of comment- paper size
B. Although it was a great book, I feel the size was awkward and inappropriate. I feel it maybe could have been more beneficial as a smaller size. The book was a little lenghty, so the size of the paper made it seem like it would be short, but it was not.
C. Example, pages 30-31 have a good amount of information that I feel would be more appropriate in a smaller frame. That is my personal opinion, but she may have chose this for a better reason than I am seeing.
This is a great science curriculum connection for the upper grades. It is a little too complex for the younger kids. I would suggest this for a homework reading or for personal interest. I would use some parts for educational purposes, but I would not refer to the whole book.
March 21, 2008
Is there life in outer space? Jill Tarter has made it her life's work to find out. This book examines Jill's work with the SETI Institute, an organization that searches for extraterrestrial life. Using powerful computers and massive telescopes, SETI examines radio signals to determine if any of them might come from other planets or stars in space. Jill Tarter thinks there's a great possibility of extraterrestrial life because of the enormous number of stars in our galaxy and other galaxies. Although they haven't yet found any promising signals, who knows what advances in technology will bring? An interesting book for those interested in space.
April 20, 2009
Finally, a conclusive answer to the question of whether or not our government is hiding alien spacecraft and creatures from us. Nope. This book says so from the scientists who actually search the skies for life in the universe.
I also enjoyed the discussion of planets and moons within our solar system which may have water, ice, or may have once had life on them.
One chapter is devoted to Jill Tarter's life and what led her to become an astrophysicist. I'm always interested to hear about the path that leads a person to their career! And I think it's good for kids to see that kind of thing too.
I also enjoyed the discussion of planets and moons within our solar system which may have water, ice, or may have once had life on them.
One chapter is devoted to Jill Tarter's life and what led her to become an astrophysicist. I'm always interested to hear about the path that leads a person to their career! And I think it's good for kids to see that kind of thing too.
October 31, 2013
Genre: Non-Fiction
Awards: None
Grade Level: 3-4
Comments: I would use this book during a science unit and when we are learning about outer space. Since it is a story with many different scientists, I would have students get in groups and work on one person from the book and share some informational about their finding and career. I would also use this book to show the students what scientists do on a daily basis and what they look for and how they do it.
Awards: None
Grade Level: 3-4
Comments: I would use this book during a science unit and when we are learning about outer space. Since it is a story with many different scientists, I would have students get in groups and work on one person from the book and share some informational about their finding and career. I would also use this book to show the students what scientists do on a daily basis and what they look for and how they do it.
November 15, 2011
This one was ok, a little boring, but informative. Even though I generally believe that there's probably life on other planets somewhere way out there, this one didn't really capture my imagination. A bunch of smart people just sitting around listening for messages just seems a little pointless to me.
October 25, 2015
Really enjoyed this one. A look at what Director for SETI, Jill Tarter, does during a 2-week stay working with the world's largest radio telescope, this book is also part biography. The pictures and writing are clear and interesting for anyone wanting to learn about space and the scientists who search for life outside of our own planet.
March 9, 2017
This is a "just the facts, ma'am" book. I realize it is over 10 years old. It would be interesting to children who like space and aliens, but it is not creative nonfiction. But then, not much of it was written back then.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews