Is there life on other planets?

Regarding the article "Efforts to Locate E.T.'s," Dec. 4: One weakness in the argument in support of the existence of intelligent life elsewhere in our universe entails the juxtaposition of very big and very small quantities.The number of stars is huge, but a realistic probability that life would evolve on an Earth-like planet (if there are such) and persist long enough to send a message is quite small. Also, our universe abounds with unique objects, so the likelihood that Earth is one of these is another consideration. For these and a host of other reasons, the outlook for success is extremely low. W.L. Morris, Center, Texas

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