--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The total number of people that do a job…" description: "\"The total number of people that do a job that has the same description as mine in the entire world is fewer than 10. There's a lot of effort looking fo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a60/seth-shostak-2047_conversation_the-total-number-of-people-that-do-a-job_646912.png" --- # The total number of people that do a job that has the same… ![“The total number of people that do a job that has the same description as mine in the entire world is fewer than 10. There's a lot of effort looking for life in space - that's a lot of what NASA does, but they're not necessarily looking for the kind of life that can hold up its side of a…” quote by Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a60/seth-shostak-2047_conversation_the-total-number-of-people-that-do-a-job_646912.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a60/seth-shostak-2047_conversation_the-total-number-of-people-that-do-a-job_646912.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a60/seth-shostak-2047_conversation_the-total-number-of-people-that-do-a-job_646912.png) > “The total number of people that do a job that has the same description as mine in the entire world is fewer than 10. There's a lot of effort looking for life in space - that's a lot of what NASA does, but they're not necessarily looking for the kind of life that can hold up its side of a conversation.” [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He notes that people in his field are few worldwide, and NASA focuses on detecting life forms that may not be capable of conversation, highlighting a mismatch between expectations and scientific goals. **In simple terms:** Few work in this niche; NASA searches for non‑communicative life. Key Takeaway Align expectations with scientific realities. Themes space exploration astrobiology communication Mood inquisitive analytical Type informative speculative When to use this quote - career counseling - science policy - public outreach - education Key Concepts rarity search strategies technological limits Questions to Reflect On - What kinds of extraterrestrial life are most plausible? - How should we define “life” in space research? A Different Perspective May underestimate the value of searching for any life form. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conversation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conversation/) [Effort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effort/) [Entire world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/entire-world/) [Job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/job/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [NASA](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nasa/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [We need to be very thoughtful about how we propose to spend the money that NASA does have for space exploration. And we need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-hammel/we-need-to-be-very-thoughtful-about-how-we-propose-to-spend-the-money/) [Heidi Hammel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heidi-hammel/) > [Life is the space between our things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-debussy/life-is-the-space-between-our-things/) [Claude Debussy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-debussy/) > [Between the experience of living a normal life at this moment on the planet and the public narratives being offered to give a sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-berger/between-the-experience-of-living-a-normal-life-at-this-moment-on-the/) [John Berger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-berger/) > [We will create life from inanimate compounds, and we will find life in space. But the life that should more immediately interest us lies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-a-christakis/we-will-create-life-from-inanimate-compounds-and-we-will-find-life-in/) [Nicholas A. Christakis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-a-christakis/) > [You Can Meet Someone Who Can Change Your Life In The Space Of A Year, In The Space Of A Month Or A Week.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-morgan/you-can-meet-someone-who-can-change-your-life-in-the-space-of-a-year/) [Joseph Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-morgan/) > [You are not what happens in your life. You are the space in which it happens, which is consciousness itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/you-are-not-what-happens-in-your-life-you-are-the-space-in-which-it/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [The farm life, the space, the muck, I absolutely loved it - it was like having your own kingdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-cox/the-farm-life-the-space-the-muck-i-absolutely-loved-it-it-was-like/) [Sara Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-cox/) > [“The frontier isn’t always a place. Sometimes it’s a season of your life. The space between who you were and who you might still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dustin-lee/the-frontier-isn-t-always-a-place-sometimes-it-s-a-season-of-your/) Dustin Lee > [Life has no back space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richie/life-has-no-back-space/) [Richie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richie/) > [“Everything in life has a space of balance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truth-devour/everything-in-life-has-a-space-of-balance/) Truth Devour > [Every scar has a life of its own and a space in my heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/every-scar-has-a-life-of-its-own-and-a-space-in-my-heart/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Make space in your life, space for health and happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kris-carr/make-space-in-your-life-space-for-health-and-happiness/) [Kris Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kris-carr/) > [A dwelling should be not a retreat from space, but life in space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laszlo-moholy-nagy/a-dwelling-should-be-not-a-retreat-from-space-but-life-in-space/) [Laszlo Moholy-Nagy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laszlo-moholy-nagy/) > [Our life is full of empty space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/our-life-is-full-of-empty-space/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [“You may change your mind 1,000 times a day ...yet your heart remains the same; live life from this space.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rasheed-ogunlaru/you-may-change-your-mind-1-000-times-a-day-yet-your-heart-remains-the/) [Rasheed Ogunlaru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rasheed-ogunlaru/) ## 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. 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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/) [Explore all 189 Seth Shostak quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) ## More Conversation quotes > [We should have a conversation when we hang up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-cumberbatch/we-should-have-a-conversation-when-we-hang-up/) [Benedict Cumberbatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-cumberbatch/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. 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Be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-byers-ruch/build-a-bridge-over-shame-by-teaching-kids-about-sexual-abuse-give/) [Carolyn Byers Ruch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-byers-ruch/) > [“Having to talk to people was the one thing, but soliciting conversation was something else. If I acted squirmy or didn't make eye contact,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-thayer-hamann/having-to-talk-to-people-was-the-one-thing-but-soliciting/) [Hilary Thayer Hamann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-thayer-hamann/) > [In recent years my understanding of God had evolved into increasingly remote abstractions. I'd come to think of God in terms like Divine Reality,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/in-recent-years-my-understanding-of-god-had-evolved-into-increasingly/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [If, for instance, they have heard something from the postman, they attribute it to a semi-official statement; if they have fallen into conversation with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/if-for-instance-they-have-heard-something-from-the-postman-they/) [Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/) > [After a few mouthfuls of moon-flavored air, even the stubbornly drowsy can find themselves wide-eyed.. All the normal noises of life were gone, leaving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-d-wilson/after-a-few-mouthfuls-of-moon-flavored-air-even-the-stubbornly-drowsy/) [N.D. 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