A Penny For NASA: The Petition

[Loop Stricken]

you could always call the Russians... I hear for a few million they will ferry your ass off planet.. tho given the state of their space shuttles you might be better trying to build a giant slingshot with rubber bands from Office Depot

Ah yes, that would be why the US retired the space shuttle and will now be using Russian-esque pod designs, if not straight-up Russian pods.

lmao .. uh the The Buran and the other russian shuttle and pod designs are copied from the US designs.... except it is of Russian (see :shitty) quality ... there is no such thing as a Russian-esque pod design since the Russians pods are of American-esque design

you know how the original Buran was destroyed? the hangar it was stored in collapsed (8 people were killed when it happened)... Russian space shuttles cause deaths without even leaving the ground... lol

Actually I don't know all that much about it, I just remember that the US ditched the space shuttle for whatever the Russians were using at the time. Consider me schooled.

 

[Zer_]

maybe if NASA had actually produced something useful in the last few decades they wouldn't have got their budget cut to hell...

also they would look better if they stopped hiring crazy bitches who drive cross country in dirty diapers to stalk people... just saying

Someone has never heard of Velcro.

Not to mention the microminiaturization boom that lets you carry a supercomputer in your pocket. (That would be an iPhone or similar if you didn't get it)

And I find it odd, the idea that if they produced more they'd get more funding. But don't they need funding to produce? Catch 22 much?

none of those came from the space program in the last few decades nor do we need a space program to further either of them... and actually the microminiaturization boom was pushed by the military not the space program... hell technically the whole space program can be attributed to the military push

and it's not a catch 22... the space program stoped producing results so they cut their losses and stop funding the most useless parts... no point in pouring money into sometime that is yielding no useful results... if NASA had spent more time on projects with actual real world applications and less time wasting millions sending people needlessly into space to do nothing that can't be done on a lab ground side they would still be getting full funding.. pending some breakthrough that allows space travel to be worth the cost there is no point in sending a-holes into orbit and thus NASA doesn't need as much funding

hell the civilian space industry has made more advancements in launching objects into space and the earth side applications of the technology involved than NASA ever has ... let them do it no need to waste tax money on it

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

More:

5: Pushes in Solar Power
4: Enhancements in Insulation
3: Improvements in Water Filtration**
2: Successes in Soil Remediation
1: Advances in Substrates (Fertilization, used in food production, golf courses, etc...)

Even More:

5: Nanoceramics Fight Cancer, Make Hair Shiny
4: Reflective Coatings Save Skylab, Manatees
3: Deformable Mirrors for better focus on imaging devices
2: Nanotubes Look for Life on Mars (Among other things here on Earth)
1: Mars Missions Create Tough Armor (Fabrics, etc...)

MORE!!!

5: Microalgae Nutritional Supplements (Baby food, Yogurt etc...)
4. Space Rose Perfume
3: Speedy Swimsuit
2: Zit Zapper
1: Hairstyling Tools with Nanomaterials

Inventions and improvements with NASA involvement:

Here are a few of the many other medical advances that came at least in part from NASA:

-Digital imaging breast biopsy system, developed from Hubble Space Telescope technology
-Tiny transmitters to monitor the fetus inside the womb
-Laser angioplasty, using fiber-optic catheters
-Forceps with fiber optics that let doctors measure the pressure applied to a baby's head during delivery
-Cool suit to lower body temperature in treatment of various conditions
-Voice-controlled wheelchairs
-Light-emitting diodes (LED) for help in brain cancer surgery
-Foam used to insulate space shuttle external tanks for less expensive, better molds for artificial arms and legs
-Programmable pacemakers
-Tools for cataract surgery


A lot of these inventions were created in part by NASA or done by private firms under contract for NASA applications. Also, NASA and Military research have often times been collaborative efforts. On a final note, it is worth saying that MANY of these NASA inventions have paved the road for future technologies. One small, basic invention can be used to make many, many newer inventions. The ripples in the sea of inventions created by NASA will be felt for at least another century, if not more.

if you believe we needed to spend the money to put people into space again and again to achieve any of those then you're just stupid... the most NASA contributed to those advancements was dirtside research and a small amount of testing which can and is now being done privately without spending billion in tax dollars to put some A-hole into orbit... which is the whole point their funding was cut and not completely cancelled... there are many more pressing, easier and cheaper forces driving the same advancements... the whole point is NASA does not need the funding to put actual people into space at this point (which is where MOST of their money went)... I never said they were worthless and should be closed just they do not need the as much money.. especially when the private sector is doing better and showing more results than they ever have

you need to remove those "I like Sci-FI and live in a fantasy land of theoreticals" tinted glasses and look at it from a practical viewpoint based in reality

going by your logic we should still be funding wooden ships to sail across the ocean because once upon a time those yielded some advancements

Sure, 'cause you know, there's nothing worthwhile in space.

 

[ED-Tw0 ZeRo N9nE]

you could always call the Russians... I hear for a few million they will ferry your ass off planet.. tho given the state of their space shuttles you might be better trying to build a giant slingshot with rubber bands from Office Depot

I hope you don't think I was serious about that, because I wasn't. My goal was simply to get this thread some more traffic and from the looks of things I succeeded. When I stumbled upon this thread, I took note of all the useless Mass Effect garbage horribly overshadowing this issue, so I made a point to call people out on it. We've all got opinions on NASA and that's great, I'm just happy that this thread is no longer being ignored.

 

[Dejawesp]

NASA has spent half a century launching tax-funded expensive shit into space and we still don't have flying cars nor jetpacks or laser rifles. Make them earn their pay.

The United States borrows money to fund itself. Why should it borrow to fund NASA?

 

[ED-Tw0 ZeRo N9nE]

and here I was serious about the giant rubber band slingshot...

Patent it and start a business, I'm sure there are plenty of Wile E. Coyote's in the world. Just make sure to let me know when you get to that point, that way I can send you an application.

 

[DANEgerous]

I have to say i would like for more of my money to do to space and not go to nukes. I love space, I will always love space, and it is worth way more than half a penny.

 

[ED-Tw0 ZeRo N9nE]

tho I am a marine so I may be biased here...

OK, spill the beans, what MOS? Are you still in/when did you get out? I'm former 3521, been out since December 2008.

 

[HardkorSB]

A movement was recently started to increase the US funding of NASA from .4% of the federal budget to a full 1%; that is, a penny on the tax dollar. The cause was more or less started by a Dr. Neil DeGrasse Tyson, an astrophysicist who pushes the idea that a resurgence of NASA programs could revive the US's interest in math, science, and, more importantly, the future.

<youtube=Fl07UfRkPas>

There's a petition currently being passed around, hoping that the topic will at least come up in discussion, if nothing else. You can find the petition here [http://www.change.org/petitions/increase-nasa-s-budget-to-1-penny-on-the-dollar#], if you're an interested US citizen.

What are my fellow escapists' thoughts on this? Is it something we should push in a time of economic turmoil? Would it actually help revitalize the science and technology fields in the eyes of the general public, or would it just be considered unnecessary spending for things not immediately helping them? I fully realize that many here aren't from the US, but I feel that the overall sentiment of the movement is something that can be discussed.

I heard that the Chinese space program is doing not so bad and it's actually getting more funding as time goes by.
Maybe that's the future, not NASA?

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2012/03/04/f-china-space-program.html

 

[ED-Tw0 ZeRo N9nE]

tho I am a marine so I may be biased here...

OK, spill the beans, what MOS? Are you still in/when did you get out? I'm former 3521, been out since December 2008.

0311 0317 from 2001-2009... was 3rd batt. 1st corps

3521.. so you were a mechanic right?

Gah, way to make a POG feel inferior. Yep, mechanic is right. I ask simply to see what part of the Corps you come from, not looking to start a pissing contest or anything like that (would be quite immature of me to do so). I'm still fairly new to the site, so when I see a fellow Service Member, I'm compelled to dig for more info. Find out who my friends are, so to speak.

 

[MammothBlade]

A movement was recently started to increase the US funding of NASA from .4% of the federal budget to a full 1%; that is, a penny on the tax dollar. The cause was more or less started by a Dr. Neil DeGrasse Tyson, an astrophysicist who pushes the idea that a resurgence of NASA programs could revive the US's interest in math, science, and, more importantly, the future.

<youtube=Fl07UfRkPas>

There's a petition currently being passed around, hoping that the topic will at least come up in discussion, if nothing else. You can find the petition here [http://www.change.org/petitions/increase-nasa-s-budget-to-1-penny-on-the-dollar#], if you're an interested US citizen.

What are my fellow escapists' thoughts on this? Is it something we should push in a time of economic turmoil? Would it actually help revitalize the science and technology fields in the eyes of the general public, or would it just be considered unnecessary spending for things not immediately helping them? I fully realize that many here aren't from the US, but I feel that the overall sentiment of the movement is something that can be discussed.

Why not cut 10% of the US Army budget ($29.4 billion) and re-assign all that money to NASA... that seems like the clearest solution here. Space is the future.

 

[aba1]

If I lived in the states I wouldn't mind chipping in a penny but at the same time wouldn't it just make more sense to cut the military in half and use all those funds to help things that are more important than fighting with everyone like small businesses, programs to get the poor working and off the street, reeducation of prison inmates and troubled youth and other places the money would simply be better placed. Hell the states might even earn some much needed respect around the world as a country that does more than just look for reasons to try n fight.

 

[shado_temple]

A movement was recently started to increase the US funding of NASA from .4% of the federal budget to a full 1%; that is, a penny on the tax dollar. The cause was more or less started by a Dr. Neil DeGrasse Tyson, an astrophysicist who pushes the idea that a resurgence of NASA programs could revive the US's interest in math, science, and, more importantly, the future.

<youtube=Fl07UfRkPas>

There's a petition currently being passed around, hoping that the topic will at least come up in discussion, if nothing else. You can find the petition here [http://www.change.org/petitions/increase-nasa-s-budget-to-1-penny-on-the-dollar#], if you're an interested US citizen.

What are my fellow escapists' thoughts on this? Is it something we should push in a time of economic turmoil? Would it actually help revitalize the science and technology fields in the eyes of the general public, or would it just be considered unnecessary spending for things not immediately helping them? I fully realize that many here aren't from the US, but I feel that the overall sentiment of the movement is something that can be discussed.

I heard that the Chinese space program is doing not so bad and it's actually getting more funding as time goes by.
Maybe that's the future, not NASA?

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2012/03/04/f-china-space-program.html

More than likely, for the next few years. As sad as it sounds, some are hoping that China's success would start up yet another "space race" between them and the US; something of which might be fun, if it weren't for that cold war business that was associated with the last one.

 

[Nouw]

If I were a US Citizen I'd sign it. Space-exploration, as Zer pointed out, has made many advancements in technology. Imagine what could happen next.

Not from the US, but yes, yes you should!
It's ridiculous that the NASA budget is only about 2.5% that of the military (and that's not including R&D grants and subsidies and tax breaks to military companies)

This.

If it helps any, lie to the government and say there's oil on Mars. Get there, set up colonies, shamefully admit there is NO oil on Mars, but there's definitely some on Neptune, or something...

Just keep going like that.

Well there are resources on the Moon but we all know how well that turns out >.>.