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#151 Re: Interplanetary transportation » orbital facilities » 2002-12-25 20:05:34
Would a Moon base be better than a launch from Orbit?
#152 Re: Not So Free Chat » Science Fair Ideas - Impart your Wisdom... » 2002-12-25 19:37:13
I made a quick list of plastics we can make on Mars on the plastics page of the Winnipeg chapter web site. If you really want to blow your chemistry teacher's socks off, you could make a small plant that converts carbon dioxide gas and water into polyethylene plastic. High Density PolyEthylene (HDPE) is the white plastic used for milk jugs and plastic grocery bags. The device would have 4 steps:
1) electrolysize water to produce hydrogen
2) Reverse Water Gas Shift (RWGS) to convert hydrogen and carbon dioxide into water and carbon monoxide
3) reactor that uses an iron based catalyst to convert carbon monoxide and hydrogen into ethylene and water
4) polymerization of ethylene into polyethylene
That sounds quite good, I might something like try that for the New Zealand science-fair next year.
Would you be able to give a few more details please.
#153 Re: Human missions » Paying For Mars - How to afford to send humans to Mars » 2002-12-24 23:38:50
Mars is a big planet; there is as much surface area as all the continents of Earth combined. You could sell a lot of land and still only sell a small proportion. One of my favourite authors once wrote that any opinion, no matter how expert, is only opinion unless it can be expressed in numbers. Ok, Mars has mean diameter of 6787km so the surface area is 144,712,341.65 square kilometres = 14,471,234,165 hectares = 35,759,051,902 acres. To be correct you should round those figures off to 4 significant figures, since the diameter was only that accurate. That is 35 billion acres. I doubt you will sell more than 1 million acres before you prove you can get there. The Lunar Embassy brags they have 1,002,122 customers who purchased property on the Moon, and 135,140 customers for Mars. Since they have operated since 1980, I don't think there will be a dramatic increase soon unless something happens. By the way, the Lunar Embassy intends to use their money to send something to the Moon. But as for rich people buying up Mars; they may buy an acre here or there as a curiosity, but won't make any serious purchases until there is a return on investment.
Ok, you've converted me. 
#154 Re: Not So Free Chat » Merry Christmas - :-) » 2002-12-24 22:35:54
Merry christmas to you all, I trust you have all been good little girls and boys this year and that will Santa treat you well. 
#155 Re: Not So Free Chat » Glossary » 2002-12-23 15:42:30
lol,
I was meaning stuff like ISSO and things like that.
#156 Re: Planetary transportation » Revolutionary way to explore other worlds - A wind riding rover » 2002-12-23 15:39:44
The helium used was not pure so the 14 cu ft of gas for the 36 in balloon should lift about 14 oz. The rover weighed more than four times the force of balloons 5 oz lifting gas on it yet with the right sail configuration was pushed by a 5-mph wind.
Could'nt you use hydrogen for the balloons on Mars?, because there is only like 0.13% oxygen, I think, in Martian atmosphere, would'nt hydrogen react on Mars much less than as it does on Earth?
#157 Re: Human missions » Paying For Mars - How to afford to send humans to Mars » 2002-12-23 15:23:47
I don't like the idea of selling martian land-rights at this point. Rich people will just try take advantage of it and buy heaps even if they don't really give a damn about Mars in the first place.
Its unfair on the less wealthy people who actually care about Mars and spend most of their time on stuff to do with the Red Planet to be left out in the cold by some rich bastard who does'nt care less. :angry:
#158 Re: Interplanetary transportation » Solar Wind » 2002-12-23 14:56:51
Thank you both.
#159 Re: Planetary transportation » Revolutionary way to explore other worlds - A wind riding rover » 2002-12-22 19:19:35
Hey Neutrino, welcome to the New Mars forums. 
Just one small thing, dunno how relevant it is too your post, but because the amount atmosphere on Mars is quite small does'nt that mean there is less power behiend the Martian winds, even though they are quite fast.
Sort-of like getting hit by a train at 50km compared to being in the rain with winds of 50km.
#160 Re: Not So Free Chat » Glossary » 2002-12-22 18:45:40
Could somebody post meanings to the abbreviations that are used is this forum so people like me don't have to try and decifer what they mean.
Cheers. 
#161 Re: Interplanetary transportation » Solar Wind » 2002-12-22 18:26:34
Interesting, do you happen to have any links or anything so I could get info on solar sails?
#162 Re: Interplanetary transportation » Solar Wind » 2002-12-22 17:18:51
Does Solar Wind actually push you if you are in space or is it just a flow of particles?
#163 Re: Science, Technology, and Astronomy » portable hard drives - cd-rw's and dvd-rw's will change a lot » 2002-12-19 15:20:56
Yeah, I read somewhere that computer technology doubles very very quickly, but I can't remember the approximate speed. If any one knows could they fill me in please.
#164 Re: Not So Free Chat » What if we lose? - Vietnam II? » 2002-12-19 14:29:14
In my opinion that sinks as low as terrorism itself.
#165 Re: Not So Free Chat » God, Creation, and the Universe Explained! - Life, the Universe, and Everything. » 2002-12-19 00:44:45
Rather ironic, this thread just had 666 views.
#166 Re: Science, Technology, and Astronomy » Ozone hole and Global Warming » 2002-12-18 23:42:41
Hmm, that would suck. I can't stand temperatures over 25oC.
#167 Re: Science, Technology, and Astronomy » Ozone hole and Global Warming » 2002-12-17 17:00:32
What do you guys think?
I personally think it might just be part of a natural cycle that we have sped up with greenhouse gas emissions.
I don't want to try and use scientific info to back that up cos I'll probably get shot down. :-P
#168 Re: Not So Free Chat » Things about Bin Ladden - :P » 2002-12-17 16:44:00
Read some of this:
http://forums.utopiatemple.com/showthre … adid=14664
Its a thread called "Whats wrong with the US." It is a very long argument, 90 pages last time I checked. ???
#169 Re: Not So Free Chat » Music - What type of Music are you all into? » 2002-12-17 16:32:17
Beatles, Cream, Led Zepplin, Black Sabbath, AC/DC, Mozart, Bach, Beethoven, U2, Def Leppard, The Doors, and Pink Floyd...primarily.
--Cindy
Thats quite a varied music taste you have there.
#170 Re: Human missions » why we can't get public and political support » 2002-12-17 16:25:48
education should be centered around learning--not tests. i am far more in favor of a few long research projects or reports to show that the student has an understanding of the topic. classroom discussion is also better than testing. i dont even bother cramming, because all i do is pay attention, no homework no study. gets me an A.
i think studying makes people do worse, because they get nervous...this is what i dont like about tests. i also think single shot performance evaluations in jobs are less telling than long term evaluations: you see the good days and the bad days, and the sense of immediacy and anxiety is not there as much.
Thats right, I would rather do a few long research projects.
A few people in my class stress themselves completely when a teacher says we have a test and then they completely kill them-selves with studying. I don't think tests are very fair on students.
#171 Re: Space Policy » A Mass Mailing of "The Case For Mars" - Mass Mailing to Congressman » 2002-12-17 16:03:27
Looking good.
#172 Re: Mars Society International » MS in New Zealand - MS members in NZ » 2002-12-17 15:58:56
Students can get in for $25.00.
--Cindy
But thats like $50 after the exchance rate. 
Im cheap
I should be getting some money soon, I'll hopefully be able to join then.
#173 Re: Science, Technology, and Astronomy » New Discoveries - Extraplanetary, deep space, etc. » 2002-12-17 15:36:05
That last photo looks a bit dodgy, check the ground, it looks very much like wet sand from a beach.
I'm not one of those stupid skeptics that say we never put a dude on the moon, but that ground looks a bit non-moon-like, and there arn't even any craters. It might just be a non-cratered part of the moon but it looks a bit strange.
#174 Re: Human missions » why we can't get public and political support » 2002-12-16 18:07:54
In Australia in recent years, the standard of teachers has dropped alarmingly. I've seen my own children's report cards full of punctuation, grammar, and spelling mistakes.
It's not hard to see why, either. Many of our friends' older children, who failed to get into their preferred careers because of poor academic results, went into teaching!! Teaching has become a depository for people who can't get into anything else.
This to me is absolutely scandalous! The profession of teaching should be sacred. Only the best and brightest should be allowed to impart knowledge to our children because it's crucial to every child's future and, ultimately, to the success of our society.
It's been suggested that they should 'raise the bar' considerably when it comes to the academic standards of would-be teachers, while simultaneously raising the rates of pay to very high levels. We need to enhance the status of teaching and start attracting the highest calibre of applicant for the job ... putting it up there with law and medicine.
Thats very true, my first science teacher was the man. I could ask him about absolutly everything and he would go out of his way to explain it to me, and if he did'nt know off the top of his head he would find it out for me. My science teacher now does'nt have anywhere near his knowledge, I think she is cool and all but in some things I know more than her which I think is kinda wrong.
So yeah, teachers are very important.
In countries like Japan, everyone goes through the system and works very hard. Even after they go to countries like NZ, Aussie or the US and they are very successful. I think we need that 'educational spirit' attitude back. The only way I know that we could do that is possibly make education cost again. There will be heaps of arguements about it but the people who abuse the education system wont be much worse off than they are already.
In the early New Zealand history ('bout 1880, can't remeber), when education became free everybody went and studyed hard. After a while the interest wore off and education was made complusery up until 15. But then education was'nt important as it was now. We have to get that interest back into the education system.
I admit, I did'nt really try all that hard at school this year, but the maths and stuff we did was way easy for me so I got bored. That came back to haunt me with my exam results, I only got like 85% for science and even worse 63% for maths. I was shocked to hear the average for maths in my year was about 23%!!!! ???
Education has to be made more fun for young people cos we just loose interest, also I did'nt work to my full potental this year because it did'nt actually count for anything. If this year was actually worth something I could stick on my C.V., I would've have knuckled down and worked. Next year though is a different story. Im ganna work my butt off.
Well thats the point of view of the education system from somebody inside it. Excuse grammatical mistakes and stuff.
#175 Re: New Mars Articles » Supporting Mars in the face of other ills - About a comment on an New Mars article » 2002-12-16 17:16:35
The power of advertising is alot stronger than I thought it would be.
A guy my dad knows owns this shop, he ordered these stupid spinning-top toys called "Bane-Blades" and no-body bought them for months. Then he saw a couple of adverts on T.V. which were part of the toys Ad campaign and now he has queues outside and he can sell 100 of the things in less than 10 minutes.
People are really quite shallow, especially young people like me. So if you can get into their minds, you can tell them anything and they'll believe you.