Why not go back to the moon?
Why do you hate the moon, John P. Holdren, Presidential science adviser and director of the U.S. Office of Science and Technology Policy?
At least, I'm pretty sure that's what the questioner at this session from the AAAS Forum on Science and Technology Policy was trying to ask. Holdren, for his part, has a pretty good answer—namely, that re-prioritizing how we spend money on space, and killing specific programs that aren't turning out a good (science) return on (money/time) investment, isn't the same thing as spray-painting "The Moon Sucks!" on the White House locker-room door.
And, yes, Neil Armstrong thinks we need to go back asap. But Buzz Aldrin disagrees. And, as we all know, it does not pay to argue with Buzz Aldrin.
For more detail on the Obama space plan, and why it could be a very good thing for NASA and space-lovers in general, check out this analysis by Phil Plait.
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Maggie Koerth-Baker
I do the Twitter, the Google+, and (to a much lesser extent) the Facebook.
Books
• Before the Lights Go Out: Conquering the Energy Crisis Before It Conquers Us
Upcoming Appearances
• April 2 at Skeptics in the Pub, Boston, Mass.— 7:00 pm at Tommy Doyle's in Harvard Square. Please RSVP.
•April 4 at MIT: "Shedding Light, Online", a discussion about how blogging and a dynamic audience helped shape my book, Before the Lights Go Out—4:00 pm in Maseeh Hall. Please RSVP.
• April 6 at Carnegie Mellon University: More details to come
• April 9-13 at University of Colorado, Boulder: 64th Annual Conference on World Affairs
• April 10 at Colorado State University, Fort Collins: "Putting the Fun Back in Infrastructure"—3:30 pm in the Rocky Mountain Innosphere.
• April 19 at The Bakken Museum in Minneapolis: Book Launch Party! Come enjoy snacks, a presentation by me, and some fun with the Bakken's Leyden jar.
• April 21 at Science Museum of Minnesota, St. Paul: Earth Day Tweetup event with Will Steger and Sean Otto—events run 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.
• May 2 at University of California, Berkeley: "Putting the Fun Back in Infrastructure"—6:00 pm, location TBA.
• May 3 at the American Institute of Architects, San Francisco Chapter—Lunchtime lecture, time and location TBA.
• May 3 at Barnes and Noble, El Cerrito, Cali.—7:00 pm.
• May 30 in New York City—Panel on local and DIY energy with the New America Foundation
• June 22-25 in Aspen, Colorado: Aspen Environment Forum
• July 5-8 at CONvergence in Minneapolis, Minn.—exact times and dates TBA
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