What Is The Next Space Program?

[Jim Heynderickx]

"When I was a kid," we had the space program. Big leaps in science and technology became tangible rockets, landing modules, satellites, and even cool hero types at the controls. All in all, it was a pretty strong, unifying statement for young people about the future.

Since then, one could say that far more has happened with technology in the 90s than the 60s, yet the results are scattered. There's a personal revolution with Internet communications, far-reaching human genome research, serious medical advances, GPS certainty about where we are, and even movement with nanotechnology. But nothing that seems to strongly unifying the young, or portray a future of real opportunity or achievement.

Instead, we have the shivers of increasing energy needs but declining amounts of fossil fuels, leading to the typical responses that world powers display under stress.

So, a simple question. Is there a new "space program" on the horizon?

[Fred Bartels]

Jim,

My nomination would be the Internet, the computers we connect to it, and the communications spaces we build with them. All of this is allowing people to more richly and easily connect, and people want to be connected. The coolest thing is that anyone who wants to participate in the building of this stuff can do so. Given the ongoing rapid development of information technology (aka Moore's Law) you've got to believe that what we are doing now is just an intimation of what will be possible in the lifetimes of our students. Maybe we are unconsciously building some sort of global consciousness. Yikes!

Fred

[Jim Heynderickx]

You remind me of an old quote when the Internet was just beginning. Supposedly, some college students were exploring the new media and proclaimed "The Internet is so cool that it makes our heads hurt."

I just got done watching a new BBC documentary called "Visions of the Future" (http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcfour/documentaries/features/visions-future....), and it was relatively reassuring in that it noted that new technologies and approaches to genetics and quantum applications would likely fully change the world in the next fifty years. In essence, the combination of the three elements were advancing science at a stunning pace.

At the same time, it seems hard to see the forest through the trees. We all see bits and parts changing, but not a cogent whole. There is a dragon to be slain (fossil fuel dependence, and its side effects), but it seems our energies aren't focused.

Anyway, I find myself feeling rather positive about things lately. With some thought and enthusiasm, there are some major changes on the horizon-- I just wonder what the next watershed will be and how the young might embrace it in a positive way.

[Demetri Orlando]

In the Times today Thomas Friedman mentions a few groups of MIT students who are working on some interesting projects including one (at the end of the article) for an "open source car."

From an inconvenient truth I liked Gore's analogy of a frog being cooked in water that is slowly warmed up on the stove (not noticing it) as opposed to how shocked the frog would be if he was dropped into a pot of boiling water.

And the logic from The Most Terrifying Video You'll Ever See is pretty persuasive.

thoughts?

[Jim Heynderickx]

Hi, Demetri

I like the Times article-- basically, today's students are the people they have been waiting for, and should be celebrating. They have a lot to learn from teachers and older generations, but it's also true that they have new ways of thinking about things that need to be unleashed. Unlike my generation, they have greater power to network with others to leverage all sorts of potential.

If science and technology can increasingly manage the environment, there's going to be major options for both man-made achievements and disasters. In fact, entirely fresh mindsets may be needed just to realize the edges of the new rooms that are opened.

As for the "Terrifying Video," I don't care for it. One might as well argue for garlic pillowcases since there is a lot of writing about the danger of Vampires about. (In scenario one, we all smell like garlic. In scenario two, we all turn into blood sucking undead. Which is the safer course!!!) Basically, I care a lot about global warning, but I don't think that this type of reflexive thinking makes much sense. In fact, it reminds me of another scare tactic of the 50s-- Sputnik. "What's it really doing up there! Fire off another million science fairs before it's too late!"

Personally, I think a million science fairs isn't a bad idea (love that inquiry-based learning), but I'd rather not have to win the argument with a bogey man. The downside of the global warning debate is that if people feel things are hopeless, that's how they will act. We need a positive wave to take us forward-- I just wish we had more positive waves to talk about and agree about.

Fred wasn't far off, though. The networking and listening to each other that our students display is pretty amazing, and powerful.

[Demetri Orlando]

Sure, but there's no evidence I know of (even contradictory evidence) for vampires, so as much as I love garlic, I don't buy the analogy for garlic pillowcases. I think the guy in the terrifying video is working from the premise that there is some evidence here, but because some people don't accept it, the result is inaction in general.

[Jim Heynderickx]

Aye, but he doesn't provide any evidence or support either way, ergo he might as well be discussing Vampires (or really cool werewolves). I guess I'm not impressed when some guy in a video says "I've got a super simple solution for a very difficult problem, and you don't even have to worry about the details. Stop thinking now." I think this is the type of superficiality that the Internet tends to pass off as wisdom a bit too often. (Even when it's a topic I'm concerned about.)

Ugh-- I'm not disagreeing with the host of this site, am I? :)

[Demetri Orlando]

Ahhh, now I understand what you mean, and that is a great point. Thanks!
It would be horribly boring if we all agreed with each other :)

[Mark Crotty]

I suspect it may have something to do with combining many of the forces you cite above, perhaps in the area of true artificial intelligence that somehow includes consciousness and sentience.

[Jim Heynderickx]

Hi, Mark

The AI discussions are pretty interesting. It's always hard to really visualize epic change, but it's interesting to read about those thinking outside of the box.

At some point, I tossed RSS feeds from several of the article lists at KurzweilAI.net onto my Netvibes page, and they have been fun to follow:

http://www.kurzweilai.net/index.html?flash=1

Here's a recent link to an NPR story on the subject:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=16816185

So are you ready for explosive, exponential growth? :)

[Matt Montagne]

Clean and green energy should be the next "Manhattan Project" or "Space Race." I doubt it will be, but it should be....hopefully the open source world will get their hands on clean energy. Demetri referenced an encouraging article by Thomas Friedman in the sustainable schools group that talked about an open source PHEV car project that was recently initiated. The Big 3 aren't interested, so let the open source community have at it...I love it!