Privileged Planet

The students recently watched the video Privileged Planet for a forum; the following is a summary of the video that will hopefully encourage you to watch it, too.
Privileged Planet by Guillermo Gonzalez describes how unique the earth is regarding its ability to facilitate life and its usefulness for scientific discoveries. The video begins by tracing how man discovered the place of Earth in its solar system and describes the different views held throughout history. Aristotle believed that the earth was the center of the universe, but Copernicus disproved this with his theory that the sun was the center of the universe. Continuing, the narrators of Privileged Planet describe that even though there are physics laws that apply universally, some unique factors make Earth perfect for hosting life. Factors include the earth’s location, the makeup of its atmosphere, and its crust. While humans may try to reason away that these conditions happened by accident, the odds are significantly against this premise. Finally, the discoveries made on Earth about the solar system and universe are described as a consequence of the planet’s unique place in the universe. Albert Einstein is mentioned as stating, “The most incomprehensible thing about the universe is that it is comprehensible.” Overall, Privileged Planet does a deep dive into the history of mankind’s view of the earth’s place in the solar system, factors that make it uniquely suited for life, and the many discoveries made about the space system.