When Isaac Asimov wrote about space travel he'd send out the best and the smartest. His universe is full of lightly colonized planets with some of the best educated humans and tons of robots1. Most of Earth's brightest have been lost to the stars while the poor, the uneducated, and miserable are stuck on the home world. That leaves a planet crowded with the people most likely to have more kids while those least likely to have a bunch of kids are out on empty planets. Earth has few robots because the humans need the work. Despite having more people, the people on Earth are pretty much stuck since the brain drain has allowed all the people who could develop advanced weapons and fighters to live elsewhere.
OK, that was a bit more than needed for my original point. The so-called best and brightest are on the ships. Space travel is expensive so they want the best trained to get the most for their money.
Heinlein was in the Navy until some lung condition forced him out. He views starships more like Navy vessels. They're crewed largely with people you're more likely to find in a bar than in a lab. Crude, loud mouthed, and handy with a wrench. The planets have people who are indentured servants. People you're likely to see working the fields or the mines on modern Earth. Hopefully when you've finished your contract you have enough money left to pay your way home or else you have to sign on for another contract.
Gene Roddenbury's universe (Star Trek and Next Generation) was more like Asimov's not because only the smartest got to move away but because he made everyone the smartest. The education system worked, the government was benign, and they'd achieved the perfect balance of capitalism and socialism to see that everyone had the chance to be something great.
I'm not sure what my point is other than to notice that difference between these different visions of the future.
What's your vision?
1Discounting the Foundation series.
9 comments:
I think it will be like a business, more similar to Star Trek where there are intellegent, common people filling several different positions with the more advanced in higher positions, but you still need ditch diggers (or red shirts).
In the early stages there will be the more adventerous, extraverts out there, but as it becomes more safe and common, the wealthy will go, and finally the common man will be seen travelling, either through extraterrestrial population growth or necessity.
Those are just some of my thoughts.
I love Asimov, but I think he takes things to an extreme sometimes. But he does that to make a point, so it's well done.
I'd like to think we'll have a future like Star Trek, but I'm not so sure.
I agree with Asimov on this. If our species is to grow, we're going to have to populate places other than just our own planet. If we just stay on Earth, all we'll have is a dirty, stinking cesspool someday.
I just realized why our space program is developing so slowly. Most technologies develop because of sex/porn. Early printing presses were used to make Bibles, pamphlet, and porn. Film, VCRs, the internet all were made with good intent, but could also be used for porn. You and I can't get into space to have sex. Heck, we can't even get space porn. Someone could get a camera crew, some "actors," and a Vomit Comet, but that'd be some of the most expensive porn ever. Once we have a space hotel that upper middle class people can get to and rent for a few nights we'll really see the space age start.
Der_Muffinmann, that's why Asimov had robots. They developed slowly on Earth because we had an economy that couldn't handle displacing people at great rates. On the outer planets they didn't need the riffraff.
I think only those with special skills will get out until we get a space elevator built. Then we'll have blue collared people mining asteroids, scientists on Mars, telescopes on the moon, etc.
Monsanto will be wanting to use Mars as a lab to experiment with plants that they can't do here. They'll be lobbying for lax controls and even wide spread planting.
Geologist and biologists with fight them for fear of contaminating their study of the planet.
Fleischmann's will want to open a yeast farm to feed the people on Mars.
The more labs that open up the more need for shops. Someone to fix the laundry and the ovens and TVs, people to prepare (and flavor) the yeast burgers, bars and psychologists, doctors and teachers.
Soon there'll be crime and decisions will have to be made about whether to have a local government and security force or if Monsanto is just gonna take over that role by default.
The asteroid mining will probably be largely automated, but we'll want some people there. The moon will probably develop much slower than Mars. Probably some conflict between the astronomers and the miners. Miners thinking the astronomers are snooty, and the astronomers thinking the miners are crude and the dust they kick up is fouling their instruments.
BrianAlt, yeah, staying here on Earth means more people living on fewer resources and fighting wars for those resources. There are more resources out there and we'll have some of humanity out exploring and having what can be hyped as adventures. We'll still be human here on Earth and have all the problems that causes, but we need that frontier, that land with the streets paved in gold that each wave of explorers and immigrants thinks they'll find.
Yes, we're always searching for bigger and better.
There was a show on Nat Geo (I think) on the Science of Sex and they interview someone developing a suit for weightless sex and they went on the Vomit Comet to test it.
I wonder if the scientists will be able to keep the wealthy and adventurous from dominating the space program. Funding is important, but has its place.
The term "Space Program" refers to the government run effort. I don't think private and corporate efforts qualify. They'll end up doing their own thing through the Russians or private space travel companies.
Besides, NASA already gets money by putting up satellites for corporations.
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