OKAY. I know this thread is nearly 3 months old now, BUT LISTEN.
This may answer a lot of questions.
(Also the revive can help a lot of new people to express their opinions)
https://www.alien-ufos.com/groups/alien-abductions-sightings-d902-fermi-paradox.html. I did a speech on it in my speeching careers class. That was very useful! so it's not a nerco.
Lets be honest... the last thing we need is more alien porn for the earthlings.
Some life out there seems guarunteed.
The chances of intelligent life with neo-cortex like structures are hard to say. It's a numbers game of whether the vastness of space matches the vastness of time, where those intelligent lifeforms are assumed to evolve and eventually die out.
Another great point. I think life is rare (intelligent life). Mircoscopic life isn't and doesn't have to be on earth like conditions. Thus meaning life isn't rare but intelligent life forms are, obviously rare in the vastness of space.