Pulsars sending intelligent messages?

[Slappy00]

Since 1967, astronomers have been cataloging precisely timed radio pulses that sweep through space, much like lighthouse beams. Although pulsars are considered to be a type of neutron star, the exacting timing of their energy releases has puzzled astrophysicists. Among them is Paul LaViolette of the Starburst Foundation in Alexandria, Va. At this year's meeting of the American Astronomical Society, he offered evidence that pulsars are located and send signals in patterns that appear to be some sort of intelligent message--exactly what remains to be seen.


Although i primarily deal with molecular biology/biochemistry I find that physics and astrology seem to have some real tantilizing mysteries. I came across the aforequoted snippet and never heard of that phoneomenon before. Seems like some heavy stuff

 

[Mik3y]

that's pretty cool, but who knows, it may be safe to say that its just coincidence.

 

[bobsmith1492]

Um... no, that's wrong. Pulsars get their name because they 'pulse' - they are a neutron star left over from a supernova that is spinning like crazy and has a massive magnetic field around them. This means they emit stuff like xrays from their poles, and everytime the star spins so the pole points at us we get hit by a pulse of xrays. Therefore, a completely accounted for process provides a series of timed pulses - no intelligence involved.

 

[uart]

Yes, when pulsars were discovered many years ago it was at first thought that their puzzleing behaviour might be a sign that they were from some type of intelligent origin. Once there true nature was figured out (as described above by bob) then this belief ceased.

So either that is very very old "news" you're quoting there is some new development (which is not indicated in your quoted material) that has come to light.

 

[eigen]

http://www.etheric.com/LaVioletteBooks/Book-Talk.html

The guys a quack

 

[eigen]

Provocative evidence of signals from a galactic society

Dr. Paul LaViolette makes an astonishing assertion: pulsars are not what we thought they are (spinning neutron stars) but are white dwarf stars fitted with synchrotron generators by an astro-engineering galactic society specifically to transmit information to us.
Anyone can make astonishing assertions; we encounter them every day. But LaViolette supports his hypothesis with extensive research data published by established astronomers, and a broad understanding of physics, astrophysics,  and relevant areas of engineering.
It is not necessary to take LaViolette's ideas on faith. Pulsars ARE strange and becoming more and more difficult for astronomers to understand, the more they learn about them. The facts about pulsar behavior and their spatial distribution that LaViolette has culled from the research literature cry out for a new interpretation.
Anyone who has followed the field of SETI - the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence - and grown weary of the endless decades of futile searching for that narrowly-defined needle in the haystack, will find in The Talk of the Galaxy an extremely exciting revelation.

 

[DrPizza]

Originally posted by: eigen
Provocative evidence of signals from a galactic society

Dr. Paul LaViolette makes an astonishing assertion: pulsars are not what we thought they are (spinning neutron stars) but are white dwarf stars fitted with synchrotron generators by an astro-engineering galactic society specifically to transmit information to us.
Anyone can make astonishing assertions; we encounter them every day. But LaViolette supports his hypothesis with extensive research data published by established astronomers, and a broad understanding of physics, astrophysics,  and relevant areas of engineering.
It is not necessary to take LaViolette's ideas on faith. Pulsars ARE strange and becoming more and more difficult for astronomers to understand, the more they learn about them. The facts about pulsar behavior and their spatial distribution that LaViolette has culled from the research literature cry out for a new interpretation.
Anyone who has followed the field of SETI - the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence - and grown weary of the endless decades of futile searching for that narrowly-defined needle in the haystack, will find in The Talk of the Galaxy an extremely exciting revelation.

So... these intelligent aliens are smart enough to create this, but not quite smart enough to realize that we may come to an incorrect conclusion about their origin - regardless of our intelligence? Maybe they don't have Occam's Razor - the simplest solution is usually the correct solution.