1/3 Final Paper

 

As our world begins to grow and develop, our dependency for land and resources is increasing. We are coming close to consuming all of the earth’s surface and fossil fuels and now need to expand beyond the boundaries of this planet, into outer space where we can establish settlements and salvage resources.

 

Taking the time and money to invest in a program and develop settlements in outer space contains many benefits that will help our world, along with the people in it. According to “Space Settlements of Tomorrow”, “The world’s population is doubling every thirty-five years, our own planet is becoming over-crowded and suffering increasingly from the effects of pollution and its renewable energy resources will eventually run out.” Fortunately for us we have possible means to solve this crisis. These means consist of expanding our living boundaries beyond our Earth and into space and onto other planets. Mars is a perfect example because it contains resources that are able to support life forms such as humans. Hydrogen, oxygen and water are a few examples resources that Mars holds for us to use and live off of. Although, they are not usually found in a usable form. Water, for example, is an abundant resource found all over the surface of Mars in the form of ice and permafrost. In fact, it is so abundant that if Mars were smooth and all ice and permafrost melted into liquid water, the entire planet would be covered with an ocean over 100 meters deep (Zubrin). Unfortunately, the water is frozen, meaning that settlers would have to melt it before it could be used for growing plants or drinking water.

Not all of our reasons for expanding into space are due to over population. Another motive is because humans are draining the naturally resources found on our planet Earth. We are a growing species, and need these resources to support this growth. In order to do so, we need to explore other planets to find hot spots that can be mined for valuable resources, which we can use to form a trade between the colony and Earth. Places like the Moon and the main asteroid belt hold large amounts of the element Helium-3, which can be refined and possibly used as an alternative energy resource in thermonuclear reactors. Considering our situation here on Earth with rapidly increasing gasoline prices, the concept of an alternative energy source completely separated from crude oil is incredibly appealing. Along with this idea of finding an alternative energy source, comes inventions and trade. For instance, certain alloy can be produced in space because some metals do not mix successfully in the presence of gravity (Space Settlements of Tomorrow). There have been some alloys and special types of glasses that have already been produced that are not accessible on earth. By trading with Earth, space colonies can profit from these kinds of inventions because of supply and demand.

 

As we can see, taking the time to explore and harness the different parts of our solar system contains many benefits and rewards for us as humans. Of course, it is not that easy. There are many difficulties that hinder the process of getting up into and maintaining life in outer space. During the previous Apollo missions to the moon, NASA encountered a problem that they were unprepared for. This problem was Moon dust. Unfortunately for NASA, there was no way to avoid it at the time. This jagged, incredibly clingy substance that covered the entire surface of the Moon could be compared to powdered glass (Christe). “Quickly jams spacesuit joints, clogs air filters and chokes radiators, causing the batteries of moon rovers to overheat”. Essentially, Moon dust was like a plague that swept over all the equipment and eventually working its way into the lungs of the astronauts. Simple dangers like this, which have the potential to endanger an entire mission, could come in many different forms. Making the planning of the trip incredibly difficult as well as putting fear in the minds of the astronauts.

Companies like Hilton have wished for and even designed, a tourist hotel for individuals who have the desire to vacation on the moon. Unfortunately, ideas such as this have not been completed due to expensive, inefficient and unreliable sources of transportation (Thornton). This hotel would be big enough to fit 100 guests in a glass dome with pressurized rooms. In order to maintain this hotel, keeping it supplied with food and oxygen, an incredibly large amount of launches would be needed. But with our current form of transportation being SSTO (Single Stage To Orbit) vehicles, the amount of mass that is required to be lifted compared to the amount of force needed to lift it is too high to be done frequently.

A Game of Cards

 

This essay, written by Norman Cousins, talks about different philosophical viewpoints of men. He refers to things like our good/evil nature and our self centered, combative or cooperative ways. Then he begins to discuss how he thinks that this discussion which has lasted for eternity is completely ridiculous. He believes that man is both good and evil, cooperative and combative. He believes that there is no clear solution to this argument. Then he begins to talk about our history of power and success in terms of industry and technology. He gives examples of how past powers that have fallen because of fear and he then relates that to the present. He explains how he is concerned for our technological advancements. He feels that our fear will destroy thousands of years of human progress.

I like the first part of this essay, where he talked about how the discussion of man was insignificant. I really liked it when he used the title, “A Game of Cards”, to relate to his belief that free will and determinism are both true. He said that life is predetermined when your hand is dealt to you, but the way you play your cards represents free will. I don’t know if it is just me, but i find that analogy to be completely awesome! I love it! But what i don’t like about this essay is that he ends it on something that is completely irrelevant to the first part. I don’t know why he chose to talk about the fall of humans. My guess is, like Mrs. Meeuwenberg said, when people are really passionate about certain things they tend to drift off topic and talk about something completely irrelevant. But for the most part i like this essay, well, at least the first part. 

Leaving Identity Issues to Other Folks

In this essay Phyllis Allen gives us a display of her entire life and how it related to the culture changes through the decades. She gave examples to us about how she formed herself to these movements. Like in the 60’s when she first got a TV, she talked about how she witnessed the black people being beaten and abused, being told that she was a Negro and part of the march to freedom. Then during the 70’s she talks about how she gave up on the concept of non violent protesting and became part of the black pride movement. Then in the 90’s she talks about how she got into the credit card craze and eventually found herself in large amounts of debt. And then during this new millennium she refers back to her introduction where she gives a quote from her mother to be the best you can be.

I really like this essay. Although i am not really in the position to relate to it in any way considering I’m white and i have not quite experienced the the 50’s through this new millennium. I must say that i love the simplicity and structure of this essay. It starts out with a simple introduction from when she was a young girl and then for every paragraph it gives a general concept of her life through every decade. Then for the last paragraph it ties right back to the introduction. Like i said, i cant really relate to what she is saying but i do like how she says it.

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In my application to Hope they asked me to write about something that is important to me.

All my life i have wished i was smart. I know this is quite a ridiculous statement, but I’m completely serious when saying this. I’m not like an incredibly depressed person that dreads every day of their life. I do actually appreciate who i am, and i honestly wouldn’t change myself very much if i could go back in time and do so. I just think I’m not as academically smart as i want to be, and the most frustrating part of it is i actually desire academic intelligence. I have my entire life.

Starting from when i was in elementary school, i used to watch cartoons like Dexter’s Laboratory and Jimmy Neutron because the main characters were kid geniuses. Dexter had an entire science lab behind his book shelf in his bedroom that only he knew about it (and of course his sister). And after school he would go home, open up his lab by means of an eye scan, finger print scan or even the classic one where you pull on a specific book which pulls a lever behind the bookshelf. Whichever one he used, Dexter would then spend the rest of his day in his lab designing, creating and building his inventions. Every night i would go to bed, but for an hour before i fell asleep i would imagine my life with a laboratory in my room and a intellect that no one knew about, hoping that maybe later in life i will discoverer that my imagination could come close to reality.

On top of that, i have grown up with intelligent friends. All of them are academically successful people. They are the kind of people that have 4.0 or 3.9 GPAs and get 30s on their ACT scores and are able to store large amounts of random knowledge from life in their heads. I’m not saying that they are complete nerds, they just happen to be unbelievably successful at academic things. In fact, quite a few of them are very athletic. It’s because of my friends that i have a huge desire to be academically intelligent. Every day of my life i am intimidated by these kinds of people because during your youth, the majority of your life is spent doing school related things. Because of this, people judge you based on your academic success because there is nothing else to judge you on. So all my life I’ve lived with the thought in my head that i am pretty much worthless , i have no encouraging future and i will never be able to make anything of myself because school is life and I’m not good at it.

Between my childhood fantasies and the jealousy i have for my friends, i want to be intelligent. I want to be able to have the ability to do something incredible, something that people will respect and appreciate me for. Something that will help me bring out my imagination and bring me closer to my goals and dreams. And i want to be able to be confident with myself and my future without having to limit my aspirations because one part of me as a whole isn’t as acceptable as the rest.   

The Holy Life of the Intellect

George Bowering wrote an essay about the mind and how it is a connection to the divine. He talks about when you express your self and show your creativity through things you do you are allowing other people to see what is going on in your mind and because he believes that is what God wants us to see and that is how our minds are connected to God. He gives examples like a pianist giving a solo during jazz piece, during that time you are able to experience their mind as it shifts and operates between each note. He also gives more examples of poetry and improvisation and how it displays such unique characteristics of each persons mind and allowing you to be able to grasp what that person was thinking.

I love what this guy has to say. I totally agree with what he is talking about. For me personally i feel by expressing myself in my own creative ways i am displaying what God has given me wanting me to use to glorify Him. To be able to see me doing things you are able to get a feel for how i think and by that you will be able to witness God and get a better feel for who He is and what He can do. To be able to see people doing what they do is incredible. I enjoy watching people at work doing what they love to do, because when people have passion for what they do that is when you can really get an understanding for who they are. You can see their mind, and through this you can see God.

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Freeing Myself Through Forgiveness

In this essay Yolanda Young writes about here life’s dramas, most specifically about her father. From the beginning she has never felt love for her father, but instead she loved her grandparents and uncles because they were the ones that were there for her, they were the ones that helped raised her through the things like teaching her how to ride a bike or playing basketball. She has witnessed many times when her father beat her mother and in one case, even shot her. But after experiencing these kinds of things all her life and growing up the way she did, she still loves him and still forgives him. Even thought he doesn’t ask for forgiveness, she still gives it to him because it helps free herself.

I am honestly incredibly perplexed by this. I don’t understand how anyone could still be able to do this. I know i haven’t every experienced anything like this, and i probably never will but the fact that she still invites him back after everything he has done and everything he keeps doing surprises me. I wish that i could be that caring and forgiving. I guess this is just a perfect example that the rest of us can learn from and motivate us to do likewise.

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I Believe Miracles are No More Than Every Day Occurrences of God’s Grace

What do you think of when someone brings up the topic of miracles? Most people think of stories about Jesus when he cured the sick or when he raised people from the dead. As amazing as that sounds, I feel as though miracles are much more simple than that. I believe miracles are no more than every day occurrences of God’s grace.

To me it seems like some people live there lives day to day waiting for God to show them that one miracle that will change their life. They want to believe in something but they don’t know where to start so they wait for God to give them a sign or guide them to the right path. And I find that to be ridiculous. People shouldn’t wait around for there belief to come and hit them in the face, they need to go out there and find it, and that is exactly what I do. Every day I look for miracles in my life, I look for the little things. Things that remind me that God is present in my life. Not things that show me God is present, because faith is believing in something that you can’t see.

It’s things like getting a good grade on a test or receiving a nice comment from someone you don’t know very well. Or maybe that little miracle could be a good friend, someone that you are close with, someone who you can share things with and be yourself around. It’s little reminders like that where God can be telling you that you aren’t alone, you’ll always have someone down here and you’ll always have someone up there to rely on.

These little miracles give me hope, inspiration, and motivation to get me through my day. I always know I will be able to find one. And the greatest thing is, it never matters how small they are because it will always be able to make me stop for just that one second. That’s all I need, just one second to remind me that God is there to help me, comfort me, and protect me.

Tomorrow Will be a Better Day

Josh Rittenberg wrote an essay for NPR’s This I Believe, and it was titled “€œTomorrow Will be a Better Day”€. In this essay he starts out by talking about at time when his dad was concerned with the future of our (16 year old’s) generation. He lists off examples of how we will go into a world wide depression, start a nuclear war, or a pandemic that kills millions of people. He then refers back to when his great grandparents immigrated to America and how they must have felt the same way about there and children and how his grandparents must have felt the same way about there children. And they were right. Over the generations, we have gone through some serious issues like two world wars, nuclear attacks, killer flu, and segregation. But at the same time there has been a lot of incredible advancements like the end of two world wars, the polio vaccine, and the passage of the civil rights laws. That is why he believes tomorrow will be a Better Day.

I like this, i think that he makes a solid point. Of course it isn’t going to be easy, life just isn’t like that. There are going to be some mess ups and fall backs to what we do in the future but i also believe we are going to make some incredible achievements too. I believe that over all, we will be proud of our generation and our future just like every other generation was. And to be able to keep that in the back of our minds would be a great thing. It would give everyone a slight feeling of optimism and motivation to make a difference in the world.

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Disrupting Your Comfort Zone

Brian Grazer, an author from a this I believe article called “€œDisrupting my Comfort Zone”€. In this article he describes himself and explains his achievements and successes. He co-founded Imagine Entertainment and is an Oscar winning movie producer for films like A Beautiful Mind, and Apollo 13. But he doesn’t care so much about his life’s work and his success stories, he is more interested in doing things he has never done and taking new steps in order learn new things. He wants to get outside of the box. He gives examples of times when he has asked people that he doesn’t know to meet with him so he could learn from them. He puts himself in awkward and different situations to experience more of life because he doesn’t believe that succeeding at what you are good at isn’t enough.

I personally love this guy, he is living life the fullest and i respect that completely. But, i’m totally jealous because i could never pull myself to do these kinds of things. I have never had enough guts to bring myself outside of my comfort zone and explore what other things this world has to offer. I totally want to but i am just too much of a chicken to do so. His ideas and beliefs are perfect examples for everyone else to go out and experience what God has put out there for us to enjoy. I believe that everyone should take this as advice and someday go out there and do something totally crazy and out of place and experience something you’ve never experienced before.

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Free Public Transportaion?

In this article by Tracy Stokes, she tries to argue that the community would benefit and it would be more convenient if we made public transportation free. She puts out some reasons why we would benefit: reduce green house gas emissions, reduce other air pollutants, reduce oil consumption, reduce litter (bus and train tickets), save trees (no need to print tickets), reduce need of parking and allows bus system to run faster and smoother. She later explains how Belgium went about with the same idea and pulled it off. They started with only eight city buses and about 360,000 passengers a year. But when they made public transportation free they increased their number of city buses to 46 and obtained an average of 12,600 passengers a day.

If you are like me, you are thinking that the only way that this can be done is if we had a huge increase in taxes. This is somewhat true. We most likely would have to have an increase on our taxes but not as much as you would think. By making it free it would eliminate quite a few employees needed for selling, printing and managing tickets. And if you were to partake in public transportation you would most likely save money by paying more taxes compared to paying an arm and a leg to fill up your car. I personally like the idea of eliminating the need for parking garages and reducing the business on the roads. Over all, this idea could possibly cover a lot of problems that our country is encountering because of over population. I don’t necessarily think that we should jump right into it, but i do think we should at least consider it.

Why Free Public Transportation Would Work