Special event

For millennia, humans have wondered whether life exists beyond Earth. Over the last half-century or so, these musings have evolved from fantasy and speculation into a legitimate scientific endeavor, guided largely by the Drake Equation — a formula that estimates the number of detectable extraterrestrial civilizations in our Milky Way galaxy. Nadia Drake, a science reporter, will discuss the factors in the Drake Equation, how science reporters choose and construct stories, and the science media's role in communicating discoveries about the search for life beyond Earth.