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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rare_Earth_hypothesis
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"The rare Earth hypothesis is a response to the Fermi paradox which explains why we might expect a planet such as Earth to be very rare. Combined with the additional
assumption that an Earth-like planet is a prerequisite for the development of advanced life, this offers an explanation for the current lack of evidence of extraterrestrial civilisations."
This seems like the absurd part.
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I still need to read the book, but "assumption" is definitely the wrong word here. They look at several aspects of our planet and its history and give reasons why those aspects are, in their opinion, necessary for complex life. On top of this they try to show that for a planet to have all of these aspects in combination would be very rare. Once I get this book I'd like to go over each point they make and see if it holds up.