Nasa Experiment Cont.
4 messages in this thread
Hi Chris, I was kinda rushed yesterday, and I wanted to keep it short as the
ASOFT forum people get a lot of grief about threads which aren't related to the
header and messages in the wrong section. Personally I find your projects very
interesting and a uniquely different application for 3ds.
I frequently find myself answering hardware related questions so its really
refreshing to get some different insight on how you and others are applying
3DS. I must say your situation is one of the most interesting as its off the
beaten path but at the same time can have such profound implications.
Thanks for sharing your efforts, I hope that this will encourage other people
considering 3DS in related fields to take a look at some of the possibilities
and the kinds of things you've been able to accomplish.
-JE
Thanks. We've had missions that people have called "stealth science" missions
because **somebody** decided that the experiments were too complex for the
public to understand. When the last mission was getting set, the people
involved in the project management side at NASA Lewis wanted to make an effort
to get the word out so that the people that are paying the bills have a chance
of understanding what they are paying for.
A series of videotapes was made, one for each of the 6 (I think) Lewis
experiments. My animations were part of one of these tapes, since Zeno **is** a
pretty esoteric thing for the average non-tech person to grasp.
I'm working in a research group that develops high-temperature polymers, and am
continually looking for ways to use my 3DS experience to "get the word out".
Chris
Chris,
It seems to me that openess with regard to publicly funded projects is the best
way to garner public support. Exotic as well as fundemental research is an
investment in the future. I may not fully understand all the implications of
the kind of research NASA is performing but I find it very interesting just the
same. I can also understand the problem agency's like NASA are facing it terms
of funding. Making the public aware of projects has the potential of
politicising them, whereas keeping them secret there is less risk of a public
outcry. But an educated public is an informed public which most of us in this
"democratic" society feel is a corner stone to the philosophy "we the people".
Thanks again for sharing your work in support of this effort.
-JE
John: I certainly agree, as do most of the people that I work with. I think
that the consideration on the earlier mission wasn't in terms of trying to hide
anything, just that it was considered too hard to make the science understood
to the average taxpayer.
I think that making the effort – like they did with this last flight – is the
right way to approach even serious science.
Chris