The Drake Equation

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John Paukovits Math 151 sec 006A Paper N=? The math behind The Drake Equation is simple. Multiply seven terms together and the outcome is N, the number of communicating civilizations in the galaxy. The much more time consuming and precarious part of these tasks is coming up with these seven terms. In 1961 when Frank Drake developed The Drake Equation there was much less understanding of the universe. The figures that were plugged into the equation, and the figures that have since been plugged in, are subject to wide interpretation and can differ significantly from scientist to scientist [ (Dvorsky) ]. Due to the uncertainty of the appropriate figures that should be placed into the equation there have been no conclusive results. This has lead to the equation’s seven terms being used as more of a guideline to estimating the amount of intelligent life in the galaxy. Frank Drake developed The Drake Equation in 1961 in preparation for the Green Bank Meeting. This meeting took place in West Virginia. It was a small gathering of scientists that showed an interest in the search for radio signals non terrestrial in nature. It is at this meeting that Frank Drake proposed his equation for estimating the number of communicating civilizations in the galaxy [ (Keyes) ]. N= N* x fp x ne x fl x fi x fc x fl 1. N* the number of stars in the galaxy. 2. fp the fraction of those stars which have planets. 3. ne the number of planets in each solar system that could support life. 4. fl the number where life actually emerges. 5. fi the fraction where intelligent life develops. 6. fc the fraction of intelligent societies with the means to communicate. 7. fl the fraction of a planets life in which a communicating society survives. A few of these terms have little to no data available to support concrete estimates. The data available for the
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