> "coming up with a non-zero value was really the point." When you're multiplying a bunch of non-zero quantities, that's the only possibility. It's not really

> "coming up with a non-zero value was really the point." When you're multiplying a bunch of non-zero quantities, that's the only possibility. It's not really illustrative or useful, though -- particularly because the range of possible estimates still includes "we are alone in the universe". You don't need the Drake Equation to tell you that it's reasonable to explore and search.