Humans Will Sail To The Stars

oddsheep points to an "article on BBC news from the AAAS Expo in Boston about how researchers are discussing spreading the human race across the galaxy in solar sailing ships. Not a new idea of course but the social implications discussed are great: what the hell do the volunteer colonists (and their descendants) do for the hundreds of years it would take to get anywhere? Cue "Are we nearly there yet?" from the back seats ad infinitum and the longest game of 'I Spy' in history..."

Comments

I need to pee!

[Dog and Pony]

Hopefully, there will be a way to accomodate this one, at least. :)

Dreamers and reality

[October_30th]

Sigh.

Solar sails and space elevators intrigue certain kind people. Unfortunately these people are most of the time dreamers with no capability in scientific reasoning. They get excited about the "romantic" idea of "sailing" to the stars or building a "bean stalk" to the orbit. Pretty childish.

Face it. Until the use of anti-gravity is discovered the chemical propulsion to orbit and ion/nuclear drives beyond that are the only practical means of space travel.

Re:Dreamers and reality

[Anonymous Coward]

When you can use it to kill Muslims the technology will be funded.

Of course, what will really happen

[LadyLucky]

Is that when they land, some nutter a few centuries on will proclaim them the "holy founders" or "the creators" or something, and everyone will believe the nutter, and yet-another-dumbassed-religion will be formed.

Hooray.