New Mars Forums

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/ … ML]Perfect Picture from Opportunity

No nuke drills for me in the 1970's, just tornado drills. I do remember aroun 1980 waking up to a loud explosion and thinking we were being nuked.

There was a time there when it wasn't a question of if there would be a nuke exchange between the US and USSR, but a question of when it will happen. That time was the early 80's and we had movies like War Games and Mad Max to fuel our fears.

I think 2001 is the only movie to correctly show that there is no sound in space.

I am forgiving of movies that do show sound in space. I think of it as artistic license. Plus the majority of people would think there is something wrong if an explosion in, lets say Star Wars, was silent.

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/ … html]Looks like a no go to enter the dunes

Too Risky. I bet they are scared of the Sand wormn that lives there

My list of favorite Science Fiction Movies

1960’s
Planet of the Apes
2001
Forbidden Planet
Journey to the Far Side of the Sun
First Men in The Moon
Robin Crusio (sp?) on Mars
Silent Running
The Time machine
War of the Worlds (Book was better than the movie)

1970’s
The original Star Wars - (Second favorite Star Wars)
Logins Run - (still a cool movie)
Invasion of the body snatchers (Creepy)
Close Encounters

1980’s
Back to the Future (I liked all three)
Return of the Jedi - (Favorite Star Wars)
Star Trek, Wrath of Khan (Second favorite Star Trek)
Aliens (The second one)
Dune, the uncut version
2010
Flash Gordon (Yes, it was a silly movie, but it was fun)
Preditor
Blade Runner (Cool Movie)

1990-2000’s
Contact (My Favorite of the 1990's)
Star Trek, First Contact - (Favorite Star Trek)
Tremors - (Fun movie)
The Time machine - (The Special effects were excellent)
Planet of the Apes
Space Cowboys (I was surprised I liked this one)
Jurassic Park (The first one)
Red Mars (Book was better)
Lost in Space (I liked it better the second time I saw it)
The Fifth Element (Silly, but fun movie)
Titan A.E. (Surprised I liked this one)
MIB II (Too Funny)

My favorite Science Fiction series is Space 1999.
I also am fond of the original Battlestar Galatica, The Six Million Dollar Man, Buck Rogers and the Incredible Hulk series – all from the 1970’s (I was a kid then)

I have always liked Star Trek.
I do like Enterprise and I can’t wait for the new episode.

An experiment I would love to see is the release of water on the Mars surface, see how it flows in the thin air and .3 G’s. See how long it last and how it erodes. Of course the more water the better.

If only a comet would slam into Mars and we had a MER ready to land (Daydreaming).

More Rush

Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres

I. Prelude

When our weary world was young
The struggle of the ancients first began.
The gods of Love and Reason
Sought alone to rule the fate of Man.

They battled through the ages,
But still neither force would yield.
The people were divided,
Every soul a battlefield.

II. Apollo/Dionysus

Apollo: Bringer of Wisdom
"I bring truth and understanding,
I bring wit and wisdom fair,
Precious gifts beyond compare.
We can build a world of wonder,
I can make you all aware.
I will find you food and shelter,
Show you fire to keep you warm
Through the endless winter storm.
You can live in grace and comfort
In the world that you transform."

The people were delighted
Coming forth to claim their prize
They ran to build their cities
And converse among the wise.
But one day the streets fell silent,
Yet they knew not what was wrong.
The urge to build these fine things
Seemed not to be so strong.
The wise men were consulted,
And the Bridge of Death was crossed
In quest of Dionysus
To find out what they had lost.

Dionysus: Bringer of Love
"I bring love to give you solace
In the darkness of the night,
In the Heart's eternal light.
You need only trust your feelings;
Only love can steer you right.
I bring laughter, I bring music,
I bring joy and I bring tears.
I will soothe your primal fears.
Throw off those chains of reason
And your prison disappears."

The cities were abandoned,
And the forests echoed song.
They danced and lived as brothers;
They knew love could not be wrong.
Food and wine they had aplenty
And they slept beneath the stars.
The people were contented
And the gods watched from afar.
But the winter fell upon them
And it caught them unprepared,
Bringing wolves and cold starvation,
And the hearts of men despaired.

III. Armageddon: The Battle of Heart and Mind

The universe divided
As the Heart and Mind collided,
With the people left unguided
For so many troubled years.
In a cloud of doubts and fears,
Their world was torn asunder into hollow
Hemispheres.

Some fought themselves, some fought each other,
Most just followed one another
Lost and aimless like their brothers
For their hearts were so unclear
And the truth could not appear
Their spirits were divided into blinded
Hemispheres.

Some who did not fight
Brought tales of old to light.
"My Rocinante sailed by night
On her final flight."
To the heart of Cygnus' fearsome force
We set our course
Spiralled through that timeless space
To this immortal place.

IV. Cygnus: Bringer of Balance

I have memory and awareness,
But I have no shape or form.
As a disembodied spirit,
I am dead and yet unborn.
I have passed into Olympus
As was told in tales of old,
To the city of Immortals,
Marble white and purest gold...

I see the gods in battle rage on high...
Thunderbolts across the sky...
I cannot move, I cannot hide...
I feel a silent scream begin inside...

Then all at once the chaos ceased
A stillness fell, a sudden peace
The warriors felt my silent cry
And stayed their struggle, mystified.

Apollo was atonished;
Dionysus thought me mad.
But they heard my story further
And they wondered, and were sad.

Looking down from Olympus
On a world of doubt and fear,
Its surface splintered
Into sorry Hemispheres.

They sat a while in silence,
Then they turned at last to me:
"We will call you Cygnus,
The god of Balance you shall be."

V.The Sphere: A Kind of Dream

We can walk our road together
If our goals are all the same.
We can run alone and free
If we pursue a different aim.
Let the Truth of Love be lighted,
Let the Love of Truth shine clear. Sensibility,
Armed with sense and liberty,
With the Heart and Mind united in a single
Perfect
Sphere.

Cindy, speaking of Chernobyl http://www.kiddofspeed.com/]this ride

I came across this web site about a year ago. Some are claiming it is only partly true, or a hoax. Whatever it is, it is very interesting.

http://www.mos.org/cst/article/453/imag … om.jpg]One more of Mars

Ah yes, the Cold War. We knew who our enemy was and they stayed on their side and we stayed on our side. We threaten each other as we flexed our muscles but we never punched each other.

It was nice to know who your enemies were and where they lived. I never thought I would prefer that over these thugs who throw sucker punches and hide in various counties including our own. I do remember being a kid in the early 1980’s and wondering when the Soviets would annihilate my city with a nuke. That probably had more to do with watching all those post nuclear war movies like mad max (The nuke scene in Terminator II, where LA was nuked, looked terrifying on the big screen.)

As for the Iraqis fighting for their freedom. They were in no position to fight for their freedom. They had a KGB type government watching then (and killing them). They had no weapons and were poorly fed.

The people who fought and died for American’s freedom 228 years ago were well fed and armed. Their opposing government was across the Atlantic. If you are an American, don’t ever forget someone died for your freedom. We take it for granted as we enjoy the freedom others died for.

And I will get off my soap box.

Our pre-9/11 innocence was an illusion (no argument there). Life was good for most Americans in the 1990’s so we stuck our heads in the sand on a lot of things. For me, I was just out of College when 1991 started. I got married shortly there after and started teaching. I spent most of the 90’s trying to get my own life in order, and I didn’t pay much attention to the outside world.

The best hope, IMO, for a terrorist free future is to get the Middle East to join the Free World. This is why Iraq and Afghanistan are so critical. If they can be made successful free democracies, others will follow. Saudi Arabia is practically a free country, as is Kuwait. In Iran, the younger generation wants to be free and is just waiting to rise up. Pakistan is cooperating with America (a little arm twisting involved.) Libya is cooperating and becoming peaceful.

Eventually the Middle East will join the free world. The seeds of freedom have been planted. Many have tasted the sweetness of freedom. I don’t think there is any going back. But the question is, how long will it take and how much will be sacrificed? Can we weather it? I hope so, because our future is at stake.