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Final Mars One Numbers Are In, Over 200,000 People Applied
An anonymous reader writes "The first round of the Mars One Astronaut Selection Program has now closed for applications. In the 5 month application period, Mars One received interest from 202,586 people from around the world, wanting to be amongst the first human settlers on Mars."
But there's no beer on Mars.
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
all of them are mothers-in-law.
how many pairs of boxer shorts should you own?
I'm personally of the opinion that anyone with an inclination to volunteer to take what will invariably amount to a one-way trip to Mars based on the technology that we have so far is probably somebody that the world may be better off without.
Sadly, those we would most like to send, are probably the least likely to apply.
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
I'm guessing you think the space transport should look like this. http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20111029002561/en.futurama/images/7/75/Lynn.png
Will these people get paid for the seven years they train? I'm in a pessimistic mood today, so I'm assuming that they will not actually reach Mars - just wondering what they will get for the seven years they put in.
I'm personally of the opinion that anyone with an inclination to volunteer to take what will invariably amount to a one-way trip to Mars based on the technology that we have so far is probably somebody that the world may be better off without.
They are people with "the right stuff". While the Apollo astronauts knew the plan was to come back, they must have been ready to face a one way trip, as the probability of that was, or must a least have seemed high.
I believe the application fee was $35, so they have already raised a whopping $7 million that I assume will be leveraged for more publicity stunts in raising further money for the mission.
The main speciality of the Mars One project is fundraising and public relations, not space travel.
Sig: I stole this sig.
Lemmings.
putting the 'B' in LGBTQ+
Here's why people apply and who applies: Some do it for the 15 minutes of fame, surely, but many others are serious about it. They know the risk, they know it's a one-way ticket, but their lives are going nowhere on this planet, they've got nothing to lose and this may be just the ticket for them to do something useful for humanity.
Others may have a successful life already but they don't think in terms of "me" and "my" but in terms of humanity and its long-term goals over several generations.
And even if the mission fails, one learns from mistakes and at least they've done something to improve the next mission's chances. Both categories of applicants are real heroes. Live or die.
Really? Why? Every single one of us is going to die of something, someday. I didn't apply, but thinking about it now, it's tempting. Getting to stand on another planet? Maybe even breaking ground for those who will come later? Really, that's kind of awesome. It's fine to say that maybe someday the technology will exist to make this safer, or even routine, but I'm pretty certain to die of something else before that happens.
I have a hard enough time on this planet, much less going it on the next farthest rock out!
On a serious note... as long as I had tasks and hobbies to entertain myself on the trip to Mars, I think I'd be fine. Getting along with people is the least of my problems. To me repititious boredom would appear to be the real killer. There is also that little psyche bit of knowing that you're on a one way ticket to an uninhabittable barren wasteland.
Of course, having a sense of adventure would probably help that!
Great, now examine them for mental and physical problems that will prevent them from making the trip. How many will you eliminate? I doubt the first person to go there will be drawn from this pool. NASA got this one right. You need military people. They have the best chance of handling the shit that will certainly happen without coming unglued.
Relatively few have enough sense to know when to abandon ship!
So... they think they can escape the divine judgment by running away to Mars...
Really pointless, as they will find out.
I am not really here right now.
We could always offer to commute any death row inmates' sentences if they'll agree to go. But I think they'll probably catch on to the ruse pretty quickly, not to mention the damage they might cause when they realize the real implications of a "one-way trip" when it comes to Mars.
The cow says "Moo." The dog says "Woof." The Timothy says "Thanks, valued customer. We appreciate your input."
. . . to fertilize King Barsoom II's lawn and flower gardens! MARS NEEDS MULCH!
But seriously: Initial training for the would-be colonists will consist of living for five years in trailer homes buried beneath the soil of Antarctica's "dry deserts." People who can't cope with the psychological pressure, or who are judged insufficiently entertaining by the casting group of the MARS LIVE! production company and its advertisers and charter sponsors, will be summarily kicked off of the program. (They will receive copies of the home game, which consists of a refrigerator box equipped with fake controls and a framed color print of a Mars probe landing site.)
IT comes down to are you the experiment, or the experimenter, in the case of these applicants, they're the former.
I only heard about this because Pee-Wee Herman shared the news of it, and of his application, some time ago. I'd like to say I hope he makes it, but then we'd be without Pee-Wee Herman here on Earth.
I forwarded the news to Jane Wiedlin (Guitarist for The Go-Gos) who said she'd be interested in going, but I never saw anything on her FB that said she had filed the paperwork.
I tried to get a couple of other celebs interested but so far all I know is Pee-Wee Herman put in his application. Wouldn't it be interesting if he wins the contest?
"Stratigraphically the origin of agriculture and thermonuclear destruction will appear essentially simultaneous" -- Lee
I don't want to live on this planet anymore. - Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth
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Only if excessive credulity now counts as a virtue. The Mars One project has a very poor explanation how they are going to finance the construction and launch of the rocket, and none at all how they are going to finance all the testing they claim they'll do.
[Sir Garlon] is the marvellest knight that is now living, for he destroyeth many good knights, for he goeth invisible.
They are people with "the right stuff". While the Apollo astronauts knew the plan was to come back, they must have been ready to face a one way trip, as the probability of that was, or must a least have seemed high.
The difference being that this trip IS a "one way" trip.
If you want news from today, you have to come back tomorrow.
Oh! Thought they would be all lawyers and hairstylists.
Love the one you're with.
Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
Build the rocket and ask who wants to actually take the trip. Lots of people are willing to indulge in a hypothetical sacrifice. BTW, I'm planning to stop eating red meat any day now.
I swear to God...I swear to God! That is NOT how you treat your human!
I heard you still have to take off your shoes during pre-boarding.
WARNING: Smartphones have side effects--most of them undocumented.
Convince each of these 220k people to each donate $1mil to get a spaceship built...
While I agree with some of your statements, this one seems false. If someone was truly concerned about the long-term prospects of humanity I doubt they would conclude the best thing for them to do is die in one of the first colonies on mars. Realizing their rarity, I should thing they'd wait until a functional colony is established and only THEN try to have some kind of influence on its development.
What, they'll build Australia 2: Outback Harder?
They might get more attention, and make it easier to understand their goals, if they called it Duna One.
If I was 20 and single again, I'd do it. But I'm 34 and have family responsibilities, so that's impossible.
Hail Eris, full of mischief...
E pluribus sanguinem
that was a stupid comment, because going to mars is way more intelligent than what 90% of earth population is doing
Rich
Alone all I need is Candy Crush and a good battery, shouldn't be a problem.
It would be so exciting to be the first corpse on Mars!
I want to live forever. Or at least long enough that I don't want to anymore. The problem is, that's not an option. When I was young(er) and (more) naive, I believed that maybe we finally live in a time where technology and medicine would advance fast enough that I wouldn't have to suffer death, at least not for a long, long time. It's become apparent that that's not the case. Why not do something fantastic before the inevitable?
Why? People die doing things all the time now. Climbing mountains. Racing cars. Swimming. Running. Sleeping.
I don't know, I think I'd be chuckling to myself thinking yep, I'm dying, just like every one of you schlubs will. But I'm doing it on Mars.
i'm not applying, because i kinda like it here. but belittling those who did sounds damn shortsighted
Rich
Actually, in surveys of REAL ASTRONAUTS, a number of them have said very clearly that to be the first team to go to Mars, they would willingly make it a one-way trip.
The tools that applied are hardly qualified to operate a spacecraft. I would want to select someone that is in *absurdly* good shape and has the willpower to do it themselves. I would want someone who has already been subject to high-gee training, and has a low propensity for motion sickness.
i would want to choose someone with an extremely high amount of willpower and who is very well educated in both the general sciences as well as mechanically inclined.
Yes, many of these things can be trained, but the TYPE OF PEOPLE we want going on this trip are those who do these things anyway, because that's WHO THEY ARE.
That said, there are many many very qualified people within the military, NASA and other occupations that would do it AND are qualified to do it.
It must be a voluntary process, obviously, but I think there would be no shortage of volunteers, honestly.
This is purely publicity and funding for the "Program." Let's be serious. Donating their $35 does not in any way make them eligible for anything. Everyone knows that, or they are delusional. If anyone is going to Mars, they will be chosen based a long sequence of qualifications and skills, and sending in $35 is not one of those.
The only thing worse than a Democrat is a Republican.
I'm personally of the opinion that anyone with an inclination to volunteer to take what will invariably amount to a one-way trip to Mars based on the technology that we have so far is probably somebody that the world may be better off without.
Sadly, those we would most like to send, are probably the least likely to apply.
I understand there will be a need for telephone sanitizers on mars...
If only we hadn't sent off the Telephone Sanitizers I would have been in better health this past weekend. Well, never mind. Have to keep in top shape to do battle with that Star Goat ...
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
Dennis Wingo has written, "Mars is a destination of romance, the moon of utility." And all discussion about going to Mars reminded me of this from Rocketpunk and MacGuffinite,
http://www.projectrho.com/rocket/macguffinite.php
"The Gobi Desert is about a thousand times as hospitable as Mars and five hundred times cheaper and easier to reach. Nobody ever writes "Gobi Desert Opera" because, well, it's just kind of plonkingly obvious that there's no good reason to go there and live. It's ugly, it's inhospitable and there's no way to make it pay. Mars is just the same, really. We just romanticize it because it's so hard to reach."
[some people debate this as there are few settlers in Gobi desert, but you get the idea]
I'm trying to log in so I don't have to post AC, I log in but when ever I go to an article, it puts me back at AC. Any advice?
We need to start building a REALLY BIG trebuchet...
#DeleteChrome
I'm someone with close friends, good family, and active social life, a couple of different fulfilling hobbies, and a steady career that I'm 15 years into and 20 years from retirement from.
And I signed up.
I began my application by listing a myriad different ways the mission could fail, from exploding on launch, to losing air on the way there, to crashing into the planet, to starving to death on the surface, to the most likely: the project running out of money before ever leaving the ground. These are not 200,000 delusional people. These are not 200,000 people who think they're signing up for a quick trip on the Millennium Falcon Many, if not most, of these people know what they're getting into, as much as it can be known at this point. And we've signed up, to go to Mars.
The project will probably fail. Simply because most ambitious projects fail.But some succeed. The probability of failure is not a reason not to be ambitious.
But why go? I can't speak for everyone who signed up. But for myself, the answer is simple. We have to go. We have to expand beyond our planet. Here's somebody trying to do something about it. And I can't pass up the opportunity to be part of it. 47 years ago today the words "To boldly go where no man has gone before" were first uttered in public. And no, you don't need to point out that the show was fiction. But the words meant something.
There are always people willing to go new places. And people willing to go with them.
Columbus wasn't alone on his ship to America. Shackleton had to turn down almost 5000 volunteers for his South Pole expedition. Going to Mars is an even bigger deal. I'm not surprised they got 200,000 applicants. And it's OK that you can't imagine wanting to go. I can't imagine *not* wanting to go.
And yeah, the project will likely fail. But even if it does, something will be learned. Something new will be gained. And eventually, someone will use those lessons and succeed. And I'd be glad to be part of one step of that process. That's why I sent in my application.
If the masses can keep you down, you're not the Ubermensch.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Makuka_Nkoloso
The main speciality of the Mars One project is fundraising and public relations, not space travel.
Isn't that exactly what the nerds of NASA suck at: getting enough funding? NASA only get 17 billion per year (approx.). The global media advertising business is approx. worth 500 billion $ per year (source: http://www.plunkettresearch.com/entertainment-media-publishing-market-research/industry-and-business-data).
Do you have any idea of the value of such a Mars mission in terms of advertising? It would be insane. I do not think it is unrealistic to assume you can get 10% of that global advertising money (50 billion per year) if you do a reality show of such a mission. That would mean you have triple the budget of NASA.
I'd say this may actually work. As long as the guys at Mars One admit that they need a little help in building and designing their rocket and space station.
Respect, man! I really hope the project will be a success, if for nothing else then for not giving another argument to those with no imagination, who consider funding space exploration just a waste of resources.
'nuff said.
E Proelio Veritas.
The problem is by failing you'd mess it up for everyone else, by contaminating Mars with Earth micro-organisms, you have no idea how valuable a Pristine Mars with probably independently evolved life is potentially for science and for humanity. If you could somehow colonize Mars with humans without bringing their micro-organisms along as well, but no-one knows a way to do that. There is a way around that too, to explore Mars telerobotically to start with. Why such a rush to land humans on the surface when the surface is cold as Antarctica, near vacuum, and far less habitable than the coldest driest deserts on Earth (the McMurdo dry valleys in Antarctica and the Atacama desert are both far more habitable for humans than Mars)? Is easier to supply and maintain a colony in orbit, the Molniya orbit is easier to get to in terms of delta v than the Moon. Then you can control telerobots on the surface instead. See: http://www.science20.com/robert_inventor/blog/ten_reasons_not_live_mars_great_place_explore-118531 See http://www.science20.com/robert_inventor039s_column/blog/how_valuable_pristine_mars_humanity_opinion_piece-115954
When Elon Musk publicized his Hyperloop scheme he provided a fairly detailed technical presentation of how it was all going to work to justify its feasibility, and his claimed price tag of $7 billion.
Musk's document provided a pretty good prima facie validation of the concept, although at the time a large number of /.ers piled on with criticisms without even bothering to look at the report. But by putting a specific proposal out there Musk had the guts to give serious critics the material they needed to critique the plan.
Mars One is claiming:
"No new major developments or inventions are needed to make the mission plan a reality. Each stage of Mars One mission plan employs existing, validated and available technology.
Components that make the mission plan will be made exclusively by existing suppliers. Mars One has received confirmation of this from all major suppliers through letters of interest. While most of the components required are not immediately available with the exact specifications, at this time, there is no need for radical modifications to the current component designs. All suppliers have confirmed their ability to build what is required-- and they can do so now."
Pretty bold claims these. What proof is there that they are true? Surely they can publish these current component designs and describe, for example, exactly how they are proposing to make the Mars landing.
So where is the plan - at least at the level of detail and length that Musk put together - to prove this isn't just PR-flack talk?
Second class citizen of the New Gilded Age
Hope they give preferences to politicians ... in fact, can we convince the Mars program to send them all?
Sure enough, the cow costume was hanging up next to the superhero outfit and sailors uniform. (S,Spud)