Tuesdays, April 1 - 22, 2025
7:30 - 9:00 eastern
$125

PLEASE NOTE: All classes will also be recorded and archived for students who cannot make that time

Are we alone in the universe? Given the massive numbers of galaxies, stars, and exoplanets, it’s hard to believe we are. Join author Marc Hartzman for an exploration of beliefs about extraterrestrial life, from the past several centuries of scientific belief and science fiction imaginings to today’s interstellar searches.

In this class, we’ll take a deep dive into:

• Early beliefs about intelligent life on Mars, what Martians were believed to look like and how they lived, actual attempts to communicate with them, and why top scientists were convinced the Red Planet was populated.

• Early beliefs about life on the moon and the other planets in the solar system.

• The scientific odds of extraterrestrial intelligent life, as determined in 1961 by Dr. Frank Drake through the Drake equation. How did he and a team of scientists determine there could be millions of intelligent civilizations out there? And why does a modern look at the equation suggest otherwise?

• Life found on Mars in the 1970s during the Viking mission. Yes, tests for life came back positive.

• SETI’s efforts to find radio signals from other civilizations, the WOW Signal that offered a blip of hope, and how we might soon detect technosignatures to provide evidence of extraterrestrial intelligence.

• UFOs and their occupants who many believe have been visiting us for nearly a century, or even thousands of years.

• Science fiction portrayals of aliens and their influence of scientific exploration.

As participants learn about past and present beliefs, they’ll be invited to share experiences, view/read select movies/books, and engage in discussions about our unique place in the vastness of time and space. No prior background in science or science fiction needed—just an open mind, curiosity, and a healthy sense of wonder.

Marc Hartzman is the author of The Big Book of Mars, We Are Not Alone, Chasing Ghosts, and seven other books. He’s also written for AOL Weird News, HuffPost, Mental Floss, All That's Interesting, The Morbid Anatomy Online Journal, the MUFON Journal, and Bizarre magazine.

Images: 1) Illustration by American artist William Robinson Leigh as it appeared in Cosmopolitan Magazine. 44, 1908 2) Bernard le Bovier de Fontenelle's frontispiece to his 17th century book ''Conversations on the Plurality of Worlds''