a father and his daughter succeed in decoding a message sent from space

It all started with the American project of the Seti Institute, Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence, “a Sign In Space”. This organization set itself the mission of “explore, understand and explain the origin and nature of life in the Universe” wondering if we humans would be able to decipher a message from space. For this it was decided to call on an artist Daniela de Paulis, who had designed a coded message transmitted by the European Space Agency to Earth, a little over a year ago, on May 24, 2023. The message, received by three observatories located around the world, was then made available to anyone who wished to try to decode it. A server had even been put online allowing all Internet users to discuss the process of “translation” in progress.

Ultimately, it was a father and his daughter, John and Sarah, assumed first names because they wish to remain anonymous, who took up the challenge. After successfully deciphering the 65,696 signs composed of zeros and ones designed by Daniela de Paulis. To achieve this, they used a mathematical model called a cellular automaton. The message in question is actually an image depicting five amino acids, the basic building blocks of proteins, which play a crucial role in the metabolism of the cells of all living things. As Daniela de Paulis points out, John and Sarah managed to read the message, but not to decipher what it means. Many Internet users have also started to identify the amino acids represented in the image in order to understand the deeper meaning of the message.

Finally, it is perhaps now that the story becomes the most interesting, even if it no longer has anything to do with an extraterrestrial civilization. The quest for meaning, even when everything suggests that there is none, is undoubtedly the quintessence of what makes us human beings.