Too far out

Science News, June 26, 2004 by David L. Bump

It's pitiful to see supposedly objective scientists fantasizing that there's a "fact that life could be widespread" because they've found organic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in space ("Space Invaders: The stuff of life has far-flung origins," SN: 5/1/04, p. 280). Even if researchers found all the amino acids floating in space, it would be like finding a pile of bricks and other building materials and imagining they could form themselves into the Pentagon. This kind of thinking is not worthy of scientific endeavor.

DAVID L. BUMP, FLUSHING, MICH.