The Ramifications of Solitude, What if we are Alone in the Universe?

Greetings. The question. Are we alone in the universe? That particular query has been on the minds of people for centuries, perhaps since the days of prehistoric humans. 

Perhaps no other unanswered question has held such an intense fascination, or such historic ramifications for the human race. Although the vast majority of laypersons and the scientific community believes that extraterrestrial life exists somewhere out in the cosmos, we simply don't know beyond a shadow of a doubt. We just don't know. To a great extent the resulting discussions and considerations have centered around the commonality of potential homes for extraterrestrial life, exoplanets. Thanks to the efforts of astronomers around the world, and the wonderful technology available to them, we now know of thousands and thousands of exoplanets. While the majority of exoplanets have been determined to be gas giants, similar in composition and construction to the Solar System's Jupiter and Saturn, we do know of some terrestrial, rocky planets, similar to Mercury, Venus, the Earth, Mars, Ceres, and Pluto. (Pluto is a full fledged planet, so don't get me started on that argument.)

If we keep our focus strictly on the numbers, and there are some prodigious numbers at play, the chance that extraterrestrial life does not exist is almost zero. Almost zero. To be mathematically fair, that "almost zero" is as close as we can get until someone actually discovers proof and evidence of extraterrestrial organisms, regardless of their complexity. The vast numbers at play strongly suggest that life in the universe is a reality, possibly a common occurrence, however, we just don't know. Until extraterrestrial life is confirmed via scientific consensus, we shall remain drifting on the boat of conjecture. Given enough time and scientific effort, extraterrestrial life may be discovered in the very near future, which would be a day of celebration for all humans on Earth.

On a sobering turn, the possibility that we are alone in the universe cannot be discounted. I don't believe for a moment that the lovely blue planet that we reside on is the solitary abode for organic life in the universe, but my belief is just the opinion of an ignorant and imperfect bipedal mammal, and nothing more than that. Examining the possibilities, even remote ones, forces us to look at the evidence and information, all the while pushing away from our own biased and subjective opinions. In that spirit, we can make some well-informed guesses as to what may or may not have occurred on other planetary bodies. Terrestrial scientists have a pretty good idea about what transpired on Earth over four billion years ago, and the environmental conditions that allowed organic life to arise and eventually flourish. Terrestrial scientists don't know if the same set of conditions have allowed for the evolution of extraterrestrial organisms. If such lifeforms have in fact not arisen on other planets, that is also deserving of intense scientific scrutiny, for such a lack of organic activity is counter to what we know about the history of the Earth, and to be somewhat bigoted, such an unlikely possibility as to be completely illogical, certainly unexpected. 

This entire article will most likely end up being an moot exercise, with the discovery of extraterrestrial life being a strong likelihood, but if we never discover it, it will be a long and lonely path towards our eventual extinction. 

Thank you for your time and consideration.