--- title: "8 Percent Quotes By Seth Shostak" description: "8 Percent quotes by Seth Shostak. Plus more from Seth Shostak and more Percent sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b2/seth-shostak-2047_donations_the-total-funding-of-seti-the-search-for_575239.png" --- > [The total funding of SETI (the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) in the U.S. is 0.0003 percent of the tax monies spent on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/the-total-funding-of-seti-the-search-for-extraterrestrial/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b2/seth-shostak-2047_donations_the-total-funding-of-seti-the-search-for_575239.png) > [Humans have existed only for the last 0.001 percent of cosmic time. All of which says that - unless the Homo sapiens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/humans-have-existed-only-for-the-last-0-001-percent-of-cosmic-time/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87a/seth-shostak-2047_beyond_humans-have-existed-only-for-the-last-0_2205316.png) > [It's easy to reckon that the oomph to hurl even a Smart Car-size spacecraft to another star at, say, 20 percent the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/it-s-easy-to-reckon-that-the-oomph-to-hurl-even-a-smart-car-size/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd8/seth-shostak-2047_another_it-s-easy-to-reckon-that-the-oomph-to-hu_2315553.png) > [The math is dead simple: it seems that the frequency of planets able to support life is roughly one percent. In other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/the-math-is-dead-simple-it-seems-that-the-frequency-of-planets-able/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ec/seth-shostak-2047_able_the-math-is-dead-simple-it-seems-that-th_2396153.jpg) > [We've accounted for 95 percent of all the stars in the Milky Way. The other 5 percent are big, bright stars -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/we-ve-accounted-for-95-percent-of-all-the-stars-in-the-milky-way-the/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/658/seth-shostak-2047_astronomy_we-ve-accounted-for-95-percent-of-all-th_2869174.jpg) > [In the four years since its launch, Kepler has chalked up 122 new and confirmed planets. It's also caught the scent of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/in-the-four-years-since-its-launch-kepler-has-chalked-up-122-new-and/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af3/seth-shostak-2047_additional_in-the-four-years-since-its-launch-keple_2937583.jpg) > [Typically, only about 2 percent of the American populace tunes in to PBS's 'Nova' series - the most successful science show on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/typically-only-about-2-percent-of-the-american-populace-tunes-in-to/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/seth-shostak-2047_about_typically-only-about-2-percent-of-the-am_3125590.jpg) > [I still remember my dismay in the summer of 2007 when - for the first time in the history of planet Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/i-still-remember-my-dismay-in-the-summer-of-2007-when-for-the-first/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/005/seth-shostak-2047_america_i-still-remember-my-dismay-in-the-summer_3227993.png) ## Other authors on Percent ## More by Seth Shostak > [Studying Sol's interior by looking for analogous patterns on its incandescent face is known as helioseismology, an active - if largely unpronounceable - research…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/studying-sol-s-interior-by-looking-for-analogous-patterns-on-its/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Some pundits have proposed that the aliens have come here to breed with us. Apparently, too much bike riding or something similar has rendered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/some-pundits-have-proposed-that-the-aliens-have-come-here-to-breed/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [As far as I can tell, the only unambiguous consequence of the claimed invasion of Earth by beings from another star system has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/as-far-as-i-can-tell-the-only-unambiguous-consequence-of-the-claimed/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Look, science is hard, it has a reputation of being hard, and the facts are, it is hard, and that's the result of 400…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/look-science-is-hard-it-has-a-reputation-of-being-hard-and-the-facts/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Give consideration to the fact that alien astronomers could have scrutinized Earth for more than 4 billion years without detecting any radio signals, despite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/give-consideration-to-the-fact-that-alien-astronomers-could-have/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [In a movie, it's often important to have aliens whose gestures and facial expressions can be 'read' by humans. And in the days before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/in-a-movie-it-s-often-important-to-have-aliens-whose-gestures-and/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Sure, nobody will make a fortune if we figure out why the Big Bang happened. But just about everyone would like to know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/sure-nobody-will-make-a-fortune-if-we-figure-out-why-the-big-bang/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [If you could drive straight down, into a tunnel bored through the crust of the planet, you'd hit this molten mess in about an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/if-you-could-drive-straight-down-into-a-tunnel-bored-through-the/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [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…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/while-i-have-always-thought-that-the-motivation-for-looking-for-e-t/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [I studied Latin in high school, and I was reading stuff from Cicero. And that signal took a few thousand years to get to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/i-studied-latin-in-high-school-and-i-was-reading-stuff-from-cicero/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [About the only things that are unique to Earth are our biota and our culture. If aliens ever come here, they'd most likely be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/about-the-only-things-that-are-unique-to-earth-are-our-biota-and-our/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [This plucky NASA telescope is able to find planets en masse. If you compare planet hunting to prospecting for gold, then Kepler is equivalent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/this-plucky-nasa-telescope-is-able-to-find-planets-en-masse-if-you/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [The most attractive habitats for synthetic sentience might be the vicinities of exceptional sources of energy - for example black holes, or even the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/the-most-attractive-habitats-for-synthetic-sentience-might-be-the/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Buying insurance is no one's idea of fun. And it's especially easy to berate something as funky-sounding as writing checks to defend our neighborhoods…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/buying-insurance-is-no-one-s-idea-of-fun-and-it-s-especially-easy-to/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Plate tectonics is not all havoc and destruction. The slow movement of continents and ocean floors recycles carbon dioxide dissolved in the oceans back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/plate-tectonics-is-not-all-havoc-and-destruction-the-slow-movement-of/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/percent/seth-shostak/#itemlist", "name": "8 Percent Quotes By Seth Shostak", "numberOfItems": 8, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The total funding of SETI (the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) in the U.S. is 0.0003 percent of the tax monies spent on health and human services. And it's not even tax money. 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All of which says that - unless the Homo sapiens brain is the one-and-only instance of cogitating machinery - nearly all the intelligence that's out there is beyond our level. And that intelligence is more than just a little bit beyond.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Seth Shostak" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/humans-have-existed-only-for-the-last-0-001-percent-of-cosmic-time/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87a/seth-shostak-2047_beyond_humans-have-existed-only-for-the-last-0_2205316.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87a/seth-shostak-2047_beyond_humans-have-existed-only-for-the-last-0_2205316.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87a/seth-shostak-2047_beyond_humans-have-existed-only-for-the-last-0_2205316.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Humans have existed only for the last 0.001 percent of cosmic time. 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The tank's not big enough.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Seth Shostak" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/it-s-easy-to-reckon-that-the-oomph-to-hurl-even-a-smart-car-size/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd8/seth-shostak-2047_another_it-s-easy-to-reckon-that-the-oomph-to-hu_2315553.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd8/seth-shostak-2047_another_it-s-easy-to-reckon-that-the-oomph-to-hu_2315553.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd8/seth-shostak-2047_another_it-s-easy-to-reckon-that-the-oomph-to-hu_2315553.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's easy to reckon that the oomph to hurl even a Smart Car-size spacecraft to another star at, say, 20…” — Seth Shostak", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The math is dead simple: it seems that the frequency of planets able to support life is roughly one percent. In other words, a billion or more such worlds exist in our galaxy alone. That's a lot of acreage, and it takes industrial-strength credulity to believe it's all bleakly barren.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Seth Shostak" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/the-math-is-dead-simple-it-seems-that-the-frequency-of-planets-able/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ec/seth-shostak-2047_able_the-math-is-dead-simple-it-seems-that-th_2396153.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ec/seth-shostak-2047_able_the-math-is-dead-simple-it-seems-that-th_2396153.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ec/seth-shostak-2047_able_the-math-is-dead-simple-it-seems-that-th_2396153.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The math is dead simple: it seems that the frequency of planets able to support life is roughly one percent…” — Seth Shostak", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 5, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We've accounted for 95 percent of all the stars in the Milky Way. 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It's also caught the scent of nearly three thousand additional objects, of which probably 80 percent or more will turn out to be other-worldly orbs.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Seth Shostak" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/in-the-four-years-since-its-launch-kepler-has-chalked-up-122-new-and/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af3/seth-shostak-2047_additional_in-the-four-years-since-its-launch-keple_2937583.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af3/seth-shostak-2047_additional_in-the-four-years-since-its-launch-keple_2937583.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af3/seth-shostak-2047_additional_in-the-four-years-since-its-launch-keple_2937583.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In the four years since its launch, Kepler has chalked up 122 new and confirmed planets. 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'Survivor' and 'X Factor' get twice the ratings.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Seth Shostak" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/typically-only-about-2-percent-of-the-american-populace-tunes-in-to/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/seth-shostak-2047_about_typically-only-about-2-percent-of-the-am_3125590.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/seth-shostak-2047_about_typically-only-about-2-percent-of-the-am_3125590.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/seth-shostak-2047_about_typically-only-about-2-percent-of-the-am_3125590.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Typically, only about 2 percent of the American populace tunes in to PBS's 'Nova' series - the most…” — Seth Shostak", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 8, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I still remember my dismay in the summer of 2007 when - for the first time in the history of planet Earth - America's share of auto production dropped below 50 percent.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Seth Shostak" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/i-still-remember-my-dismay-in-the-summer-of-2007-when-for-the-first/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/005/seth-shostak-2047_america_i-still-remember-my-dismay-in-the-summer_3227993.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/005/seth-shostak-2047_america_i-still-remember-my-dismay-in-the-summer_3227993.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/005/seth-shostak-2047_america_i-still-remember-my-dismay-in-the-summer_3227993.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I still remember my dismay in the summer of 2007 when - for the first time in the history of planet Earth…” — Seth Shostak", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } } ] }, { "@type": "CollectionPage", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/percent/seth-shostak/#webpage", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/percent/seth-shostak/", "name": "Percent Quotes by Seth Shostak", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/percent/seth-shostak/#itemlist" }, "primaryImageOfPage": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b2/seth-shostak-2047_donations_the-total-funding-of-seti-the-search-for_575239.png" }, "description": "8 Percent quotes by Seth Shostak. 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