Quote:
Originally Posted by Wavytone
Can't think of any good reason why we should be in the space race - it simply isn't necessary to investigate the behaviour of the bacteria in termites guts nor the sex lives of monkeys in a zero-G environment, for the simple reason they don't live in zero G on earth.
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I think this is quite a narrow outlook and perspective of the science done in space. Whether it be by humans, animals, or robotics, it does have a huge impact here on earth (beyond Teflon). They don't send up a few monkeys to have sex just because they think it'll be fun.
Research in zero or micro-g provides us with insights we could otherwise not easily obtain on earth. Vacuum chambers provide us with a space-like environment (except they still contain gravity and are shielded from the radiation in space). This space-like environment gave us light bulbs, particle accelerators, electron microscopes, computer chips, etc. Going the extra step to experiment in micro-g provides us with even more.
Take materials science. Research in zero-G or microgravity on the ISS allows us to design new materials and work out ways to combine materials in new ways not easily possible on earth (e.g.
http://science.nasa.gov/science-news...msad15sep99_1/)
Then there is research into energy generation. Things like combustion area studied in microgravity to provide insights into more efficient ways to produce energy.
There really is a LOT that goes on up there which isn't often publicised. The economic returns of space science are quite high.
Cheers,
Af.
