Not long ago astronaut and moon walker Buzz Aldrin said that fantastic science fiction movies and TV shows are to blame for the general lack of interest in the space program. The general idea was that people see giant alien space craft, warp drive, transporters, etc. etc. so the International Space Station, droids creeping around on Mars, satellites buzzing Saturn and Venus seem pretty lame and boring in comparison so people lose interest. Kids study computers and business instead of engineering because real space programs seem like rubbish compared to TV and movies.
Many prominent science fiction authors were asked their thoughts on the topic.
http://www.sfsignal.com/archives/007350.html
That's what they think. What do you think.
4 comments:
Scalzi's comment cracked me up. As does his love of adhering kittens to walls via static electricity.
I think science fiction excites the mind to the wonders of what can be. It fosters interest, not squelches it.
Oh, he is just POed because Captain Kirk changed the world more than he did.
I think the lack of interest in the space program might be the billions that would be better spent helping the population.
The money for the space program is totally worth it if only for the spin-off technologies.
Solar panels were invented for the space program but have been spun off into a million other uses. Weather predicting is still erratic, especially close to the Rockies, but we get warnings about the big stuff and can predict reasonably well for 2-3 days here on the east coast.
I'd invest more in the space program and cut the military budget to only 1/2 or even 3/4 of everyone else in the world put together instead of more than everyone else combined.
Post a Comment