In a phone call today with the Curiosity team, the President revealed that the first question he is being asked about the mission is whether ‘Martians’ have already been found.

One can imagine that, even if they had been found, it is unlikely that the President would say: “Oh, sure. They’re coming the White House for tea next week.”

But, in praising the work of all those who were part of the Curiosity rover project, the President was keen to make them understand that he would not sit idly by, should otherworldly life be found.

“If, in fact, you do make contact with Martians, please let me know right away. I’ve got a lot of other things on my plate, but I suspect that that would go to the top of the list, even if they’re just microbes,” he said.

The assembled scientists laughed. But if you look very carefully, one or two lips offered a slightly nervous turn.

“It’s really what makes us best as a species – the curiosity we have, yearning to discover, the pushing boundaries of knowledge,” Obama said.

Disclosure of life on Mars would certainly turn the tide for Obama, a lot better than a war with Iran.

Interesting times.

( via news.cnet.com)