1644: Bla Bla Bla Awesome
 

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Mars, Bitches
 

Unfortunately, with all the problems going on in the world today; space is irrelevant and a waste of time and money.

Space is not irrelevant.

There are a lot of technologies we've gotten as a result of the fact that we've been to space and continue to explore space. Things like memory foam mattresses, fire resistant clothing and even invisible braces were all invented as a direct result of the space program. I know some of these things seem trivial but I use them as examples because they are some of the best examples of how it directly impacts our day to day life.

There are much larger advancements such many of the components that make up modern computers. Their concepts and original use were all created to help make the on board computers faster, smaller and lighter. If I recall correctly the very first computer used in space flight wasn't much more advanced than a standard calculator and in order to do the complicated missions they wanted they needed better computers and invested large amount of money in those people who were developing them at the time.

There was also medical equipment like MRIs that were invented as a direct result of technology developed by the space program.

These are all tangible benefits but I think even without them people would still have a desire for a space program because we like to explore. There's a sense that seen almost all there is to see on this world in one way or another and I think the idea of not being able to discover new things is a troubling thought for a lot of people.

I think the popularity of the Sci-Fi genre proves that people have a genuine desire to keep moving beyond their familiar surroundings and explore the unknown and there's definitely a feeling that that exploration and discovery makes us better people.

So you're saying that you don't think space is dumb?

correct, space is not dumb.

space is fucking awesome. fact.

all our elements exploded from a star. that's how they're created. they're shot across the universe and into our bones. we are literally stardust. and gold; gold didn't explode from our nearest star. it came here on a fucking asteriod and blammed into us. super neat!

Every species has one main purpose, to continue the existence of the species. Some people may not want to have children, but those are individuals. I'm talking about the entire species. The human race wants to continue it's existence.

Eventually, the Earth will become uninhabitable. When? Probably not for a really long time. But maybe tomorrow. Who knows? As a species, if we want to continue, we will eventually want to branch out to other places, first in the Solar System and then in the Universe. Mars will be the best place to set up a first outpost. In order to do all of this we need to understand "space". We need to figure out what's really there and what's not there at all. If there is water on Mars that we can tap into, as an example, it will make living there a whole lot easier.

All of this will take a very long time. But if we don't start now, when will we get there? Will we get there, anywhere, in time? Who knows. But why not try?

The amount of money given to the space program is significantly less than we use to fund our military.

"NASA's FY 2011 budget of $18.4 billion represents about 0.5% of the $3.4 trillion United States federal budget during the year, or about 35% of total spending on academic scientific research in the United States." Budget of NASA - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"For the 2010 fiscal year, the president's base budget of the Department of spending on "overseas contingency operations" brings the sum to $663.84 billion." Military budget of the United States - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

NASA's budget is 2.8% of the defense budget. That's significantly less.

Even if you think my "survival of the species" argument is ridiculous, should we really worry about something that is 0.5% of the overall budget? Yes, we should worry about it, but only if it gives us nothing. The space budget does the following: 1) it stimulates the economy - many people and corporations get jobs from this money, 2) it stimulates science - even if exploring Mars is useless, we learn things that can be used every day (see below for details), 3) we feel like we've accomplished something - bombs kill people and destroy things, this science builds things and funnels creative energy in a positive way.

And finally, here are a list of 10 things that the space program has brought us that we didn't have before. Would we die without them? Definitely not. But they make a difference in our lives:

10. Invisible Braces
9. Scratch-resistant Lenses
8. Memory Foam
7. Ear Thermometer
6. Shoe Insoles
5. Long-distance Telecommunications
4. Adjustable Smoke Detector
3. Safety Grooving
2. Cordless Tools
1. Water Filters

10 NASA Inventions You Might Use Every Day : Discovery Channel

This is why I think the space program is a good thing.

Am I reading you correctly in that you're saying space is not an idiot?

If space were a person, then space may be an idiot. Because I haven't seen intelligence specifically from space, it's possible that space is an idiot.

I feel that exploring space is definitely not idiotic. I feel it's a smart endeavor.

However, it may be true that I'm an idiot since I assumed that you meant in your question that exploring space was dumb and not just space itself.

I guess I'll find out in the morning.