Seth Shostak, astronomer at the SETI Institute, is attending a week-long
   conference on life in the universe being held in Australia. This is his
   first report from the scene.

   Scientists are taking this stuff seriously. On the first day of the 
   conference, there was one learned report after the other on how the 
   organic building blocks of life could be formed in the dust around stars
   - either when old stars are dying or when new ones are forming.

   A speaker mentioned rather off-handedly that each day, roughly two tons
   of organic material is dropped on Earth from space.

   Other worlds, around other stars, are presumably being coated with 
   organic molecules as well. 

   Bioastronomy 2002: Scientists Look for Life
   By Seth Shostak
   Astronomer, Project Phoenix
   posted: 08:55 am ET
   11 July 2002

    http://www.space.com/searchforlife/bioastronomy_shostak_020711.html

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