Re:A deep-sea fisherman in Russia has been posting his finds...
by ecdavis on Friday December 23, 2016 @11:06AM
(#13245383)
There's a great book about this called "Life Beyond Earth" by Gerald Feinberg and Robert Shapiro. It discusses possibilities ranging from silicon-based life to plasma-based and even radiation-based life. It's not speculative, but since it's rather old the science in it may be dated.
It's worth reading if you're interested in this topic.
Re:A deep-sea fisherman in Russia has been posting his finds...
by dave_sullivan on Friday December 23, 2016 @11:51AM
(#13245687)
I'd also recommend Greg Egan's diaspora, it presents some interesting ideas around forms alien species might take. I don't want to give anything away, but the author takes things a few steps further than most sci-fi about exploring the universe(s).
Which begs the question, what would actual aliens look like?
Would parallel evolution produce familiar looking creatures or something much much stranger? I imagine it's something that sci-fi authors spend a bit of time thinking about.