Starship Asterisk*

chx57 wrote:We do not see where the astronauts sleep, eat, socialise.. Do they have some private places whe cannot see?

Chris Peterson wrote:

neufer wrote:
Those of us who appreciate science should thank our lucky stars that we live in societies that are willing to spend resources to advance scientific knowledge which (by and large) has no practical benefit.

Not "no practical benefit". No immediate practical benefit. And I agree completely. But that doesn't alter the conversation when it comes to deciding how limited public resources will be allocated to pure scientific exploration.

neufer wrote:Those of us who appreciate science should thank our lucky stars that we live in societies that are willing to spend resources to advance scientific knowledge which (by and large) has no practical benefit.

Chris Peterson wrote:

EArHog wrote:
I think - in comparison to the scientific rewards that come from unmanned robotic missions (Hubble, Cassini, Mars rovers, for example) - manned missions are a bad deal, scientifically speaking. I think we just enjoy a good old-fashioned (expensive) adventure.

Yup, manned space missions don't yield much science. Terrible bang for the buck.

• Those of us who appreciate science should thank our lucky stars that we live in societies that are willing to spend resources to advance scientific knowledge which (by and large) has no practical benefit.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laputa wrote:

[b][color=#0000FF]Gulliver discovers Laputa, the flying island (illustration by J. J. Grandville)[/color][/b]

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<<Laputa is a flying island described in the 1726 book Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift. It is about 4.5 miles in diameter, with an adamantine base, which its inhabitants can maneuver in any direction using magnetic levitation.

Laputa's population consists mainly of educated people, who are fond of mathematics, astronomy, music and technology, but fail to make practical use of their knowledge. Servants make up the rest of the population.

The Laputans have discovered the two moons of Mars (which in reality would not be discovered for another 150 years). However, they are unable to construct well-designed clothing or buildings, because they take measurements with instruments such as quadrants and a compass rather than with tape measures.

Due to their fervent intellectual pursuits, Laputans are also depicted as becoming so lost in thought that they do not move unless struck by a "bladder", many of their heads have become stuck reclined to one side, and they often suffer from strabismus: one eye turns inward and the other looks up "to the zenith." The Laputans' oddly-focused eyes are Swift's parodies of the microscope and telescope. So intent are the Laputans in their scientific studies that they cannot function in the everyday world.>>

EArHog wrote:I'm an old fuddy-duddy, I know. But I think - in comparison to the scientific rewards that come from unmanned robotic missions (Hubble, Cassini, Mars rovers, for example) - manned missions are a bad deal, scientifically speaking. I think we just enjoy a good old-fashioned (expensive) adventure. Makin' up numbers to make a point - I think we could spend half as much on unmanned space exploration and reap twice the scientific knowledge gained compared to something like manned cowboy nationalistic adventurism trip to Mars. I'm for science, even at the expense of daredevil hero worship.

chx57 wrote:We do not see where the astronauts sleep, eat, socialise.. Do they have some private places whe cannot see?