Comments on: The God Particle and 21st Century Waves http://21stcenturywaves.com/2008/06/12/the-god-particle-and-21st-century-waves/ TECHNOLOGY BOOMS AND HUMAN EXPANSION INTO THE COSMOS Mon, 21 May 2012 17:39:06 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: Tsvi Bisk http://21stcenturywaves.com/2008/06/12/the-god-particle-and-21st-century-waves/comment-page-1/#comment-29 Tsvi Bisk Fri, 13 Jun 2008 16:23:42 +0000 http://21stcenturywaves.com/blog/2008/06/12/the-god-particle-and-21st-century-waves/#comment-29 I believe Mike Zorn's comment is well made. What MEPs could be sold to a democratic citizenry? 1. Getting the United States off of imported oil within 10 years -- doable, explanable, good for economy, related to national security and national pride (the day the last tanker unloading foreign oil leaves port will become a national holiday like the 4th of July) 2. From anti-communism to anti-cometism; developing a planetary defense system against astroids, comets etc. -- doable, explanable, good for the survival of the human race...(every 20 million years or so the planet earth has a really shitty day). Both these projects have easily explained positive practical consequences, but (like the man on the moon project) will also require much basic science research to be successful. Obscure, pure science with no explanable practical consequences is not a hard sell it is an impossible sell when it requires tons of taxpayer money. Pure science used to be cheaper than applied science -- today it is more expensive. This might be considered a great dilema for human progress, but thankfully much "applied" science today requires a great deal of basic science to succeed. I believe Mike Zorn’s comment is well made. What MEPs could be sold to a democratic citizenry?
1. Getting the United States off of imported oil within 10 years — doable, explanable, good for economy, related to national security and national pride (the day the last tanker unloading foreign oil leaves port will become a national holiday like the 4th of July)
2. From anti-communism to anti-cometism; developing a planetary defense system against astroids, comets etc. — doable, explanable, good for the survival of the human race…(every 20 million years or so the planet earth has a really shitty day).

Both these projects have easily explained positive practical consequences, but (like the man on the moon project) will also require much basic science research to be successful.

Obscure, pure science with no explanable practical consequences is not a hard sell it is an impossible sell when it requires tons of taxpayer money. Pure science used to be cheaper than applied science — today it is more expensive. This might be considered a great dilema for human progress, but thankfully much “applied” science today requires a great deal of basic science to succeed.

]]> By: Mike Zorn http://21stcenturywaves.com/2008/06/12/the-god-particle-and-21st-century-waves/comment-page-1/#comment-28 Mike Zorn Thu, 12 Jun 2008 23:50:07 +0000 http://21stcenturywaves.com/blog/2008/06/12/the-god-particle-and-21st-century-waves/#comment-28 Lesson 4: Not only was the physics profound, it was largely incomprehensible to the average citizen - and the average Congressman (which includes all of them). The pyramids were in all likelihood built over the objections of the average Egyptian. All the other MEPs had great visibility and a connection with national pride. Looking for tiny little things, underground, with machinery that doesn't even make for a good news clip (unlike latter years' spinning tape drives), makes for a hard sell. And I think we do have to sell these things to the public - after all, they're footing the bill. But given the level of science education in this country, it's a lost cause. The A-bomb project grew without public support because the very nature of secrecy involved kept it hidden. I don't know if you could include it in the "canonical list of MEPs". Lesson 4: Not only was the physics profound, it was largely incomprehensible to the average citizen – and the average Congressman (which includes all of them). The pyramids were in all likelihood built over the objections of the average Egyptian. All the other MEPs had great visibility and a connection with national pride. Looking for tiny little things, underground, with machinery that doesn’t even make for a good news clip (unlike latter years’ spinning tape drives), makes for a hard sell.

And I think we do have to sell these things to the public – after all, they’re footing the bill. But given the level of science education in this country, it’s a lost cause.

The A-bomb project grew without public support because the very nature of secrecy involved kept it hidden. I don’t know if you could include it in the “canonical list of MEPs”.

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