The search for extra-terrestrial intelligence - SETI - has so far come up dry. Yet it remains a cultural touchstone and a fertile ground for speculation. In no area is this speculation more important, perhaps, than in what SETI might tell us about social organizations and the sorts of values and practices we might need to make it to the stars.

But should we be going to the stars - or talking to them - in the first place? Some prominent voices have suggested that aliens are likely to be hostile or uninterested in cooperation. They point out, with much evidence in support, that first contacts on earth have often gone badly. Other commentators think we might really be alone in the universe. And still others regard the whole affair as almost literally pie in the sky: Why not fix problems down here on earth first?

Even without any evidence of intelligent extra-terrestrial life, these are provocative questions. They will take on new urgency, however, if a signal is ever detected. Who should respond? What should they say? What if they say something wrong? But then - how can we stop them?

Our lead essayist this month is David Brin, a celebrated futurist, social theorist, and science fiction writer. In an essay that’s both complex and challenging, he suggests that we should think very carefully before we try to communicate with the heavens, and certainly before we respond to any actual signal. He also suggests that certain social forms, including feudalism and other strictly hierarchical forms of organization, have done much throughout human history to hold back our scientific and technological progress. It may be the case that other societies, on other planets, are suffering similarly. The open and anti-hierarchical society may be the key to humanity reaching the stars.

Responding to him will be Professor Robin Hanson of George Mason University, Professor Douglas Vakoch of the SETI Institute, and Professor Jerome H. Barkow of Dalhousie University.