Keynote Presentation

Scott Hubbard Carl Sagan Chair, SETI Institute "Space Exploration and Information Technology: From Data Overload to Intelligent Systems"

Bio:

Once out of college, Scott evolved into a true out-of-the-box thinker. In 1974, he co-developed new radiation detection technology at Lawrence Berkeley Lab. That technology is now incorporated in the Mars Odyssey mission. A few years later he sharpened his entrepreneurial skills as co-founder of a high-tech start-up company near San Francisco.

At NASA Scott quickly moved up through the ranks. By 1997 he was the NASA manager of the successful Lunar Prospector, establishing a new way of doing business at NASA. He helped spearhead the discipline of Astrobiology at NASA and was the initiator and first Director of NASA's "virtual institute", the NASA Astrobiology Institute. He became NASA's “Mars Czar”, taking on the task of successfully restructuring the agency's Mars Program in the wake of two major mission failures. Scott was frequently in the papers during the Shuttle Columbia accident investigation, running the test program that demonstrated the definitive physical cause of the accident. He developed a reputation as a leader in innovative collaboration, establishing the NASA Research Park at Ames as well as being the driving force behind the Center's supercomputer initiative, Project Columbia. Very recently he initiated a high-profile, long-term cooperative agreement with Google.

His working philosophy is to balance innovation and creativity with established methodology. Scott has come to believe that these two approaches combine well, creating a “practical visionary” balance that can lead to great things.

With the right combination of care and creativity, humans will set foot on Mars, perhaps in our lifetimes. And someday, thanks to a combination of out-of-the-box thinking and a careful approach, we may have the answer to astrobiology's fundamental question: is life a rare happenstance, or a cosmic commonplace?

Scott has also accepted a Visiting Scholar appointment at Stanford University, effective February 1, 2006.