Xenology - An Introduction to the Scientific Study of Extraterrestrial Life Inteliggence and Civilization

Chapter 1.  Introduction*
 
Chapter 2.  Extraterrestrial Life:  The History of an Idea
2.1  Ancient Beginnings
2.2  The Long Interregnum
2.3  Plurality of Worlds and Divine Purpose
2.4  Science and Science Fiction

Chapter 3.  The Aliens Among Us
3.1  Xenoarchaeology
     3.1.1  Extraterrestrial Intervention in Biological Evolution
     3.1.2  Extraterrestrial Cultural Intervention
     3.1.3  Extraterrestrial Artifacts and Manifestations
3.2  Ufology
     3.2.1  Why Believe in UFOs?
     3.2.2  The Evidence for UFOs
     3.2.3  The UFO Game
3.3  The Resident Aliens
 
Chapter 4.  Xenology:  The Context of the Universe
4.1  The Universe
4.2  Galaxies
4.3  The Milky Way Galaxy
4.4  The Stars
 
Chapter 5.  General and Comparative Planetology
5.1  Planetary Evolution
5.2  Thalassogens
5.3  Planetary Atmospheres
5.4  Planetary Meteorology and Astrogeology
     5.4.1  Climate and Weather
     5.4.2  Sky Colors
     5.4.3  Astrogeology
5.5  Planetary Habitability
 

PART TWO:  Xenobiology

Chapter 6.  A Definition of Life6.1  Chronology
6.2  What Is Life?
     6.2.1  The Traditional Answer
     6.2.2  Organization
     6.2.3  Towards a Definition of Life
 
Chapter 7.  The Origin of Life7.1  Historical Views on the Origin of Life
7.2  Cosmochemical Evolution
7.3  Early Chemical Evolution on Earth
     7.3.1  Prebiotic Synthesis
7.4  Proteins and Cells
7.5  Nucleic Acids and DNA
7.6  Early Biological Systems
 
Chapter 8.  Exotic Biochemistries8.1  The Argument for Diversity
     8.1.1  Temperature Chauvinism
8.2  Alternative Biochemistries
     8.2.1  The Limits of Carbon Aqueous
     8.2.2  Alternatives to Water
     8.2.3  Alternatives to Carbon
8.3  Exotic Lifeforms
 
Chapter 9.  Experimental Xenobiology:  Searching the Family of Sol*
 
Chapter 10.  Alien Bioenergetics
10.1  Finding the Energy to Live
10.2  Photosynthesis
10.3  Animal Metabolism and Respiration
10.4  Alien Blood
10.5  Thermoregulation

Chapter 11.  Extraterrestrial Biomechanics11.1  Specialization and Symmetry
11.2  Xenobiomechanics
     11.2.1  The Challenge of Gravity
     11.2.2  Meeting the Challenge:  Skeletons
11.3  Alien Locomotion
     11.3.1  Aquatic Locomotion
     11.3.2  Travel by Land
     11.3.3  Avian Propulsion
 
Chapter 12.  Alien Sex12.1  Is Sex Necessary?
12.2  The Bisexual Universe
     12.2.1  Intersexuality
     12.2.2  Optional Sex
12.3  Alien Sex Practices
     12.3.1  Alien Orgasms
12.4  Xenogamy

Chapter 13.  Sensations
13.1  Tactile Senses
13.2  Olfaction
13.3  Acoustical Senses
     13.3.1  Two-Dimensional Sound
     13.3.2  Three-Dimensional Sound
13.4  Electrical and Magnetic Senses
13.5  Vision
     13.5.1  Visible Vision
     13.5.2  Infrared Vision
     13.5.3  Radio Vision
13.6  Alien Senses
 
Chapter 14.  Extraterrestrial Intelligence
14.1  Evolution of Intelligence
     14.1.1  In the Beginning
     14.1.2  The Triune Brain
14.2  Juvenile Extraterrestrial Intelligences
     14.2.1  Genetic Sentience
     14.2.2  Brain Sentience
     14.2.3  Communal Sentience
14.3  Alien Consciousness and the Sentience Quotient


PART THREE:  Extraterrestrial Civilizations

Chapter 15.  Energy and Culture15.1  Type I Civilizations:  Planetary Cultures
15.2  Type II Civilizations:  Stellar Cultures
15.3  Type III Civilizations:  Galactic Cultures
15.4  Type IV Civilizations:  Universal Cultures

Chapter 16.  Xenobiotechnology16.1  Bioneering
     16.1.1  Intelligence Amplification
     16.1.2  Genetic Surgery
     16.1.3  Genetic Hybrids and Synthetic Genes
     16.1.4  Ectogenesis and Cloning
16.2  Immortality
     16.2.1  Xenogerontology
     16.2.2  The Limits of Immortality
16.3  Androids and Cyborgs
     16.3.1  Androids and Organleggers
     16.3.2  The Bionic Alien
     16.3.3  Enter the Robot? (aka. Uploading)
16.4  Machine Life
     16.4.1  Artificial Intelligence
     16.4.2  Robots and Robotics
     16.4.3  Machine Evolution

Chapter 17.  Interstellar Voyaging
17.1  Communication vs. Transportation
17.2  Relativistic Starflight
17.3  Conventional Interstellar Propulsion Systems
     17.3.1  Nuclear Pulse Propulsion
     17.3.2  Controlled Fusion Rocket
     17.3.3  Interstellar Ramjet
     17.3.4  Beamed Power Laser Propulsion
     17.3.5  Total Conversion Drives
17.4  Exotic Propulsion Systems
     17.4.1  Gravity Catapults
     17.4.2  Antigravity and Reactionless Field Drives
     17.4.3  Tachyon Starships
     17.4.4  Momentum Interconversion Drives
     17.4.5  Statistical Transport
     17.4.6  Black Holes and Space Warps
     17.4.7  Teleportation and Transporter Beams
17.5  Time Travel
17.6  Interstellar Navigation
17.7  Generation Ships and Suspended Animation
 
Chapter 18.  Alien Weapons18.1  Chemical, Biochemical, and Biological Weaponry
18.2  Bionic Weaponry
18.3  Sonic Weapons
18.4  Photonic Radiative Weaponry
18.5  Particulate Radiative Weaponry
18.6  Nuclear Explosives
18.7  Climate Modification and High Technology Weapons
18.8  The Ultimate Weapon
 
Chapter 19.  Planetary Engineering and Galactic High Technology
19.1  Alien Materials Technology
     19.1.1  New Forms of Matter
     19.1.2  Energy Storage and Mining Techniques
19.2  Extraterrestrial Habitat Engineering
     19.2.1  Terraforming
     19.2.2  Space Habitats
     19.2.3  Planet Moving and Star Mining
     19.2.4  Large Scale Biospheric Engineering
     19.2.5  Galactic Megastructures

Chapter 20.  Xenosociology20.1  Biological Evolution
     20.1.1  Evolution Rates
20.2  Xenopsychology
     20.2.1  Energy Ecology
     20.2.2  Competition and Aggression
     20.2.3  Universal Emotions
     20.2.4  Xenophobia
20.3  Early Technological Civilizations
     20.3.1  Telluric Civilizations
     20.3.2  Aquatic Civilizations
     20.3.3  Avian Civilizations
20.4  Alien Social Systems
     20.4.1  Models for Extraterrestrial Societies

Chapter 21.  Extraterrestrial Governments21.1  Dimensions of Extraterrestrial Government
     21.1.1  Governance Scales
21.2  Alien Political Organizations:  Xenopolitical Factors
     21.2.1  Sentience
     21.2.2  Dispersion
     21.2.3  Size
     21.2.4  Heritage
     21.2.5  Xenopolitics:  Tentative Conclusions
21.3  Extraterrestrial Organizational Cybernetics
     21.3.1  System Complexity
     21.3.2  System Structure
     21.3.3  System Stability
21.4  Strategic Galactography
     21.4.1  The Economic Viability of Interstellar Cargo Transport
     21.4.2  Galactic Trade Routes
     21.4.3  Interstellar War

Chapter 22.  Extraterrestrial Cultures22.1  Alien Religion

22.2  Alien Ritual
     22.2.1  Religious Rites
     22.2.2  Extraterrestrial Cults
22.3  Ethics and Law
     22.3.1  Extraterrestrial Ethics
     22.3.2  Legal Universals
     22.3.3  Xenopenology
22.4  Philosophy and Knowledge
     22.4.1  Alien Logic
     22.4.2  Time, Language, and Space
     22.4.3  Science and Paradigmology
     22.4.4  Xenoeschatology
22.5  Extraterrestrial Aesthetics
     22.5.1  Xenomusicology
     22.5.2  Alien Painting and Surface Arts
     22.5.3  Dance and Sports
     22.5.4  Alien Sculpture and Architecture
 

PART FOUR:  First Contact

Chapter 23.  Abodes of Life:  The Search Begins23.1  Theoretical Galactic Demography
     23.1.1  The Drake Equation
23.2  Observational Galactic Demography
     23.2.1  Direct Observation of Alien Planets

Chapter 24.  Interstellar Communication Techniques24.1  The Cosmic Miracle
     24.1.1  Eavesdropping
24.2  Extraterrestrial Signaling
     24.2.1  Alternative Channels:  HEPs, Neutrinos, Gravitons and Tachyons
     24.2.2  Electromagnetic Waves and Frequency Selection
     24.2.3  Acquisition and Artificiality Criteria
     24.2.4  Alien Message Contents
     24.2.5  SETI:  Yesterday and Today
24.3  Extraterrestrial Starprobes and Artifacts
     24.3.1  Why Probes are Better
     24.3.2  Mission Profile
     24.3.3  The Nature of Alien Artifacts
     24.3.4  Project Daedalus

Chapter 25.  Theory and Practice of First Contact25.1  First Contact and Metalaw
     25.1.1  Basic Metalaw
     25.1.2  Fasan's Metalaws
     25.1.3  Universal Thermoethical Principles of First Contact
25.2  The Character of First Contact
     25.2.1  Mass-Energy Scales of Contact
     25.2.2  Information-Rate Scales of Contact
     25.2.3  Generalized First Contact Taxonomy
25.3  First Contact Protocols and Elementary Astropolitics
     25.3.1  Encounters Between Equals:  The 0/0 Contact
     25.3.2  Gods and Primitives:  The 11/0 Contact
     25.3.3  Trees and Humans:  The 0/10 Contact
     25.3.4  Higher-Order Contacts

Chapter 26.  First Contact and the Human Response26.1  Military and Political Response
     26.1.1  Remote Contact
     26.1.2  Direct Contact
     26.1.3  Surprise Contact
26.2  Public Reaction and the Press
     26.2.1  Rumor and Credibility
     26.2.2  Panic and Mass Hysteria
26.3  Legal Issues of First Contact
     26.3.1  Alien Animals
     26.3.2  Legal Standards of Personhood
     26.3.3  Extraterrestrial Persons
     26.3.4  Aliens and American Law
26.4  Human Sociocultural Response
     26.4.1  The Acculturation of Humanity
     26.4.2  Social Impact of First Contact
     26.4.3  The Religious Response
     26.4.4  Impact on Science and Technology

Chapter 27.  The Cosmic Perspective*