It's the default premise in science: If you observe something in nature only once, you assume that what you've seen is typical. That's because "typical" is just another way of saying "most probable."

Consequently, ever since Copernicus redrew the blueprint of the cosmos nearly five centuries ago, we've assumed that...

The latest planets turned up by NASA's Kepler telescope are -- like the kids in Lake Wobegon -- gratifyingly above average.

These new worlds offer both promise and insights, because they've got traits that are both appealing and mildly disconcerting.

In the four years since its launch, Kepler has chalked...

It's a disturbing question, and one that I seem to get more frequently than before.

"Why are you looking for evidence of extraterrestrials? What's the point?"

While I have always thought that the motivation for looking for E.T. was both self-evident and patently worthy, it's possible that I'm a victim...

Imagine a world where the Sun doesn't shine -- ever. A place where there are nights but no days, and where the term "year" has no meaning. On such an unlit world, you'll never see anything in the sky brighter than the puny sparkle of the stars.

Welcome to orphan...

Click here to read an original op-ed from the TED speaker who inspired this post and watch the TEDTalk below.

Remember the tag line for the 1979 sci-fi flick Alien? It was boldly emblazoned on the film's advertising posters, and helpfully informed the public that "in...

After more than sixty years, televisions are as familiar as old boots. Once typecast as the indispensable altarpiece of a well-appointed living room, TVs have infected every human environment. The average American household has more television sets than people.

Today, if you've got the wall space and the...

Watch the TEDTalk that inspired this post.

Buying insurance is seldom gratifying. But here's a case in which plunking down cash for a policy is just ... good policy.

The threat is familiar: rocks from the sky, known as asteroids -- the subject of a 2011...

Patrick Moore -- the brooding presence with the gruff voice and monocled eye -- has died. The famous British popularizer of astronomy passed away at the age of 89 this week. He had the distinction of being the author of more than 70 books and the host of...

Could rocket scientists be an endangered species?

You're probably betting "no," given the contemporary efforts to hurl hardware to the moon, to Mars, and to a passel of other unearthly locales. The rocket biz is busy, and it's diversifying. An enthusiastic troupe of private companies is also getting into the...

Here's an idea you probably haven't considered. Astronomer Edwin Hubble, who first discovered the expansion of the universe, was part of a devilish plan. Measurements of nearby galaxies suggesting that the cosmos began with an explosive event -- what we now call the Big Bang -- were a conspiracy to...

Neil Armstrong was no Christopher Columbus.

In most respects, he was better. Unlike the famous fifteenth century seafarer, Armstrong knew where he landed. He also spent his time in public service, not in jail, and his passing was marked by world-wide encomiums. He ended his days as a celebrated explorer...

Is loud music the new smog? Have woofers and tweeters replaced tailpipes as the irritant de jour, spewing clouds of nasty noise into once-tranquil environments?

The press seems to think so. Recently, several reporters and columnists have described the difficulty of engaging in civilized conversation while dining at their local...

It's largely a technical achievement, but it augurs well for the chances of finding life trillions of miles from Earth.

A team of mostly Dutch astronomers have used the Very Large Telescope -- situated atop a barren ridge in the Chilean Andes -- to examine a planet hugging the...

It's a comment I get more often than a shoe shine: "Couldn't we be the first intelligent species in the universe? After all, it took eons to cook up the elements of life -- so maybe we're the first ones out of the gate."

The logic seems believable. After all,...

As spring eases into summer, the multiplexes are witnessing an all-out alien assault. Within the space of a month, silver screens have shown ships of the U.S. Navy belching ordnance at invading extraterrestrials in Battleship; portrayed black-garbed government agents keeping tabs on ornery aliens in Men in Black III; and...

You may not see massive UFO exhibits at your local science museum, but there's no dearth of saucer stories infesting my email. Every day I receive several reports of alien sightings, extraterrestrial plans for Earth, and agitated screeds about the reluctance of scientists to take the whole subject seriously. Plenty...

Could there be a faster way to discover interesting galactic neighbors? Is there some scheme for detecting aliens that might work quicker than tuning in their radio transmissions or hunting down their laser pulses?

There might be, and for a simple reason. The cosmos is three times as old as...

Apocalypse is always fashionable news. After all, what could be a bigger story than the end of the Earth, or at least its veneer of troublesome, hominid fuzz?

The past 12 months have seen plenty of predictions on the imminent demise of either the planet or some substantial fraction of...

If robots have tear ducts, they'll be giving them a good workout this week. Dick Tufeld, the voice of one of television's most famous robots, has died at the age of 85.

In case you don't remember, the TV robot in question was the mildly helpful, low-grade artificial-intelligence-on-wheels in the...

They're gray, big-eyed, and smoother than a buffed Maserati. They're aliens à la Hollywood. Lacking noses, ears, hair, and a sense of humor, these short-statured creatures are omnipresent in sci-fi films and TV.

Not surprisingly, many members of the public assume that if we ever interact with real extraterrestrials, they'll...