The scope of the federal government is vast, and in one corner lies NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab, where the search for new planets and new life continues. As part of the Post Opinions “Who is government?” series, author Dave Eggers takes a look at the lab’s latest innovations and gets to know the people who are reaching for the stars. In this special episode, Michael Lewis talks to Eggers about what he learned.

Read Eggers' entire article here: The Searchers.

And be sure to check out the rest of the "Who is government?" series.

The Canary, by Michael Lewis

The Sentinel, by Casey Cep