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Humans to Mars: How and Why
Presented by Douglas Gage, Ph.D.
Now that the space shuttle program has ended, what should be the next step for human space flight? There appears to be broad agreement that Mars should be our ultimate goal, but some say that first we should go back to the moon or to an asteroid, and many question whether we should be spending our scarce resources to send humans anywhere beyond Low Earth Orbit any time soon.
While the focus of the current debate reflects the "center of gravity" of the NASA budget -- building and launching rockets and spacecraft -- orbital physics dictates that human travelers to Mars will spend more time on the ground there than in space en route, and this ground segment is where the real challenges lie.
The Apollo program demonstrated that NASA can design, build, and fly big rockets in a decade or so, but the real challenges lie in developing the technologies, systems, and operational processes that will keep our explorers safe, secure, productive, and happy on the surface of Mars. We need to provide shelter, energy, air, water, food, health care, communications, IT support, ground transportation, and much more.
- The initial development of these technologies is much less expensive that designing and building rockets.
- The more time we spend preparing to support humans on the surface of Mars, the more successful our mission is likely to be.
- Most of the technologies required can be used or adapted for use on Earth.
So, regardless of when we decide to actually go to Mars, we should be preparing now to live on Mars. It's not rocket science!
Douglas Gage is an independent technology consultant based in Arlington, Virginia. In the early 2000s, he served as a Program Manager at DARPA, managing programs in robotic software. He served as a reviewer for the NASA's Mars Technology Program for several years, and in 2005 he served as External Cochair for NASA's Capabilities Roadmapping Team for Autonomous Systems and Robotics.
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Quantum Mechanics & Spooky Action at a Distance
This is a 7-part talk. Presented by Prof. Allen Stairs, University of Maryland, Philosophy Department, Associate Chair.
Einstein and Schrödinger both worried that quantum mechanics posits "spooky action at a distance." This was Einstein's phrase, and it referred to the fact that quantum mechanics seems to allow that what an experimenter does in one location can instantaneously affect things elsewhere. While Einstein and Schrödinger found this worrisome, others (mostly non-scientists) have embraced the idea, seeing it as evidence for some sort of hyper-connected reality. This talk will look at the underlying theoretical and experimental situation. In this talk, Prof. Stairs examines the notion of "quantum entanglement" and ask whether it's as spooky as it's sometimes cracked up to be.
Prof. Stair's research centers on issues in the foundations of quantum mechanics.
Views expressed are those of the speaker and do not necessarily represent the views of the National Capital Area Skeptics.
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14 videos
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A Conversation with Ray Hyman and D.J. Grothe (Klass Award)
On April 24, 2010, NCAS presented the Philip J. Klass Award for outstanding contributions in promoting critical thinking and scientific understanding to Ray Hyman, Professor Emeritus of Psychology, University of Oregon and one of the founders of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP). Professor Hyman was then interviewed by D.J. Grothe, President of the James Randi Foundation and host of the podcast For Good Reason about the intersection of skepticism, magic, and psychology throughout the course of his life. Views expressed are those of the speaker and do not necessarily represent the views of the National Capital Area Skeptics.
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9 videos
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Is Radiation From Your Cell Phone a Health Hazard?
Presented by Prof. Christopher Davis, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Maryland.
Despite an overwhelming preponderance of evidence to the contrary, there continues to be some public concern that human exposure to radio frequency (RF) radiation from cell phones and base stations, even at relatively low levels, can constitute a health hazard. The media seize on any report of a possible health risk based on occasional reports of biological effects being produced by RF radiation, but ignore the much larger number of studies that find nothing. This talk will review the science underlying our understanding of how RF radiation can interact with biological systems and discuss why public concern about the health risk from cell phones and base stations is irrational. The claimed connection between cell phone use and cancer will be examined, and some of the legal cases that have kept the cell phone health controversy alive. A specific interaction mechanism that will be discussed is the possibility of nonlinearity in cells and tissue that might demodulate an RF carrier.
Christopher C. Davis is Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Maryland, College Park. He received the B.A. degree (with Honors) in Natural Sciences from the University of Cambridge in 1965, the M.A. degree from the University of Cambridge in 1970, and the Ph.D. degree in Physics from the University of Manchester in 1970. He has served as a scientific consultant to several US Government agencies and industry. He is a member of the IEEE Standards Coordinating Committee SCC-34 SC2, which deals with RF exposure from wireless devices.
Views expressed are those of the speaker and do not necessarily represent the views of the National Capital Area Skeptics.
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5 videos
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Superstition: Belief in the Age of Science - Robert Park
This is a 7-part talk.
From uttering a prayer before boarding a plane, to exploring past lives through hypnosis, has superstition become pervasive in contemporary culture? Robert Park, the best-selling author of "Voodoo Science", argues that it has. In "Superstition," Park asks why people persist in superstitious convictions long after science has shown them to be ill-founded. He takes on supernatural beliefs from religion and the afterlife to New Age spiritualism and faith-based medical claims. He examines recent controversies and concludes that science is the only way we have of understanding the world.
Park sides with the forces of reason in a world of continuing and, he fears, increasing superstition. Chapter by chapter, he explains how people too easily mistake pseudoscience for science. He discusses parapsychology, homeopathy, and acupuncture; he questions the existence of souls, the foundations of intelligent design, and the power of prayer; he asks for evidence of reincarnation and astral projections; and he challenges the idea of heaven. Throughout, he demonstrates how people's blind faith, and their confidence in suspect phenomena and remedies, are manipulated for political ends. Park shows that science prevails when people stop fooling themselves.
Compelling and precise, "Superstition" takes no hostages in its quest to provoke. In shedding light on some very sensitive--and Park would say scientifically dubious--issues, the book is sure to spark discussion and controversy.
Robert L. Park is professor of physics at the University of Maryland. He is the author of "Voodoo Science: The Road from Foolishness to Fraud."
Views expressed are those of the speaker and do not necessarily represent the views of the National Capital Area Skeptics.
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7 videos
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THE TRUTH ABOUT PSYCHIC DETECTIVES
This is an 11-part talk given by Benjamin Radford at an event sponsored by the National Capital Area Skeptics on April 14, 2009.
Psychic detectives seem to be everywhere on TV. Many of them claim to find missing persons, and solve cases for police and the FBI. But how good is the evidence for their claims? Drawing on a decade of personal investigations and case studies, Benjamin Radford will reveal a side of psychic detectives that you won't see on Medium or Larry King Live.
This segment contains discussion about an episode of Psychic Investigators entitled Vision of Murder. For copyright reasons, we cannot include clips from the show.
Benjamin Radford is the managing editor of Skeptical Inquirer Magazine.
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11 videos
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HOW STATISTICS ARE MISUNDERSTOOD IN THE MEDIA AND SOCIETY
This is a 9 part talk given by Dr. Rebecca Goldin at an event sponsored by the National Capital Area Skeptics on January 10, 2009. Dr. Goldin is Director of Research for the Statistical Assessment Service (stats.org), a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization affiliated with George Mason University. STATS mission is to improve the quality of scientific and statistical information in public discourse and to act as a resource for journalists and policy makers on scientific issues and controversies. STATS' work has been featured on NBC Nightly News, the News Hour with Jim Lehrer, and ABC's 20/20 - and in print by the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, US News & World Report, New Scientist, New England Journal of Medicine, and many other publications.
The views expressed are those of the speaker and do not necessarily represent the views of the National Capital Area Skeptics. For more information about the National Capital Area Skeptics, and to learn about our upcoming events, visit www.ncas.org.
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9 videos
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