This made me giggle.

Flabby Chick · Post by **Flabby Chick** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 8:17 am

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3577551.stm

The human race, for thousands of years has asked itself if there are life forms hidden within the vastness of space.

We finally get to a point in our development where we can detect from our own planet and even send probes to investigate what could be the first encounter with these elusive and mysterious new forms of life.

How did we first encounter these creatures you ask??

We smelled their farts!!! Yes my co-DBB'ers we spent millions, we layed down our lifes work and even our very lives to stand on a planet bend over and smell the gaseous outpourings from an aliens rear end.

I shed a tear as i proudly remember this week in history.

SNIFF---- Pheeeew!!!!

FC

Tricord · Post by **Tricord** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 8:48 am

Exactly. And if Bush has it his way, he is going to spend a huge deal of taxpayer's money to have some astronautes go there and sniff it in person...

Space exploration may be exciting, but a good Sci-Fi series is just as capable of retaining the public's attention, at a fraction of the cost..

Flabby Chick · Post by **Flabby Chick** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 9:20 am

Wooooa,, Tri take a chill pill man!! I just made a jest.

T-Bone · Post by **T-Bone** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 9:21 am

It always surprises me when people complain about space exploration. Over the years the side benefits alone have been enormous. Things like; ceramic cookware, remote health monitoring, velcro, huge advances in computer technology, freeze-dreid food, scratch resistant lenses are all byproducts of the space program. And that's just what I found in a few minutes of searching.

I can't even imagine what kind of new technology a manned mission to Mars might bring about.

bash · Post by **bash** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 10:08 am

In space, no one can hear you fart.

Deadmeat · Post by **Deadmeat** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 2:14 pm

It's not the sound that concerns me.

Robo · Post by **Robo** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 3:37 pm

Oh, wasn't it a REAL SHAME that for some reason Beagle 2 (the British mission) just randomly went missing on the surface of Mars. And now they tell us they've known about the methane for a LONG time

//Edit: Maybe you understand me. Maybe I'm overreacting. Maybe I'm just a Brit. kthnx.

Dedman · Post by **Dedman** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 3:38 pm

T-Bone wrote:It always surprises me when people complain about space exploration. Over the years the side benefits alone have been enormous. Things like; ceramic cookware, remote health monitoring, velcro, huge advances in computer technology, freeze-dreid food, scratch resistant lenses are all byproducts of the space program. And that's just what I found in a few minutes of searching.

I can't even imagine what kind of new technology a manned mission to Mars might bring about.

Don't forget Tang. That alone made the Appolo program worth every penny.

Mobius · Post by **Mobius** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 7:15 pm

Tricord wrote:Exactly. And if Bush has it his way, he is going to spend a huge deal of taxpayer's money to have some astronautes go there and sniff it in person...

Space exploration may be exciting, but a good Sci-Fi series is just as capable of retaining the public's attention, at a fraction of the cost..

And of course your Sci-Fi novel keeps hundreds of thousands of people employed too huh? Oh wait - SF also provides new technologies, materials and scads of data about our Solar System! But wait - there's MORE! Your SF novels also provide tens of thousands of spin-offs into consumer products also - don't they? Oh, and we mustn't forget, that SF novels also provide inpiration for your students to take up engineering and aerospace science too!

NOT.

Look - comparing SF to Science FACT is like comparing Weather prediction with a seance! No relation whatsoever - and if your opinion of your country's space program is so low - may I suggest you go live somewhere where there is no such expenditure or interest.

You truly do require some education and you need to do some reading about what the USAs investment in space has done for your country. Answer: About 18 trillion times what SF has done for it.

Tyranny · Post by **Tyranny** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 7:28 pm

It seems to have created an annoyingly fanatical space bastard by the name of Mobius as well

De Rigueur · Post by **De Rigueur** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 7:31 pm

Hey Mobius, does that mean you like Bush, . . . I mean Pres. Bush.

DCrazy · Post by **DCrazy** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 7:32 pm

Mob, Tri is not a resident of the US. He's a resident of Little France -- er, I mean Belgium.

Vertigo 99 · Post by **Vertigo 99** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 8:08 pm

DCrazy wrote:Mob, Tri is not a resident of the US. He's a resident of Little France -- er, I mean Belgium.

Even the french make fun of the belgians!

Sage · Post by **Sage** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 1:32 am

The french can make fun of my penis.

roid · Post by **roid** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 1:39 am

all these new space discoverys are so cool

new planetoids, now methane on mars.

this is especially good news as methane is a hydrocarbon, which may make for a handy fuel sourse when we colonize mars.

did i spell colonize right? it looks kinda... wrong, yet strangely on topic.

Tricord · Post by **Tricord** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 4:24 am

Vertigo 99 wrote:
DCrazy wrote:Mob, Tri is not a resident of the US. He's a resident of Little France -- er, I mean Belgium.
Even the french make fun of the belgians!

Well, in some way everyone makes fun of everyone else, isn't it? What the french laugh at is french-speaking Belgium, even us flemish laugh at them because they're such losers. Now, I speak french too, but I am 100% flemish

I seem to have struck a nerve though. Why not develop these technological innovations directly, instead of going through a space program first? It still costs an awful lot of money and personally, I don't really care if there are anaerobic bacteria on Mars or not. I do care for a more wider program, such as a space telescope that can capture tens of thousand galaxies (Hubble) to help us understand the universe, I also care for theoretical development of physics. I care for research, not exploration. I am interested how life can emerge scientifically, but I don't care if it actually did on Mars or not. If the right circumstances were present, it did, if not, then it didn't. Case closed.

KtheC' · Post by **KtheC'** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 4:36 am

T-Bone wrote:It always surprises me when people complain about space exploration. Over the years the side benefits alone have been enormous. Things like; ceramic cookware, remote health monitoring, velcro, huge advances in computer technology, freeze-dreid food, scratch resistant lenses are all byproducts of the space program. And that's just what I found in a few minutes of searching.

I can't even imagine what kind of new technology a manned mission to Mars might bring about.

Don't forget about Tang!!
Doh someone already said that. Note to self -read all postings before making a post-

snoopy · Post by **snoopy** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 1:25 pm

Tricord wrote:I seem to have struck a nerve though. Why not develop these technological innovations directly, instead of going through a space program first? It still costs an awful lot of money and personally, I don't really care if there are anaerobic bacteria on Mars or not. I do care for a more wider program, such as a space telescope that can capture tens of thousand galaxies (Hubble) to help us understand the universe, I also care for theoretical development of physics. I care for research, not exploration. I am interested how life can emerge scientifically, but I don't care if it actually did on Mars or not. If the right circumstances were present, it did, if not, then it didn't. Case closed.

First: the development of new innovations is catalysed by need. While scratch resistant lenses are nice on the earth, they are not necissary. Almost all of the innovations listed are not nearly as necissary on earth as they are in space, therefore they would not be developed for on earth.

Second: the best way to research is to explore- the more space we have to research, the easier it is to formulize what actually happens.

Sorta off topic: isn't it funny how Einstein proved that Newton was too simplistic, and we now know that Einstein was too simplistic?

Mr. Perfect · Post by **Mr. Perfect** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 1:43 pm

If I remeber correctly NASA also developed the microwave oven. Now that's worthwhile!

T-Bone · Post by **T-Bone** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 2:14 pm

Actually, I think the microwave oven was invented by a guy that was in the Air Force. I think the story is that he was working on a RADAR installation and noticed that a candy bar in his pocket melted when he got close to the RADAR dish. He then went on to invent what was initially known as the "Radar Range" but for some reason people didn't like the name so it was changed to microwave oven.

At least that is how I remember it. I'll see if I can find a link.

DCrazy · Post by **DCrazy** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 5:16 pm

I believe the Amana webpage has that story (which is correct).

Bold Deceiver · Post by **Bold Deceiver** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 8:04 pm

Mobius wrote:f your opinion of your country's space program is so low - may I suggest you go live somewhere where there is no such expenditure or interest.

You truly do require some education and you need to do some reading about what the USAs investment in space has done for your country.

Good lord, I find myself agreeing with Mobius.

Look, we all know Mobe is a techno-nerd of highest dimension. But one of the things that sparks his extraordinary imagination and attention to detail is the possibility . . . of what can be.

Just so, with space exploration. Velcro and Tang notwithstanding, the exploration of space is the exploration of ourselves, where we came from, and what we might become. It is our frontier.

Listen to the Mobester on this one. He's got it pegged.

BD

Krom · Post by **Krom** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 9:13 pm

The space program pays off in many ways, but quickly is not one of them...

roid · Post by **roid** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 9:54 pm

huh? what is this "tang"?

i thought you were joking first of all (space vag!)

bash · Post by **bash** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 9:59 pm

Powdered orange drink. Tastes like crap but supposedly has vitamins and nutrients. But the larger issue is freeze-dried/powdered foods which I believe was a byproduct of the space program. I'm surprised the US didn't market Tang to Aussies once we figured out you'd consume anything after we used you as Vegemite guinea pigs.

roid · Post by **roid** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 10:16 pm

hah yeah, when satelites reenter orbit and crash into teh outback, they don't last long coz we eat them

mmm iron.

(vegemite is rich in vit-B, supposedly, and the secret in eating it is to use butter/margerine as well, you spread the vegemite (very thinly! even patchy) on top of that.)

T-Bone · Post by **T-Bone** » Wed Mar 31, 2004 8:29 am

Speaking of "space food." I remember when I was a kid and we went to the Huntsville Space and Rocket Center and I was all excited about buying some freeze dried ice cream from the gift shop. Of course it turned out to be nasty. Anyone else ever tried that mess?