Human beings have long been fascinated by outer space, and have wondered if there are intelligent life-forms elsewhere, which we might be able to contact. Naturally, we have all seen space creatures on our TV and cinema screens, but 'aliens' like these owe more to the convenience of using human actors to play the parts than to any real forms of scientific investigation.
However, many serious space researchers are now beginning to turn their attention to the question of what alien life might actually look like. One early result is Arnold the Alien, designed by biologist Dougal Dixon. This strange being, unlike humans, has its eyes, ears and limbs in groups of three instead of pairs but, despite its odd appearance, its behavior is not very different from our own.