What has NASA done for you?

*NASA or NAACP? *

There is controversy as to whether or not space exploration is worthy of
federal (tax payer) funding. Space exploration has helped to create many
medical advances among other more common household products that we take
for granted. Project Mercury
http://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/kscpao/history/mercury/mercury.htm began
in 1958 and helped to develop blood pressure testers in order to make
sure that man's first orbit remained safe to his health. Scratch proof
eyeglass lenses were originally the glass coating for satellites to
protect them from floating space particles. Nitinol
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitinol, the shape memory alloy, helps to
adhere braces to teeth. And we should not forget all of the things
telemetry has done for us; such as, allowing automatic monitoring for
alarm systems, oil rigs, chemical plants, cell phones, cameras, remote
radio broadcasts, and global positioning systems.

When most people wake up in the morning they will make something for
breakfast, pack a lunch, check their email and grab their Ipod, cell
phone or palm pilot. When they leave for work or school they will close
the garage door, pop in a CD and even look up maps on a screen in their
dash. All of this happens before even entering the technologically
enhanced office or school, thanks to NASA.

Yet some people have the gall to not appreciate NASA and ask, "What has
NASA done for me?" Well, the Tempur-Pedic
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TEMPUR bed you woke up on, the Tephlon
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teflon coated pan you scrambled your eggs
in and the microwave you reheated your coffee in are direct results from
products invented by NASA. DuPont
http://www1.dupont.com/NASApp/dupontglobal/corp/index.jsp?page=/content/US/en_US/news/product/2005/pn07_11_05a.html
makes many of our daily used household products such as Ziploc bags,
refrigerants, oven mitts, bake ware, inhalers, and toothbrushes to name
very few of their products that were either derived from or used within
the space exploration programs. Even Velcro was first used in the space
shuttle and may be used to help save the current space expedition
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20050803/NASA03/TPScience/.


Without NASA your cable would not come in digital or satellite nor would
you be able to check the weather across the country. Your email would
never work and your cell phone would be pointless. The remote would not
lower your garage door, your CD would not hold more than a song or two
and your advanced never-get-lost system would never have been created.
Your sandwich would be stale by lunchtime, your soda would be in a cup
and your insulated http://www.specprom.com/images/sm195/lnhsak.jpg
lunch bag would be brown and paper. We haven't even gotten through the
day and I think I have made my point. What has NASA done for you? Must
you really ask?

Interenting commentary, but please check
http://www.ideafinder.com/history/in...s/story068.htm. The microwave
oven did not come about because of NASA.

Regards, Ross
C-172F 180HP
KSWI


BobGoFish wrote:
*NASA or NAACP? *

There is controversy as to whether or not space exploration is worthy of
federal (tax payer) funding. Space exploration has helped to create many
medical advances among other more common household products that we take
for granted. Project Mercury
http://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/kscpao/history/mercury/mercury.htm began
in 1958 and helped to develop blood pressure testers in order to make
sure that man's first orbit remained safe to his health. Scratch proof
eyeglass lenses were originally the glass coating for satellites to
protect them from floating space particles. Nitinol
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitinol, the shape memory alloy, helps to
adhere braces to teeth. And we should not forget all of the things
telemetry has done for us; such as, allowing automatic monitoring for
alarm systems, oil rigs, chemical plants, cell phones, cameras, remote
radio broadcasts, and global positioning systems.

When most people wake up in the morning they will make something for
breakfast, pack a lunch, check their email and grab their Ipod, cell
phone or palm pilot. When they leave for work or school they will close
the garage door, pop in a CD and even look up maps on a screen in their
dash. All of this happens before even entering the technologically
enhanced office or school, thanks to NASA.

Yet some people have the gall to not appreciate NASA and ask, "What has
NASA done for me?" Well, the Tempur-Pedic
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TEMPUR bed you woke up on, the Tephlon
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teflon coated pan you scrambled your eggs
in and the microwave you reheated your coffee in are direct results from
products invented by NASA. DuPont
http://www1.dupont.com/NASApp/dupontglobal/corp/index.jsp?page=/content/US/en_US/news/product/2005/pn07_11_05a.html
makes many of our daily used household products such as Ziploc bags,
refrigerants, oven mitts, bake ware, inhalers, and toothbrushes to name
very few of their products that were either derived from or used within
the space exploration programs. Even Velcro was first used in the space
shuttle and may be used to help save the current space expedition
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20050803/NASA03/TPScience/.


Without NASA your cable would not come in digital or satellite nor would
you be able to check the weather across the country. Your email would
never work and your cell phone would be pointless. The remote would not
lower your garage door, your CD would not hold more than a song or two
and your advanced never-get-lost system would never have been created.
Your sandwich would be stale by lunchtime, your soda would be in a cup
and your insulated http://www.specprom.com/images/sm195/lnhsak.jpg
lunch bag would be brown and paper. We haven't even gotten through the
day and I think I have made my point. What has NASA done for you? Must
you really ask?

In article ,
says...


Interenting commentary, but please check
http://www.ideafinder.com/history/in...s/story068.htm. The microwave
oven did not come about because of NASA.



Neither did the CD.
But a lot of wing and aerodynamic study, that we all use in our flying
activities is attributable to NASA.

G Faris

Not mine, since my plane was built in 1953 and NASA probably wasn't around
at the time.


"Greg Farris" wrote in message
...
In article ,
says...


Interenting commentary, but please check
http://www.ideafinder.com/history/in...s/story068.htm. The microwave
oven did not come about because of NASA.



Neither did the CD.
But a lot of wing and aerodynamic study, that we all use in our flying
activities is attributable to NASA.

G Faris

"Terry Briggs" wrote:
Not mine, since my plane was built in 1953 and NASA
probably wasn't around
at the time.

True of even modern fiberglass designs. Search through
NASA's technical report server, and one will see they
basically stopped doing subsonic research (when it was NACA)
about 50+ years ago.

Fred F.

Greg Farris wrote:

But a lot of wing and aerodynamic study, that we all use in our flying
activities is attributable to NASA.

Most of that was done well before NASA was born -- it's only been in the last
few years that NASA has been doing any sub-sonic research, and I haven't heard
that they actually have released anything new yet.

George Patterson
Give a person a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a person to
use the Internet and he won't bother you for weeks.

Dang,
I hate being the odd man out here, but when I was a boy I watched Neil
Armstrong take the first step on the moon. I was absolutely hooked on
anything that flew in the sky or space since. So I guess because of NASA I
became a fan of aviation, a structural mech, now a student sport pilot.
Because it affected my life it has also touched my son and he has a good
interest in aviation.
Yes NASA needs to do something! They need to spend money wisely..which
seems impossible for any government agency. And most important they need to
do something "FANTASTIC" ...after all there may be another young boy
watching........

Patrick
student SPL
aircraft structural mech

..

In article ,
"W P Dixon" wrote:

Dang,
I hate being the odd man out here, but ...

You aren't alone. But there isn't much point engaging in
a discussion of the merits of space flight (manned and unmanned)
with closed-minded people.

--
Bob Noel
no one likes an educated mule

In article ,
BobGoFish wrote:

*NASA or NAACP? *

There is controversy as to whether or not space exploration is worthy of
federal (tax payer) funding.

That is true, but there is considerably more controversy over whether
*manned* space exploration is worthy of taxpayer funding, and more
controversy still over whether taxpayers ought to continue to fund NASA.
These are three distinct questions, and ought not to be conflated.

[ List of cool things NASA has supposedly done snipped ]

FIrst, the attribution of some of the technologies in this list (like
email) to NASA is highly questionable. But more importantly, it is not
at all clear that these technological advances would not have happened
without NASA. And in recent years one could seriously ask what advances
we might have had if, for example, the space shuttle and space station
programs had not been sucking tens of billions of dollars into the
cosmic void with absolutely nothing to show for it. (Note that nearly
all of the technologies on the list of Cool Things NASA Has Done are
over twenty years old.)

NASA is, by and large, not about space exploration, it's about funneling
money to key Congressional districts and (recently) saving face in the
international community. The vast majority of NASA's budget goes to
shuttle and ISS, neither of which has ever "explored" anything except
the limits of the American public's tolerance for boondoggles. (It has
yet to find them.)

I support space exploration. I think the American public really gets
its money's worth from NASA's unmanned missions. And when Virgin
Spaceways starts selling tickets I'll be there with my checkbook. But
NASA's manned program (which is the vast majority of NASA) is nothing
but a great money-consuming black hole. It ought to be scrapped.

rg

Ron Garret wrote:

That is true, but there is considerably more controversy over whether
*manned* space exploration is worthy of taxpayer funding, and more
controversy still over whether taxpayers ought to continue to fund NASA.

This guy says it better than I can.
http://makeashorterlink.com/?O5714629B

George Patterson
Give a person a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a person to
use the Internet and he won't bother you for weeks.