Indiana University Cinema Bloomington, IN
Richard Durisen
Emeritus Professor of Astronomy, Indiana University
Contact— The search for extraterrestrial life: fact vs. science fiction
Program Description
Astronomer Richard Durisen reveals the good, the bad, and the old science portrayed in Contact and other science-fiction films about searching for life in the universe.
Presented At
Indiana University Cinema Bloomington, IN
Film Synopsis
Dr. Ellie Arroway, after years of searching, finds conclusive radio proof of intelligent aliens, who send plans for a mysterious machine.
In this Robert Zemeckis-directed adaptation of the Carl Sagan novel, Dr. Ellie Arroway (Jodie Foster) is a headstrong scientist who races to interpret a signal originating from the Vega star system. An incredible message is found hidden in the signal, containing the plans for a mysterious machine. But once first contact with an extraterrestrial intelligence is proven, Arroway must contend with inflexible National Security Advisor Michael Kitz (James Woods) and religious fanatics bent on containing the implications of such an event.
About the Speaker
Richard H. Durisen joined the IU Astronomy faculty in 1976. He received a B.S. in Physics from Fordham University in 1967 and a Ph.D. in Astronomy from Princeton University in 1972. Professor Durisen has had extended research leaves at NASA-Ames Research Center as an NRC Research Associate and at Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics as Fulbright Fellow and an Alexander von Humboldt U.S. Senior Scientist Awardee. He also has a long-standing interest in science fiction and film.