Why we should fund space research

[qso1]

Ianke:<br />Does anyone here have an idea what percentage of the population thinks like us?<br /><br />Me:<br />Don't know but perhaps this will help. Look at our entertainment culture from the standpoint of whats out there as far as spaceflight oriented shows, movies, etc.<br /><br />Starting with "The Right Stuff" how many movies since that one about real spaceflight have you seen? Then ask how many sci fi space movies have come out in the same period (Roughly 20 years). I'll list the ones I know of...<br /><br />Right Stuff.<br /><br />Apollo 13.<br /><br />From The Earth To The Moon.<br /><br />3 movies in two decades. The same two decades yielded more mainstream space fare for mass audiences such as Armageddon, Independance Day, various Star Trek and Star Wars sequels and many more I cannot currently recall just now.<br /><br />Feel free to add to either list but I think you will find the mainstream list is far larger than the actual NASA historical based movies. Despite the interest in the 1960s, AFAIK, knowbody did a serious movie about the Gemini flights until 1998..."From The Earth To The Moon".<br /><br />If one wants to watch a WWII documentary of almost any take, they can find it on the History/Discovery type channels with almost every title imaginable. I expect to see yet another special on WWII like "Secret Nazi dog packs of Hitlers Germany" there are so many to choose from.<br /><br />I will say those channels do more space specials but less proportionally than WWII or other war stuff. Not to say this is a bad thing. Just that this is a useful measurement tool for me that allows me to get an idea of what space interest there really is since there are no regular polls that I know of on this stuff.<br /><br />Ianke:<br />Perhaps I am wrong, but I do not think of our group is a good cross section of the population to determine what the nation would do.<br /><br />Me:<br />I'd say your right, we are not a good cross section for determining what the nation could, should, or would d <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong>My borrowed quote for the time being:</strong></p><p><em>There are three kinds of people in life. Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen...and those who do not know what happened.</em></p> </div>

 

[vandivx]

"Does anyone here have an idea what percentage of the population thinks like us? I'd be really surprised if even 5 or 10 percent of the people would choose NASA funding over education or other other such projects."<br /><br />with big things like these you don't ask the masses, masses are here to be molded and used, if you think otherwise you are not one who will make difference<br /><br />I like that term hoi poloi somebody used here, if we were to ask them we would never have gone to the Moon, we got there only because there was leadership that said this is what we will do, the hoi poloi followed then and will always follow because they don't know any better, it is always the leadership and the intellectual base of the country that determines what will be done, if it will be great things or not<br /><br />why fund space exploration, Egyptians are not remembered because the had some socialistic welfare schemes but because they built stupendus structures and they would never have done that if they were to ask the population<br /><br />we won't be remembered either for our welfare schemes, they do not make nation big and remembered but going into space will for sure<br /><br />I welcome the news that China and Russia and maybe India will do something in space, at least that's one chance it might wake up the mamby pamby Americans and they may do something in response, without outside one upmanship giving a wake up call I don't see America doing much anything<br /><br />I started listening these days to Feynman Lectures on Physics as I drive to work and couldn't help thinking when listnening to F's enthusiastic voice how all the space trips were still before them and when those guys in 1961 looked back the advances physics made in the first half of that century must have seemed fairly recent and they lived in a dream that coming decades will bring something equal to that which it didn't (I mean in physics)<br /><br />vanDivX <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[ianke]

Hi vanDiviX<br /><br />You and I are on the same page here friend. What I was addressing was the "1% to fund what you wish to" plan that was discussed above. Given that freedom to choose, I think that NASA would sadly not get as much of it as we would hope.<br /><br />I am most definitely an advocate of the Space program, and believe that more needs to be done than the budget that Nasa is alotted can achieve. Yes we need to do more to make a brighter outlook for the future of space travel both unmanned as well as manned. <br /><br />I am old enough to remember the news of Sputnik. I watched with intensity the entire Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs. To me, the fact that we sort of stalled in the progress of space sciences was a sad thing to endure. I realize that the impetus of the 60s and early 70s space programs was cold war driven, but it still makes me sad to see the loss of momentum we endured. I really thought, back then, that we would be way farther than we are now. At least as far as the Moon and Mars are concerned, we should have had research stations on both by now. The way we are moving I will be lucky to see a footprint even made on Mars before I die.<br /><br />I really hope that you are right that the US's competitive nature will be sparked by the accomplishments of other nations. Something needs to kick our leaders in the pants to get them moving again. As you talked about, it is our accomplishments that define us as a race of 'inteligent' beings. It is way overdue that we realize this and get off our duffs. <br /><br />Of course I am preaching to the choir here.<br /><br />Ianke <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>