It seems to me that the best periods in human history have been those of exploration and colonization - the creation of new economies, the excitement of a 'new world', the potential for many to start fresh in a new place with lots of space to expand.
When space travel gets to the point where this is possible, the human inclusion will not only be justified, it will be necessary.
NASA's role is that of the explorer - opening up new frontiers, blazing the first trail to the new world. A 'proof-of-concept' style approach.
Once the trail has been established and marked, the private sector should move in and commericialize as much as possible. I think that this delegation of responsibility is the best possible balance in getting mankind permanently off of earth and beyond our solar system.
FedEx may be better than the USPS, but who came first? Government involvement opens doors. The private sector enlarges those doors and makes it easier to reach the next set of challenges.
The record cartels are pretty much screwed at this point, because the laws of physics and free society are set against them. The day it becomes illegal to make an audio recorder in America is the day the founding fathers were sold out and betrayed in the worst manner by the greediest of people.
Not to be corny, (too late, I know) but it seems that the bright periods in human history are often during the full-scale exploration of a new frontier.
I certainly hope that, despite the article's point that manned exploration takes away from true exploration, eventually this trend of new probes leads to more of a human presence beyond the pale blue dot. I want my kids / descendants to look across a huge expanse of space back at their home and think how strange it must have been to be limited to a single planet.
"Sharing" music on a P2P network is stealing, yes, but under what odd twisting of logic can it be worse than shoplifting the CD?
Sharing on a P2P network is not stealing. Copyright infringement is a completely different issue. Jail time is definately the wrong "solution".
Re:It's Open Mic Night at the Astrophysics Lounge!
on
Melting Europa
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· Score: 3, Informative
The residents of Chernobyl would have been tiny smoldering piles of ash if they'd faced the full strength of Jupiter's radiation. Not that it matters, really.
Bringing weapons and disasters into the nuclear power argument is useless - a lot of things that we currently use to generate power on a large scale (petroleum, coal, hydro dams, fission, Cowboyneal's toenail clippings) create nasty waste and have the potential for environmental and human disaster. You buy into that risk, like it or not, if you use electricity from the grid.
Re:It's Open Mic Night at the Astrophysics Lounge!
on
Melting Europa
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· Score: 4, Interesting
Bingo. Cosmic radiation in general makes all of the nuclear-powered devices we create look about as harmful as a flashlight.
If there is anything down there on Europa, it will probably eat the nuclear leakage for dinner and come back for seconds.
Since adding more atmosphere just isn't feasible, let's entertain another crazy option: pressurizing a valley (or cave system?).
Why not? Cover a huge valley with a nice strong material, and then start pumping extra atmosphere into it. Maybe some derivative material of the space elevator cable.
It's not any more outlandish than other ideas I've read.
Screw 'em. You aren't really hurting any artists by downloading the music from the net. Only the mega-super-duper-stars actually end up in the black from a record deal with one of the music cartels, and they're the ones that don't need more money. Support the artists you like by going to their concerts and buying merchandise there. Or get music from artists that didn't sign away their souls. Indie records generally assume that the common consumer is an honest person, and trust you enough to allow you to listen to the music the way you want to.
M$ hands out the 'gifts', with a promise of greater productivity...But there is one cd-rom to rule them all, weilded by the ultimate in corrupted power...
Quicksort? No need! It's much easier to just assume that everyone is a terrorist. Spy on the citizens, because only terrorists could have any use for privacy.
I'm outta here, and I'm taking my terrorist ass with me.
Obviously, the automatic updating is a must. I also gave them the google toolbar with popup blocking (they've been unable to effectively learn Mozilla), and I use Spybot's Seek and Destroy software to protect against the more common malicious adware (immunize option). As a last-ditch failsafe, I can VNC into the PC with their permission and attempt to fix it that way.
My mother has actually started taking a few basic computer classes, which have yielded an improvement in her basic usage skills.
I used broadpoint too. It was great for making a quick payphone call without a quarter (until they put a stop to that) or making a long distance call in short increments. I used a speakerphone for that so the ads wouldn't make my ear numb.
Then, I moved to dialpad.com - another great way to make free phone calls...albeit, a bit choppy, but hey, I got what I paid for:-P
The whole solar thing...
on
Mars Rovers Update
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· Score: 4, Interesting
I have a bunch of questions about this stuff.
Why did NASA stray from 'nuclear' batteries, like they've used with the Pioneer, Galileo, Voyager and Cassini missions? Those could power a rover for years.
And what's stopping them from making a way to keep the panels clear? This is what contributed to the end of the Pathfinder mission...What is it about solutions to this problem that make them so difficult to implement?
Wipers add an extra mechanical system to worry about, but what about static fields? Maybe there could be a way to attract the dust to a specific area while keep the the panels clear?
Actually, there are other ways to do this without blocking ports. A lot of colleges are buying packet-analyzing hardware that allows them to accept or reject tcp/ip packets based upon application layer information. This allows them to block (or cripple) all known p2p transfers without hindering regular traffic, even if the transactions happen on random ports.
Slashdot Mirror
The UMaine Solar Vehicle Team has it right. The site's outdated, but the truck is still running - I see it around town periodically.
When space travel gets to the point where this is possible, the human inclusion will not only be justified, it will be necessary.
You fell victim to one of the classic blunders. Never get involved in a semantical discussion on Slashdot.
Who, where, when? It sounds like you've got some history books already read - don't just correct me, inform me!
NASA's role is that of the explorer - opening up new frontiers, blazing the first trail to the new world. A 'proof-of-concept' style approach.
Once the trail has been established and marked, the private sector should move in and commericialize as much as possible. I think that this delegation of responsibility is the best possible balance in getting mankind permanently off of earth and beyond our solar system.
FedEx may be better than the USPS, but who came first? Government involvement opens doors. The private sector enlarges those doors and makes it easier to reach the next set of challenges.
Depends on where you stand, I guess. I prefer to maintain a hopeful outlook in matters of national integrity.
The record cartels are pretty much screwed at this point, because the laws of physics and free society are set against them. The day it becomes illegal to make an audio recorder in America is the day the founding fathers were sold out and betrayed in the worst manner by the greediest of people.
Analog 'loophole' my ass. Dumbass meatsticks.
I only want it if the spammer's gonads are hanging from the mirror like a pair of fuzzy dice.
I certainly hope that, despite the article's point that manned exploration takes away from true exploration, eventually this trend of new probes leads to more of a human presence beyond the pale blue dot. I want my kids / descendants to look across a huge expanse of space back at their home and think how strange it must have been to be limited to a single planet.
Sharing on a P2P network is not stealing. Copyright infringement is a completely different issue. Jail time is definately the wrong "solution".
Bringing weapons and disasters into the nuclear power argument is useless - a lot of things that we currently use to generate power on a large scale (petroleum, coal, hydro dams, fission, Cowboyneal's toenail clippings) create nasty waste and have the potential for environmental and human disaster. You buy into that risk, like it or not, if you use electricity from the grid.
If there is anything down there on Europa, it will probably eat the nuclear leakage for dinner and come back for seconds.
I remember Spock once telling Kirk how long it would take to "review the library computer tapes". Heh.
I think this sums the whole thing up quite nicely.
Why not? Cover a huge valley with a nice strong material, and then start pumping extra atmosphere into it. Maybe some derivative material of the space elevator cable.
It's not any more outlandish than other ideas I've read.
Meant to mention - legality and morality sometimes deviate from the same course. In this case, I'm pretty sure morality is the path to follow.
Screw 'em. You aren't really hurting any artists by downloading the music from the net. Only the mega-super-duper-stars actually end up in the black from a record deal with one of the music cartels, and they're the ones that don't need more money. Support the artists you like by going to their concerts and buying merchandise there. Or get music from artists that didn't sign away their souls. Indie records generally assume that the common consumer is an honest person, and trust you enough to allow you to listen to the music the way you want to.
My favorite sitelist (not sure about international relevance, but whatever):
www.downhillbattle.org | www.eff.org | www.boycott-riaa.com
Gates: "Yeeeess, my preeeecious..."
I'm outta here, and I'm taking my terrorist ass with me.
My mother has actually started taking a few basic computer classes, which have yielded an improvement in her basic usage skills.
Then, I moved to dialpad.com - another great way to make free phone calls...albeit, a bit choppy, but hey, I got what I paid for :-P
Why did NASA stray from 'nuclear' batteries, like they've used with the Pioneer, Galileo, Voyager and Cassini missions? Those could power a rover for years.
And what's stopping them from making a way to keep the panels clear? This is what contributed to the end of the Pathfinder mission...What is it about solutions to this problem that make them so difficult to implement?
Wipers add an extra mechanical system to worry about, but what about static fields? Maybe there could be a way to attract the dust to a specific area while keep the the panels clear?
Haha...obviously, there are limitations. Just like copy protection, someone who is determined will be able to work around it.
Actually, there are other ways to do this without blocking ports. A lot of colleges are buying packet-analyzing hardware that allows them to accept or reject tcp/ip packets based upon application layer information. This allows them to block (or cripple) all known p2p transfers without hindering regular traffic, even if the transactions happen on random ports.
...and maybe I'll land on Genesis.