Describe which quantity the Drake equation is trying to estimate. List at least
ID: 293989 • Letter: D
Question
Describe which quantity the Drake equation is trying to estimate. List at least 2 relevant parameters or quantities that enter into the Drank equation.I have it’s trying to estimate the number of intelligent creatures that may exist out in the Milky Way galaxy 1. Fraction of planets that have intelligent civilizations now 2. Fraction of habitable planet that have life Describe which quantity the Drake equation is trying to estimate. List at least 2 relevant parameters or quantities that enter into the Drank equation.
I have it’s trying to estimate the number of intelligent creatures that may exist out in the Milky Way galaxy 1. Fraction of planets that have intelligent civilizations now 2. Fraction of habitable planet that have life List at least 2 relevant parameters or quantities that enter into the Drank equation.
I have it’s trying to estimate the number of intelligent creatures that may exist out in the Milky Way galaxy 1. Fraction of planets that have intelligent civilizations now 2. Fraction of habitable planet that have life
Explanation / Answer
The Drake Equation is an attempt to encapsulate all the variables that would be relevant to establishing the number of intelligent civilizations that existed in the Milky Way galaxy and which were broadcasting radio signals at this particular point in time. The Drake Equation is composed of seven terms. The first six are used to compute the rate at which intelligent civilizations are being created and the final term identifies how long each lasts on average as a broadcasting civilization. It is worth stressing that the Drake Equation applies only to intelligent civilizations in the Milky Way galaxy. It does not apply to civilizations in other galaxies because they are too distant to be able to detect their radio signals.
The Drake Equation is:
N = R * fp * ne * fl * fi * fc * L
where:
N = The number of broadcasting civilizations.
R = Average rate of formation of suitable stars (stars/year) in the Milky Way galaxy
fp = Fraction of stars that form planets
ne = Average number of habitable planets per star
fl = Fraction of habitable planets (ne) where life emerges
fi = Fraction of habitable planets with life where intelligent evolves
fc = Fraction of planets with intelligent life capable of interstellar communication
L = Years a civilization remains detectable
According to the Wikipedia entry for the Drake Equation, the following values were those used in the original formulation of the Drake Equation:
R = 10
fp = 0.5
ne = 2.0
fl = 1.0
fi = 0.01
fc = 0.01
L = 10000
1.fi - The Fraction of Planets With Life Where Intelligence Life Evolves
Given that life evolves on a planet, how likely is it that intelligent life will appear? This is another big unknown. Of all the millions of species that have ever existed on Earth, only one has evolved the level of intelligence necessary to develop technology.Further, while very simple life appeared very quickly on Earth, complex life took far longer to develop. Given that there is not a parameter to distinguish microscopic life (which lacks the complexity to develop intelligence) from the development of complex macroscopic life, this aspect must be taken into account in the context of this parameter.Whereas Drake believed that life would develop on every planet that had habitable conditions, he estimated that intelligent life would emerge on only 1 of every 100 of these planets Choosing a value .of 0.001 for this parameter means that you think that intelligent life will appear on only 1 of every 1000 planets with life. A value of 1.0 means that the development of intelligent life is a certainty on those planets where life develops.
2.fl - The Fraction of Habitable Planets Where Life Emerges
This parameter is something of a wildcard in that we only have one example of life. It is difficult for us to say how easy or hard it is for life to start given suitable environmental conditions. One interesting point to consider is this:
The implication of this is that life got started rather quickly on Earth. The big unknown is just how common are the conditions which resulted in life. This is one reason why the search for evidence of past life on Mars is so important. Finding or not finding evidence of past and/or present life on Mars will help us to better answer the question of the likelihood of life elsewhere in the galaxy and universe.Choosing a value of 0.01 for this parameter means that you think that life develops on only 1 of every 100 habitable planets whereas a value of 1.0 means that life develops on every habitable planet.