The Arms Race, Curiosity, and Intergalactic Tea Parties
While mankind has evolved, changed, and adapted to its environment, there has been one consistent theme. I’m not talking about the drive to reproduce, (even though that’s certainly been there from the start as well). No, the theme I’m referring to is curiosity. Deeply ingrained in our genes, man has forever been trying to figure out the world around him. While we are far from unearthing all the secrets about life here on earth, I’d argue that the most exciting and worthwhile discoveries are to be made far from the comfort of our home planet.
Gradually, throughout the years, mankind has made steps towards better understanding our place in the universe. These steps turned to leaps and bounds however, from the late 1950’s to early 1970’s. Why is this? Well, anyone who has taken high school history can tell you it was a result of the Cold War and the United States’ ongoing desire to one-up the Soviets.
Going from an earthbound species, to then putting the first satellite in orbit then a man on the moon all within a decade, it seemed like we’d be on Mars within the turn of the century. However, when you examine the motivations behind going to the moon, it soon becomes apparent why this is not the case. A clear way to do this is to examine the payoff matrices driving these decisions.
Here is roughly a payoff matrix from Congress’s Point of view.
|
USSR |
|||
| United
States |
Lands on the Moon |
Doesn’t Land on the Moon | |
| Lands on the Moon |
2, 2 |
10, -5 |
|
| Doesn’t land on the Moon |
-5, 10 |
0, 0 |
|
Of course great prestige would be awarded to the first victor while copious damage is done to the other’s national image. If neither were to succeed, neither would benefit. And if both were to succeed within a very short window of each other, the recognized prowess of both nations would increase, but only slightly.
However, nationalism and image are hardly the sole motivators in an endeavor such as this one. When examining the matter from a scientific standpoint, this is how I (and many other scientists and space enthusiasts) would rate this matrix:
|
USSR |
|||
| United
States |
Lands on the Moon |
Doesn’t Land on the Moon | |
| Lands on the Moon |
100, 100 |
50, 51 |
|
| Doesn’t land on the Moon |
51, 50 |
0, 0 |
|
Perhaps this matrix would be weighted a little differently if I were writing this with the constant fear of the Cold War weighing on me; but this is where I stand now. The key here is that the secrets of the universe do not belong to one nation alone. The great majesty of every star, every black hole, the swirling spiral galaxies that neighbor our own- they transcend national rivalries and the passing conflicts that plague life here on earth. They have been there long before the first legged beast roamed the earth and will be there long after the last footprint fades from the surface of our pale blue dot. Every step towards becoming an interplanetary species, towards unlocking the secrets of the universe is a step for mankind, not one nation alone.
Now, let us fast forward to the present. It is here where I have to disagree with one of Dr. Tyson’s most famous statements. He argues that we have stopped dreaming, but I believe that that is hardly the case. Go outside on a clear night and see all of the people craning their necks to catch a glimpse of the stars. There are dreamers all around you.
So then where is our colony on Mars? Our day spa on Europa? Our tea party with Bertrand Russell in orbit around the sun? (Or any other actually reasonable and practical missions?) The sad fact is that these dreamers and those allocating funding don’t really seem to align. The folks distributing the tax dollars no longer see a payoff. As far as our government is concerned, the game is over. We’re no longer at war with the Soviet Union; we have no rival with whom this tactic will work. As a result, NASA’s budget has been cut to ¼ of a penny on every tax dollar. There simply is no longer the necessary funding to make great strides. So is this what it’s come to then? We need to be in an arms race if we ever want to put a man on Mars?
Luckily for the dreamers and pacifists alike there is still hope. With privatized space agencies rapidly growing, our hopes of becoming that interplanetary species we’ve been dreaming of no longer lies solely in the hands of the government. Started by dreamers and funded by dreamers, these people know that there doesn’t need to be a game to be a player. They recognize that discovery and knowledge has a value of its own. So with that, I will part with one final remark. Dream on, folks.
-turtles all the way down
Sources:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0265964604000177
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbIZU8cQWXc