Mice Headed for Mars?

MarsOrBust writes: "The Mars Society today announced their next project, called TransLife, will be to send an Apollo size spacecraft manned by mice into earth orbit rotating at Mars gravity. This will be the first time anyone has done research at Martian gravity. The purpose of the experiments is to prove that the transit to Mars, which would take about six months, should be done at Martian gravity. The project would cost about $10 million. In a related article SpaceRef talks about how millionaires are now starting to fund these type of private missions and speculates whether billionaires might fund further space projects." MSNBC has a story.

Comments

Pinky And The Brain: Red Planet Madness

[Self Bias Resistor]

Yes, I can see it now:

"What are we going to do tonight, Brain?"
"The same thing we do every night, Pinky. Try to take over Mars!"

Or maybe I just need more sleep...

Re:Pinky And The Brain: Red Planet Madness

[Alien54]

I thought they were going to try to recruit the martians to try to take over the earth.

or maybe re-engineer the probe to disrupt the satellite pron distribution, blackmailing the techies who run the world. (somehow that idea has potential as an episode.)

you get the idea.

- - -
Radio Free Nation
"If You have a Story, We have a Soap Box"

Re:Pinky And The Brain: Red Planet Madness

[Bonker]

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Pinky?"

"I think so, Brain, but how on earth are we ever going to convince a parrot to perch on a man's penis?"

"You need to turn the thermostat of your brain back up, Pinky. I was *reffering* to the fact that Mars is composed almost entirely of iron oxide, hence its bright red color. Using this coil of cheesewire, three Slashdot first-posters in a giant hamster wheel, the army of fleas that infest your mangy coat, and my Bill Gates automaton, we will turn the planet Mars into a giant, computer-controlled electromagnet!"

"POIT! But will it run Linux, Brain?"

"Hushup, you. Once the magnet is ready, we'll use it to pull the Earth out of its orbit, changing the seasons and altering the climate... That is unless the governments of Earth succumb to my demands and elect me GLOBAL RULER!!!"

"Oooohhh... That's really neat, Brain! But how are we ever going to get to Mars?"

"I have an idea..."

Finally..

[OblongPlatypus]

..someone's realized who's the most intelligent species on the planet.

(Please don't tell me you didn't get *that* cultural reference...)

And the ship's computers will be running:

[Anonymous Coward]

Microsoft (R) Mouse Driver Version 8.20a
Copyright (C) Microsoft Corp. 1983-1992. All rights reserved.

The answer

[1010011010]

The mice just want to get the answer off the planet before the Vogons destroy it.

How would they eat their Cheese?

[Brownstar]

Wouldn't all the mice starve to death when their teeth fall out?

(I would link to previous article but the search engine doesn't work and couldn't find it on Google :(

Welcome to 1g!

[gad_zuki!]

Zubrin: Why is there blood running out of their ears?

Scientist: Because you're an idiot!

The 2nd generation of mice will never get to experience 1g until they land. I'm sure that'll make for a great mortality rate.

Track ball.

[Gregoyle]

Hey wait a minute here. Everyone knows that the standard mouse is only really practical in gravity. If you use a mouse in zero G, you have to hold it down against a table, and obviously holding it down would almost certainly make you bounce off into the depths of space (think Darth Vader). For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction...

Now, what they *should* be using for a pointing device is a trackball. That way they don't have to hold it down and therefore will remain safe. Man these space guys sure are dumb. First it's the whole feet and meters thing, now this.

Mouse Suicide

[piecewise]

NASA always gave astronauts those "black pills" that could quickly and painlessly let them commit suicide in the event of disaster... I guess the mouse equivelant is a biggg, nice piece of cheese... and a mouse trap.