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Entire South Korean Space Programme Shuts Down As Sole Astronaut Quits

Posted by samzenpus on from the take-this-job-and-launch-it dept.

An anonymous reader writes The entire South Korean space program has been forced to shut down after its only astronaut resigned for personal reasons. Yi So-yeon, 36, became the first Korean in space in 2008 after the engineer was chosen by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) to lead the country's $25m space project. Her resignation begs questions of KARI regarding whether she was the right person to lead the program and whether the huge cost of sending her into space was a waste of taxpayer's money.

7 of 186 comments (clear)

  1. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 5, Informative

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  2. Not her fault by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Maybe they should have, I don't know, trained a few other people as well?

  3. What's wrong with someone resigning after 6 years? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    "Her resignation begs questions of KARI regarding whether she was the right person to lead the program.."

    Not at all - 6 years of service, why can't she resign?

  4. Re:begs FFS by GonzoPhysicist · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It's not evolution it's erosion, we are losing the original meaning and gaining nothing.

    --
    horror vacui
  5. Re:begs FFS by stoploss · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Give up. Language evolves.

    Sure. But that doesn't mean it should, at least not in every case. In this case, it shouldn't. Fighting back is appropriate.

    I beg to differ, and I will fight your efforts.

    "Beg the question" was a poor choice for the English name for the logical fallacy initially, and the entire issue can be sidestepped by using a self-explanatory term like "presumes the argument".

    The modern usage form, meaning "prompts the question", is perfectly cromulent and befits the parsing of the phrase.

    Give up the dark side.

  6. Sounds like a joke by rossdee · · Score: 5, Funny

    Sth Koreas space program shut down because the Seoul astronaut resigned

  7. Re:begs FFS by hey! · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Sometimes the loss of an awkward construction is a gain for language.

    "Begging the question" was never a very good choice of terminology -- a half-baked translation from the Latin petitio principii. You might as well use the Latin because you have to know what the term means to have an chance of decoding its meaning; the words give no clue. "Asking ill-founded questions" or "asking premature questions" would have been better.

    "Begging the question" has *always* misled most readers and hearers, and we're better off with the new meaning, which *everybody* understands (although many dislike).

    --
    Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.