[AANC Contacts] Update on SETIcon: First Public Convention on the Search for Life in the Universe Aug. 13-15 in Santa Clara

[Andrew Fraknoi]

SETIcon

The First-Ever Public Convention Focused on the
Search for Life in the Universe in Science Fact and Science Fiction

August 13 - 15, 2010
Hyatt Regency Hotel, Santa Clara, California

Only $20 per day or $35 for a weekend pass.
Go to http://www.seticon.com for more information and tickets.

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Here are just a few of the fascinating panels scheduled for the weekend:

* Looking for a Few Good Earths: Finding Our Counterpart Among the Stars
* Was Stephen Hawking Right: Should We Not Broadcast to 
Extraterrestrial Civilizations?
* Multiverses: Is One Cosmos Enough?
* Should Pluto be Considered a Planet?
* Why Are There No Tourists from Other Worlds?
* White Lab Coats and Gray Aliens: Images of Scientists and 
Extraterrestrials in the Popular Media
* Asteroid Armageddon: Will The Kind of Rock that Obliterated the 
Dinosaurs Get Us Next?
* Should Humans Explore the Moon and the Planets or Do We Leave it to Robots?
* Is Doomsday 2012 For Real or Will you Still Have to Pay Taxes in 2013?
* Do We Have to Learn Klingon: How Will We Communicate with ET?
* Secrets of the Red Planet: What Have We Learned from Mars Exploration?

The roster of guest speakers includes:

* Rusty Schweickart, the Apollo astronaut, who now devotes his life 
to saving the Earth from future asteroid impacts
* Frank Drake, the astronomer who undertook the first project to 
listen for alien radio messages and founded the SETI field
* Michael Brown, who discovered large worlds beyond Pluto and helped 
kick Pluto out of the "planet club"
* Robert J. Sawyer, the award-winning science fiction writer who has 
written some of the best novels about alien contact
* David Morrison, the NASA astronomer who is trying to calm public 
fears about the so-called "Doomsday 2012" idea

* Debra Fischer, one of the top planet hunters in the world, 
co-discoverer of the first system of planets around another star
* Alex Filippenko, who helped discover the "dark energy" that is 
speeding up the expansion of the entire universe
* Jill Tarter, the leader of the quest to find signals from alien 
civilizations (on whom Jodie Foster's character in Contact is based)
* Tim Russ, who played Tuvak on Star Trek: Voyager, and who is an 
avid amateur astronomer
* Mary Roach, author of several best sellers and the forthcoming 
"Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void"

Other guests include radio host and noted SETI scientist Seth 
Shostak; astronomer, radio commentator, and California Professor of 
the Year Andrew Fraknoi; Kevin Grazier, scientist on the Cassini 
Mission and science advisor for Battlestar Galactica; cosmologist 
Sean Carroll; Jon Jenkins and Gibor Basri, co-investigators on the 
Kepler mission to search for earths around other stars; Phil Plait, 
"the Bad Astronomer"; Dale Cruikshank, who helped discover Pluto's 
atmosphere; plus other scientists, educators, and commentators with 
the knack for explaining science in everyday language.

Don't miss this fascinating link-up between the worlds of science and 
the imagination. There will be special programs for families and for 
educators. Space is limited and tickets are available on a 
first-come, first-served basis.

Register at the convention web site: www.seticon.com
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SPECIAL GUEST:

Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart has worked with Nobel Laureate 
George Smoot and the SETI Institute's Jill Tarter on a fascinating 
composition called "Rhythms of the Universe". Hart will introduce a 
preview showing of this work-in-progress at a Friday evening event 
during SETIcon.  This special event requires both a SETIcon ticket 
purchase and a current or new SETI Institute membership (TeamSETI) to 
attend. Packages that include membership and Mickey Hart event start 
at $70. See the website for more information.
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A Saturday evening banquet will honor Frank Drake on the 50th 
anniversary of the first SETI experiment, Project OZMA.

SETIcon benefits the non-profit SETI Institute, and its programs in 
science and education.
In 2010 the Institute is celebrating its 25th year or scientific 
research and public outreach.



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Andrew Fraknoi, Chair, Astronomy Program
Foothill College, 12345 El Monte Rd.,
Los Altos Hills, CA 94022, USA

Telephone: (650) 949-7288
E-mail: fraknoiandrew at fhda.edu
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