The Social Lives of Plants, in Space

Oman-Reagan, Michael P.

doi:10.31235/osf.io/h76zt

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“…Anthropologists are now studying topics as varied as: telescopes, particle physics, cyborgs, futures, minerals, plants, insects, fungi, microbes, molecules, waves, oceans, and possible forms of extraterrestrial life [e.g. 1,6,11,14,15,19,22,23,28,29,30,32,33,34,37]. These recent moves to de-center the human from anthropology offer models for further shifts away from anthropocentrism that may be necessary in the next generation of SETI research.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Insights from environmental space anthropology suggest we consider coevolution beyond the planetary scale, to include solar systems, and interstellar space, as we search for ETI who may be living outside the restrictions of a single planetary influence. An emerging "space-inclusive anthropology" [2] can examine both human and non-human engagements with space, studying how scientists produce knowledge at a distance [27], how humans and non-humans develop social relationships as we move into space [30], and how ETI might interpret messaging objects like the Voyager record [18]. Space was once considered outside the scope of anthropology, however new subfields dedicated to space, and recent attention to science studies, provide opportunities for collaboration with anthropologists as advisors, partners, and co-authors [e.g.…”

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Conceptualizing Difference in SETI: Xenoanthropological Theory and Methods

Oman-Reagan¹

2018

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Anthropological theory and methods offer new ways to help us “step out of our brains” and overcome the tendency to search “for other versions of ourselves” in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI). This white paper proposes SETI researchers draw on anthropological theory, ontology, and multispecies ethnography to imagine “how intelligent life interacts with its environment and communicates information” (Cabrol, Alien Mindscapes, 2016). Please cite as: Oman-Reagan, Michael P. 2018. “Conceptualizing Difference in SETI: Xenoanthropological Theory and Methods.” Paper presented for "Decoding Alien Intelligence,” SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA. 15 March.

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Conceptualizing Difference in SETI: Xenoanthropological Theory and Methods

Oman-Reagan¹

2018

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“… 51 We can go even further: including our present-day interactions and relationships with other species in our analysis can help us remain open to possibilities of ‘multispecies’ futures in space, and provide data for more informed speculation about what interactions with extraterrestrial life might be like (Herzing 2014; Oman-Reagan 2015a). …”

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“…You dont have to think about it at all; you're already in there. Now we all know that these terms are supposed to also include women; but the reality is a bit different...women have to 51 We can go even further: including our present-day interactions and relationships with other species in our analysis can help us remain open to possibilities of "multispecies" futures in space, and provide data for more informed speculation about what interactions with extraterrestrial life might be like (Herzing, 2014;Oman-Reagan, 2015a "think themselves into" such expressions, even if it happens at a subconscious level.…”

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Visions of human futures in space and SETI

Wright

Oman-Reagan

2017

International Journal of Astrobiology

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We discuss how visions for the futures of humanity in space and SETI are intertwined, and are shaped by prior work in the fields and by science fiction. This appears in the language used in the fields, and in the sometimes implicit assumptions made in discussions of them. We give examples from articulations of the so-called Fermi Paradox, discussions of the settlement of the Solar System (in the near future) and the Galaxy (in the far future), and METI. We argue that science fiction, especially the campy variety, is a significant contributor to the "giggle factor" that hinders serious discussion and funding for SETI and Solar System settlement projects. We argue that humanity's long-term future in space will be shaped by our short-term visions for who goes there and how. Because of the way they entered the fields, we recommend avoiding the term "colony" and its cognates when discussing the settlement of space, as well as other terms with similar pedigrees. We offer examples of science fiction and other writing that broaden and challenge our visions of human futures in space and SETI. In an appendix, we use an analogy with 1 the well-funded and relatively uncontroversial searches for the dark matter particle to argue that SETI's lack of funding in the national science portfolio is primarily a problem of perception, not inherent merit.Keywords: SETI -science fiction -human spaceflight -colonialism -futures Visions of SETI and Human SpaceflightThe topics of SETI, human spaceflight, and humanity's long-term futures are intertwined. As we engage with outer space we bring history and culture with us and it becomes a "cultural landscape" (Gorman, 2009), a place that shapes and is in turn shaped by culture. Steven J. Dick 1 has called for a "systematic approach" applying anthropology to SETI and finds evidence in historical collaborations that this would be beneficial to both fields (Dick, 2006). As a collaboration between an astronomer and an anthropologist, this paper draws on both interdisciplinary SETI work and anthropology to discuss factors shaping the cultural landscapes of space with special attention to ways we imagine and talk about possible futures through science fiction.Human spaceflight, extraterrestrial intelligence, and the distant future are commonly completely blended in science fiction. Visions of humans traveling among the stars and encountering alien life are perhaps the quintessential science fiction trope. At first glance, it would seem that the endeavors of SETI and human spaceflight are generally more separated than this: the former has historically comprised relatively small, mostly privately-funded efforts concentrated among radio astronomers and a few others; the latter has comprised major governmental efforts by the United States, the former Soviet Union, Russia, and their partner nations for decades. 2Here we consider the more ambitious projects for human spaceflight of the sort aspired to by many governments but never (so far) seriously attempted: the permanent settlement of the So...

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The Social Lives of Plants, in Space

Abstract: Oman-Reagan, Michael P. 2015. “The Social Lives of Plants, in Space.” Astrosociological Insights 4 (2): 4–8.

Cited by 2 publications

References 1 publication

Conceptualizing Difference in SETI: Xenoanthropological Theory and Methods

Conceptualizing Difference in SETI: Xenoanthropological Theory and Methods

Visions of human futures in space and SETI

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