Dave visits with three members of the SETI Insitute based in Mountain View, California. Since its inception in the early 80s, the institute has sought an answer to a fundamental question: are we alone in the Universe?
Dave visits with the President and CEO, Bill Diamond, who gives an overview of the SETI Institute's mission. Then, planetary scientist/astrobiologist Nathalie Cabrol, director of the Carl Sagan Center for Research gives her perspectives on the state of the multidisciplinary science being done by her and her colleagues.
Finally, Dave checks in on the Allen Telescope Array at Hat Creek Radio Observatory with Operations Manager Alex Pollak. The 42 dishes, located amongst lava rock just north of Lassen Volcanic National Park are one of the world's premiere tools in the search for extra terrestrial signals while also doing fundamental astrophysics observations.