Looking for Mr. GoodPlanet:

(sfx: romace'y mushy music: "Lonely Blue-Green Planet age 10 billion something seeks
another planet, similar age and size for companionship and mutual learning. All the
planets met so far have been cold and barren, but I haven't given up hope. If you're
commitment-minded and interested in producing carbon-based life forms please
contact me. ")

     FINDING COMPANIONSHIP HASN'T BEEN EASY FOR EARTH. ASTRONOMERS HAVE
RECENTLY FOUND PLANETS BEYOND OUR OWN SOLAR SYSTEM, BUT THEY'VE ALL BEEN FAR
TOO BIG TO BE ANYTHING LIKE EARTH OR HAVE EARTH-LIKE LIFE. BUT HOPE IS NOT LOST,
SAYS PHYSICIST DAVID BENNETT AT NOTRE DAME.

     Bennett: "What we're looking at is a technique that is capable of detecting lower
mass planets."

     BENNETT'S TALKING ABOUT A TECHNIQUE THAT MAKES USE OF SOMETHING CALLED
GRAVITATIONAL LENSING.  LIGHT USUALLY TRAVELS IN A STRAIGHT LINE UNLESS
SOMETHING LIKE A LENS BENDS IT.  BUT GRAVITY--IF IT'S A HUGE AMOUNT LIKE THAT
PRODUCED BY A STAR--CAN BEND LIGHT, TOO. 

     Bennett: "gravitational lensing is. . .  based on the premise that light rays respond
to gravitational fields.. . if you look at much more distant stars say a faint star passing
directly in front of a brighter one you can see a lensing due to gravitational bending. 
you dont' see the bending of light itself but the effect that you do see is. . . a brighter
image."

     AND A STAR WITH A PLANET WILL BEND THE LIGHT DIFFERENLTY THAN A STAR ALONE. 
TELESCOPES ALL OVE RHTE WORLD ALREADY SEARCH THE SKIES FOR THIS PHENOMENON
AND BENNET WOULD LIKE TO IMPROVE THE SYSTEM TO DETECT THESE SUBTLY DIFFERENT
KINDS OF LENSING.  OF COURSE EVEN IF WE DO FIND A PLANET LIKE OUR OWN THAT
DOESN'T GUARANTEE IT WILL HOUSE LIFE.  EVEN ASTRONOMERS WILL PROBABLY HAVE TO
KISS A LOT OF FROGS.