SpaceShipOne Wins the X Prize

Chris Kraft’s book Flight: My Life in Mission Control discusses the history of the space program, more specifically, the path that led to the first United States manned spaceflight. Every manned space flight made by Americans has been funded by the United States government—until now. This past October, a privately funded spacecraft, SpaceShipOne, became the first of its kind to launch a man into space. In fact, by performing the feat twice in a two week period, it won the $10 million Ansari X Prize. The X Prize, which twenty-four teams had been competing for, was founded by Peter Diamandis as an effort to fuel competition for space liners. The prize had been set to expire at the end of the year before being won earlier this year.

SpaceShipOne was designed by Burt Rutan, whose tiny company is known for their build-your-own-airplane kits. SpaceShipOne is the size of a small biplane, and its fuel consists of laughing gas and rubber. In order to make it to space, the ship is tethered to a larger plane called the White Knight and towed 48,000 feet into the air before it is released and flown on its own. The ship then travels at 2,200 miles per hour and reaches a maximum height of 70 miles. When gravity goes into effect, SpaceShipOne’s wings rotate upward, creating a feathering effect so that it floats gently back to Earth. The funding of the ship was provided by Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft and fifth richest man in the world. The ship is so innovative that it was even named Time Magazine’s Coolest Invention of 2004.

Rutan and Allen have even made plans with Virgin’s Richard Branson to have sub-orbital and orbital spaceflight available to the public. If the five larger versions of SpaceShipOne that Branson ordered are done on time, then Virgin Galactic should be running by 2007. However, before space tourism can begin, the company must work on making the trips safer. Thus far, 4% of the humans who have gone to space have died there, and that is too high of a number for commercial travel. Despite the risks, there are already 7,000 people on the waiting list for a $190,000 ticket for a suborbital flight.

When NASA was formed in 1958, Chris Kraft could have never fathomed the possibility of everyone experiencing zero-gravity one day. Now that that prospect seems possible, it makes me wonder if this concept will become widely accepted by society. There is an obvious interest, based on the 7,000 person strong waiting list, but 7,000 people represent only a tiny fraction of the total population of the United States. Most people do not have $190,000 lying around, and I am sure that even if money was not an issue, safety would be. I think that the program will have a number of skeptics because of the relative danger that is involved in space flight. Furthermore, many other people probably think that commercial space travel is a pointless waste of money. However, because the program is privately funded, the general public has no say on whether the program will proceed or succeed.

I personally think that commercial space travel is a worthwhile venture. If I had an extra $190,000, I might even consider taking a trip. I mean, why shouldn’t technology be pushed to the limits? Safe and relatively inexpensive space travel could allow much more zero-gravity experimentation for scientists and could provide the opportunity of a lifetime for the average (rich) person.

Hybrid Vehicles

After writing a research paper about hybrid vehicles, I have decided that I would like to own one someday. Maybe after I get out of college I will be able to buy one, but I know that if I spend the money on a new car, I would definitely want to get a hybrid. They may cost more than their non-hybrid counterparts, but I’m sure that in the next few years the price gap will begin to shrink. Also, the increased gas mileage of a hybrid will save me money at the pump. Even if that is still not enough to make up for the difference in price, knowing that I am doing something good for the environment is also something to take into consideration. I hope that hybrid vehicles become more popular over the next few years and that more and more people will consider buying them.

If you want to learn all about hybrid vehicles, click here.

The Importance of History 122

When I first came to Clemson I knew that I wanted to major in engineering, but I had no idea what kind. In addition to hearing from all of the engineering departments and going on several tours, this class also helped me to make my decision as to what kind of engineer to be. I have finally decided that I want to be an industrial engineer.

During the Technology and Work lecture on October 8th, we discussed Frank and Lillian Gilbreth, parents of twelve children. Frank Gilbreth worked in factories to improve efficiency and eliminate wasted motion. Lillian Gilbreth created an efficient system at home in order to care for her twelve children. I find the story of these two pioneers of industrial engineering extremely fascinating, and they are just one more reason for me to become an industrial engineer. I guess it might also be a family thing because my dad graduated from the engineering college at his school with a degree in industrial management although I never really thought about that until after I had already made my decision.

In addition to helping me discover what kind of engineering I wished to pursue, this class has also made me think more about the responsibilities of engineers. I had never really considered the fact that engineers must be so sensitive to the reactions of society. I am glad that I have had the opportunity to learn about this topic, a topic that is hardly covered in the CES 102 course.

Also, under the new industrial engineering curriculum, this course is a requirement. I think that that is a good idea because all engineers, especially industrial engineers, could benefit from knowing the history of their profession. This is especially helpful to industrial engineers because the job of industrial engineers is to change things so that they work more efficiently. If they did not know what had succeeded in the past, then they would not know if something would work in the future. Since industrial engineering tends to work more with people than other kinds of engineering, learning about the affects that technology has on society is extremely helpful.

Furthermore, with the evolution of computers, engineering has changed a great deal over the past fifty years and will continue to change well into the future. Industrial engineers must be able to adapt to these changes and make the other engineering disciplines more efficient. I look forward to someday being a part of this profession, and I look forward to continuing to learn about it in my next few years at Clemson.

Schwarzenegger and Proposition 71

On November 2, Proposition 71 will be on the ballot in California. If passed, it would provide researchers $3 billion over the next ten years for stem cell research. While watching World New Tonight on ABC this evening, I learned that his proposition was recently endorsed by California’s Republican governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger. This breaks from the California Republican Party’s official stance which is against Proposition 71.

I think it is noble that Schwarzenegger would break party lines to fight for something he believes in. Politics get caught up too much nowadays in the development of science and technology; Schwarzenegger was able to separate politics from technology, a practice which most other politicians have yet to participate in. Most politicians support or don’t support the development of certain new technologies based on one question: Will supporting this technology help to get me re-elected? I think that this is absurd and that more politicians should follow Schwarzenegger’s example and do what they feel is morally right, not what will supposedly help them on Election Day. Staying true to yourself is undoubtedly more important in the long run than how many terms in public office you serve.

Read an article about Schwarzenegger’s endorsement here.

The Space Race: A Source of Unity

Section II of Chris Kraft’s book Flight: My Life in Mission Control begins with the Russians launching Sputnik, the first man-made satellite. This sparked the space race between the United States and Russia. The creation of NASA and the start of the Mercury Missions soon followed; manned space travel was not far behind.

It astounds me that even with the limited technology available in the 1950s, engineers were still able to put men in space. Computers back then were bigger than rooms and handheld calculators were unheard of. The physics and logistics of space travel had to be invented by the engineers as space travel had never been attempted before. The perseverance of the engineers and the bravery of the astronauts in an unknown field of science are admirable qualities that can be elusive in this day and age. These people were working for the good of the country, not to further their own agendas. The scientists, contractors, and astronauts were united in an effort to beat the Russians in the space race, which would culminate in 1969 with the first moon landing. This is an excellent example of the American spirit that so many Americans love about United States.

Edison vs. Tesla

Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla were two great inventors of the late 19th century. These two men had much in common; they even worked with each other at one point. However, the two men also had striking differences.

Thomas Edison’s method of invention was not scientific; he preferred trial and error to actual scientific knowledge. Edison is probably most famous for improving the electric light bulb, an accomplishment that makes him an elementary school hero. Edison was also a very prolific inventor; he received over one thousand patents during his lifetime.

Nikola Tesla, on the other hand, was a man of science, not of guessing. Unlike Edison, Tesla preferred to apply his scientific knowledge to problems in order to invent things, not use trial and error. Tesla famously invented a new electric motor as well as the Tesla coil, which produces microwaves as it changes low-voltage current to high-voltage current. The Tesla coil was an invention to try to realize the dream of wireless electricity, which turned out to be infeasible.

I think that I am more like Tesla than Edison. I like to use the knowledge that I already have in order to try to solve a problem. I am not a fan of trial and error as I like to be able to predict the outcome of what I do. Like Tesla, I am not against learning scientific methods in order to solve a problem. Edison did not trust science and, therefore, wasted a lot of time guessing at what to do before he actually achieved his goals. I think that is a huge waste of time and that learning the science behind a concept is much easier than guessing it.

However, I cannot deny that Edison’s methods were not effective. His many inventions improved the quality of life for many people, and he did have an amazing mind. But, if Edison had actually learned to trust science and apply it like Tesla did, his one thousand patents may have been two or three thousand. Who knows what he could have achieved if he had not been so stuck in his ways.

Does Technology Make our Lives Easier?

Read this very interesting article about whether technology actually makes our lives easier.
I think that when we can control our technology usage and stay plugged into the real world, technology can be a wonderful supplement to our lives. What do you think?