Why put ourselves on a plate for alien life form?

I am probably in a very small minority when I say this, but I wasn’t among those cheering or celebrating when the Curiosity Rover touched down on Mars.

I have long had a nagging unease about the search for life in the Universe.

Apart from the various craft that Nasa has sent hurtling through space, there are numerous radio telescopes around the world transmitting signals in the hope that alien civilisations will contact us.