[http://www.mars-one.com/mission]
The Mars One project is an ambitious endeavour to establish a permanent colony on Mars. It is backed by a truly international but non-government consortium, composed of an eclectic mix of academics, scientists, engineers and others in various capacities.
“In 2011 Bas Lansdorp and Arno Wielders lay the foundation of the Mars One mission plan. Discussion meetings are held with potential suppliers of aerospace components in USA, Canada, Italy and United Kingdom. Mission architecture, budgets and timelines are solidified from feedback of supplier engineers and business developers. A baseline design for a mission of permanent human settlement on Mars achievable with existing technology is the result.”
Between 2013 and 2015 the extensive process of potential astronaut selection was launched. Hundreds of thousands of applications were received from volunteers for this one way journey. Presently the field of applicants has been narrowed down to 100 and will be finally reduced to 24 although there will be a pool of suitable replacements if needed. Funding for this venture ranges from donations to crowd funding and other economic generation borne of the digital age.
“The global search has begun for the first humans to set foot on Mars and make it their home. In an extensive training period, candidates will learn the skills they will need on Mars and on their journey there. The combined skill set of each astronaut team member will cover a very wide range of disciplines. In 1000 years, everyone on Earth will still remember who the first humans on Mars were. More than 200,000 men and women from around the world responded to the first call for astronauts”.
Meet the Mars 100 short video. This video suggest that humankind must expand its horizons and needs more ‘living” room.
The web site of the Mars One project describes this adventurous mission as the next great leap forward in space exploration and likely the biggest one of the century. Nowhere is there the faintest suggestion that the establishment of a colony on Mars might be a backup plan to prevent the extinction of the human race. Yet one wonders, do the academic authorities and other leaders know something that we don’t? We are all aware of the dangers of climate change if we don’t get our act together in a hurry. Likewise, the overpopulation of humanity and the aging of that population pose horrendous problems.
Perhaps the brightest minds, along with our planet’s rulers, have come to a quiet realisation that Earth is doomed and that the human population is an odds-on bet to become extinct, along with many other species. It is perfectly possible that climate change and global warming have already reached the tipping point and that conditions here are rapidly tending from the troublesome to the catastrophic.
The Mars One web site outlines how various cargo and satellite missions will take place over the next decade and how the basic material construction of the colony will be accomplished before the arrival of the first colonists in 2024. Succeeding missions will see further such very small scale human migration until a compact but entirely self-sustaining community is in operation.
It all makes perfect sense and in all probability is a very good idea. However, if a calamity causes the extinction of humanity on earth it is these few colonists on Mars whose procreation will enable the survival of our species. The project’s selection criteria are centred round finding colonists who are able to make the arduous trip and cope with life in such a harsh environment. I hesitate to use a label for these people such as type A or type B personalities but one thing is for sure. They are not going to be representative of a cross section of humanity. They are going to be highly specialised (in the personality sense as well as in regard to abilities) group. Mind you, considering what our species as a whole has done to the earth this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The selection of the strongest and brightest could well be what certain historical figures aimed at in the last century without having to eliminate the rest. Nature may well eliminate all remaining humans on our planet!
Write a Response Comments (0)
John Richard Spencer, Australia
John has had much multicultural experience due to marriage, teaching, travel and years of living in the Philippines and other parts of Asia, has taught English in Australian high schools and overseas, has driven taxis in Sydney and on the Gold Coast, and has also personally visited and researched the U.S. and U.K. locations featured in the novel. His published work has included article-length pieces of fiction and non-fiction. Much of the non-fiction has been travel and business related (including a considerable amount in David Koch financial publications). His work has been published in Australia, the Philippines, Taiwan, Zimbabwe and the U.S. John has published a novel, Brownout – 666, as an eBook that is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble etc. Brownout is a romantic/political/social and crime suspense novel of 131,443 words with strong love/sex themes as well as legal action. It deals with life in the Philippines as well as the dark side of the political and social elite who rule the planet from their bases in the USA and other nations. – See more at: http://www.creativityandpower.com/
How to experience the sensation of being wealthy.
Most of us complain from time to time that we are having a tough go of it financially in this life. We may occasionally glance at the trappings of wealth displayed by others with a hint of wistful longing. Almost all of us, at some time or other, have remarked that we would like to be rich for a week or so just to see what the experience is like.
The good news is that wealth is relative. If you were a millionaire living in a village entirely populated, apart from yourself, with billionaires you would undoubtedly feel impoverished. The sensation of feeling abundantly wealthy in a material sense derives from comparisons with others. Therefore it is perfectly possible for an ordinary person to temporarily experience a life of relative wealth.
The way to do this is to take a vacation to another country that has a much lower standard of living and a favourable exchange rate for one’s home currency. Quite apart from areas of natural, social and cultural interest such a destination will instantly offer the traveller a personal situation of newfound riches. Goods and services that hitherto were beyond reach are now easily attainable. The visitor can enjoy upmarket accommodation, gourmet restaurants, stunning entertainment and the purchase of luxury goods at bargain rates.
If a little voice in your head cried, “There must be a catch!” you are right. In this land with a much lower standard of living you may find that standards of personal security and safety are much lower than that which you are used to, but not necessarily so. Perhaps the risk of theft or even personal attack is greater in this destination. In any case this would be a valid portion of the experience of being rich. In most nations the wealthy find it necessary to protect their possessions and even their personal safety with more rigorous security than do the rest of us.
Of course, the lucky, or well researched, traveller who finds a low cost destination with little crime risk is much more likely to have a thoroughly enjoyable holiday. However your vacation pans out you will have had the experience of being rich for a day, a week or a month! No longer will you have to exclaim in conversations at dinner parties, “I’d just like to try being rich!”
Photo from dreamtime.com
Don’t think of the brilliant Steven Spielberg movie with all of its predictions and pathos. Scientists and engineers in the field are widely claiming that already the learning capacity of machines is equivalent to that of an insect brain. Furthermore, they are claiming that in accordance with Moore’s law (technological advance roughly doubles every 18 months or so) by 2030 the intelligence and learning capacity of A.I. will exceed humans. While the use of algorithms is already quite advanced within narrow ranges, it is the capacity of artificial “brains” to learn by themselves and acquire values and opinions that is both tremendously exciting and frightening.
A superintelligent machine would be useful for its ability to find plans that its programmers never imagined to identify shortcuts that they never noticed or considered. That capability is a double-edged sword:
a machine that is extraordinarily effective at achieving its goals might have unexpected negative side effects, as in the case of robotic laboratories damaging the biosphere. There is no simple fix: a superintelligent system would need to learn detailed information about what is and isn’t considered valuable, and be motivated by this knowledge, in order to safely solve even simple tasks.
[The Value Learning Problem Nate Soares Machine Intelligence Research Institute, nate@intelligence.org]
Photo from dailysciencejournal.com
Soares’ concern doesn’t even mention the possibility that such machines may acquire the value of satisfying their own issues of well-being before considering those of humanity or anything else. After all that is precisely what our species has done and why the planet’s ecosystem is on the verge of collapse. Would such super intelligent examples of artificial intelligence be likely to challenge the human race as in the Terminator movies? Given the advantages and risks to ourselves of continued development in this sphere should we continue with it? That is somewhat of a hypothetical question since, throughout history, humanity has never erred on the side of caution. If something can be done, it surely will. The development of artificial intelligence will continue regardless of cost or risk. This habit of our species is unstoppable regardless of whether new discoveries will prove positive or catastrophically negative.
Adam Conner-Simons describes how results of tests that were run showed that assembly line workers actually preferred a robot boss to a human one. In all likelihood this preference is a result of the machine boss not possessing the emotions, including favouritism and prejudice, so often exhibited by the human variety.
[Adam Conner-Simons | CSAIL August 21, 2014]
Photo from bipb.com
Yet the unstoppable increase in machine intelligence presumably will result in A.I. that experiences something akin to human emotions and value judgements. Will workers be happy to take orders from these more advanced bosses? In short, when the rise of machines reaches a certain but unknown point will they possess the same weaknesses and shortcomings (in terms of emotions – including selfishness and greed) as humans but with a huge technical superiority?
Write a Response Comments (0)
John Richard Spencer, Australia
John has had much multicultural experience due to marriage, teaching, travel and years of living in the Philippines and other parts of Asia, has taught English in Australian high schools and overseas, has driven taxis in Sydney and on the Gold Coast, and has also personally visited and researched the U.S. and U.K. locations featured in the novel. His published work has included article-length pieces of fiction and non-fiction. Much of the non-fiction has been travel and business related (including a considerable amount in David Koch financial publications). His work has been published in Australia, the Philippines, Taiwan, Zimbabwe and the U.S. John has published a novel, Brownout – 666, as an eBook that is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble etc. Brownout is a romantic/political/social and crime suspense novel of 131,443 words with strong love/sex themes as well as legal action. It deals with life in the Philippines as well as the dark side of the political and social elite who rule the planet from their bases in the USA and other nations. – See more at: http://www.creativityandpower.com/
Do world authorities know something that we don’t?
[http://www.mars-one.com/mission]
The Mars One project is an ambitious endeavour to establish a permanent colony on Mars. It is backed by a truly international but non-government consortium, composed of an eclectic mix of academics, scientists, engineers and others in various capacities.
“In 2011 Bas Lansdorp and Arno Wielders lay the foundation of the Mars One mission plan. Discussion meetings are held with potential suppliers of aerospace components in USA, Canada, Italy and United Kingdom. Mission architecture, budgets and timelines are solidified from feedback of supplier engineers and business developers. A baseline design for a mission of permanent human settlement on Mars achievable with existing technology is the result.”
[http://www.mars-one.com/mission/roadmap]
Between 2013 and 2015 the extensive process of potential astronaut selection was launched. Hundreds of thousands of applications were received from volunteers for this one way journey. Presently the field of applicants has been narrowed down to 100 and will be finally reduced to 24 although there will be a pool of suitable replacements if needed. Funding for this venture ranges from donations to crowd funding and other economic generation borne of the digital age.
“The global search has begun for the first humans to set foot on Mars and make it their home. In an extensive training period, candidates will learn the skills they will need on Mars and on their journey there. The combined skill set of each astronaut team member will cover a very wide range of disciplines. In 1000 years, everyone on Earth will still remember who the first humans on Mars were. More than 200,000 men and women from around the world responded to the first call for astronauts”.
[http://www.mars-one.com/mission/roadmap]
Meet the Mars 100 short video. This video suggest that humankind must expand its horizons and needs more ‘living” room.
[http://www.mars-one.com/]
The web site of the Mars One project describes this adventurous mission as the next great leap forward in space exploration and likely the biggest one of the century. Nowhere is there the faintest suggestion that the establishment of a colony on Mars might be a backup plan to prevent the extinction of the human race. Yet one wonders, do the academic authorities and other leaders know something that we don’t? We are all aware of the dangers of climate change if we don’t get our act together in a hurry. Likewise, the overpopulation of humanity and the aging of that population pose horrendous problems.
Perhaps the brightest minds, along with our planet’s rulers, have come to a quiet realisation that Earth is doomed and that the human population is an odds-on bet to become extinct, along with many other species. It is perfectly possible that climate change and global warming have already reached the tipping point and that conditions here are rapidly tending from the troublesome to the catastrophic.
The Mars One web site outlines how various cargo and satellite missions will take place over the next decade and how the basic material construction of the colony will be accomplished before the arrival of the first colonists in 2024. Succeeding missions will see further such very small scale human migration until a compact but entirely self-sustaining community is in operation.
[http://www.mars-one.com/]
It all makes perfect sense and in all probability is a very good idea. However, if a calamity causes the extinction of humanity on earth it is these few colonists on Mars whose procreation will enable the survival of our species. The project’s selection criteria are centred round finding colonists who are able to make the arduous trip and cope with life in such a harsh environment. I hesitate to use a label for these people such as type A or type B personalities but one thing is for sure. They are not going to be representative of a cross section of humanity. They are going to be highly specialised (in the personality sense as well as in regard to abilities) group. Mind you, considering what our species as a whole has done to the earth this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The selection of the strongest and brightest could well be what certain historical figures aimed at in the last century without having to eliminate the rest. Nature may well eliminate all remaining humans on our planet!
Rick Daly, an ex-school teacher in his prime, is a tenth man, one of those individuals who, through no apparent fault of their own, attract trouble and the blind wrath of authority. While attempting to honestly make his mark in one of the toughest business schools on earth, he meets, possesses and struggles with the woman of his dreams at the same time as losing his freedom and almost his soul. His core values become inverted as he struggles for survival.
Rick is a man tormented by his own sexuality and failure to understand the wellsprings of existence. Marilyn, a young woman he meets on a ship and falls in love with, is also a conundrum of morals and desire. Her equally innocent understanding of the darker side of life, coupled with her staunch Catholicism and a vastly different cultural background, lead to heartbreak. Rick’s uncle, Christopher, is a God-fearing individual who doesn’t realise the blackness of the system he lives in until it is too late. Marilyn and Rick both learn that honesty is not what it seems and that love is a lot more complex than either believed. Alma, a precious teenager, Lina, a bargirl and Cecilia, a nurse who is briefly employed by Rick as a maid, all endeavour to destroy him for different reasons.
Against the surroundings of the failed coup against Cory Aquino in 1989 and its aftermath Rick attempts to set up a furniture manufacturing business in the Philippines. While he finds love and possible sexual fulfilment in the form of Marilyn society’s fingers intrude with devastating consequences. Falsely imprisoned on a rape charge Rick bribes his way out of gaol and flees back to Australia. In the U.S. his uncle and cousins clash with society and its powerful forms. Rick’s unjustified gaoling in the Philippines catches up with him in Sydney and again he languishes behind bars. He is deported to the U.S., his birthplace, only to be swamped by machinations contained in the murky backdrop to the September 11 attacks. Crime follows punishment and Rick joins the mob, marries a boss’s daughter and achieves material success.
In the maelstrom of social ill, political correctness gone mad and a world hell bent on self-destruction Rick Daly is up against powers that he cannot hope to defeat. Only by bending society’s rules can he beat it at its own game and become financially successful but does that mean he has really won? Marilyn finds a man who genuinely loves her at the same time as escaping stagnation in a provincial village that survives through prostitution and fishing. Both characters fight their surroundings and the wider world and even rage against that old enemy, Time. Yet in the end the only victory an individual can ever really achieve is one over the self.
Marilyn is left struggling in the dark while his environment mows down Christopher. However, Rick manages to escape both an unjust milieu and his own misunderstanding of life. He learns the real meaning behind the swastika and the balance between the soul and the world.
– a new ebook novel now available from , Amazon, Kobo, Barnes and Noble, Sony, Gardner, Ibookstore and other retailers of ebooks. For eBook purchases the title is “Brownout – 666” (to distinguish it from electricity books)
Brownout is a story of sexuality, suspense, injustice and the grubby world of political power spread over two continents and three countries. the USA, Philippines and Australia. This book will appeal to those who are worried that the world as we know it is on a course to destruction as well as travellers of Asia.
This story includes many events that actually happened in real life and a number of characters based on real persons, although of course the names were changed to protect the innocent and the guilty.
To purchase a limited-edition author personally-signed hard copy (paperback) for AUD 89.95 (incl. postage and handling to anywhere in the world) click on the PayPal button below. This Ltd. edition hard copy is printed on high quality paper, features large print and weighs 1 kg. Therefore the (included) postage costs are high.
The Buy Now button will give you the Pay Pal option.
The novel “Brownout-666” has received a number of 5 star reviews on Amazon.
To purchase an eBook edition for Kindle, iBook, IPad, Kobo etc., go to
https://my.bookbaby.com/book/brownout-666/ or go directly to your favourite eBook retailer. Directly purchasing an e-copy from the above link returns a higher royalty to the author and is appreciated.
Brownout – 666 a current and sexy story about the Philippines and why the world doesn’t tick.
A story of political suspense, with crime and court elements, set against a background of romance and sexuality, in multicultural settings across several countries this novel attempts to find out why the world doesn’t tick so well. From steamy and graphic sex scenes to the highest political intrigue it searches the floundering of the human race.
In the land of flaunted sex, money, and flexible rules, an ambitious but lonely Rick Daly faces his demons.
Rick Daly has established a business in the exotic surroundings of the Philippines, while simultaneously discovering Marilyn Delgado, the woman of his dreams.
However, a clash of cultures and his own naiveté lead to disaster. Falsely accused of a sexual crime, Rick loses both his freedom and his business. To add insult to injury, a prison escape merely amounts to switching jails.
In a world where the rich prosper, honest individuals are forced to the wall, and a cynical disregard for all but the dollar is destroying society from within, crime soon follows punishment for Rick. Close to losing his soul, will Rick’s ultimate success in drug and arms dealing finally lead him to face up to reality?
Difficult to put down and including erotic scenes, this is a high octane adventure, which will take the reader into a sea of cultural and ethical flashpoints, while exposing huge cracks in the world’s political and social order.
To purchase this book, either as eBook or as an author-signed paperback, please go to http://www.creativityandpower.com
Thinking about the mainstream media (and the powerful mogals behind it such as Murdoch) I have come to the inescapable conclusion that the majority of people are unintelligent or uneducated enough to actually think for themselves. The media tell them something and they seem to automatically believe it. The lies that the powerful push into history are amazing. From (now) relatively past matters such as WW II) to the right way for the human race to proceed, it is simply beyond the pale that people could actually vote for criminal fools who are destroying the environment, the society and even the economy merely to further enrich themselves and their friends with money that they don’t need.
In the case of Oz -Australia- (the Wicked witch of the West is Tony Abbott and the Wicked witch of the East is Campbell Newman) the deceptions that money can buy and the ignorance of much of the electorate is overwhelming. It seems to be simply a case that there are too many unintelligent/uneducated voters for common sense to prevail. You may wonder why I can post these comments without being arrested or worse. I assure you if they could get away with it, that would happen. Their power within our national environment is simply not sufficient for them to do that, yet! Nonetheless they are working on increasing their power while trammelling all over democratic and free principles.
You may say that these criminal political leaders are clever. However, ultimately they can certainly be labelled foolish rather than wise. Sure, they will get more and more power and more and more wealth (to the detriment of the rest of us) but to what end? Do they really want to destroy the planet that they and their children live on?
a href=”https://cassandradoom.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/tony-abbott.jpg”>
Posted by J R Spencer, anarchist | 0 Comments
8 January
2015
The recent terrorist attack in Paris by extremist Islamist Jihadis poses a double whammy for free thinking people. On the one hand, these Jihadis totally disagree with anybody who thinks differently or even vaguely insults them. On the other, security agencies of the West are constantly increasing the power of laws to combat this threat. Where does this leave us? It is becoming increasingly likely that most of our cherished freedoms will cease to exist (that is if you ever believed in “freedoms” in the first place). Throughout the history of mankind freedom has always been a handmaiden of power.
The really sad thing, apart from the loss of innocent lives, about these terrorist attacks is that they give the looney right a political leg up in their quest to promote a totally miserable and inequitable world. Lying idiots like Tony Abbott and Campbell Newman (I haven’t even called into question their honesty or political integrity) make headway under these conditions by distracting the populace from the major issues closer to home.
I must apologise for the miserable image of Mohammed at the top of this post. It was the most reasonable one I could find. Having never personally met the man I have no idea what he looked like. However, if he and his religion are worth anything whatsoever (which I doubt), he would be rolling over in his grave at what the extremist Islamist Jihadis are doing in his name. If the Jihadis are offended by my post, bring it on! They simply cannot kill all of us.
To me, the ignorance and stupidity behind this extremism has its roots in the Old Testament of the Christian bible, the Koran (obviously) and the Telmut and Torah of the Jews. Sure we all need to believe in something beyond ourselves, presumably. Nonetheless, we could choose to believe in positive things. The tenets of Buddhism and also Hinduism do not preach violence at all. Buddhism particularly reveres all life. Acts of violence committed by Buddhists and Hindus are not committed in the name of their religion. They are committed by their followers in the name of all too human concerns and exhibit a lack of spiritual understanding of those religions or else are simply a result of human weakness.
Most Muslims despise terrorism of any sort but it does seem odd that so many followers can interpret their beliefs into supporting savage violence. I am not forgetting about the killings done in the name of various sections of the Christian religion in previous centuries. All I am asking is, “What is it about Islam that seems to be malleable enough to lend some support to obviously deranged and hideous views?”
The Jihadis seem to have a great appreciation of death. That in itself isn’t necessarily a bad thing since we all die. Nonetheless, a true appreciation of death and life allows life to take its natural course without wanton violence and killing.
There are of course political and economic causes also behind the upsurge of extremist Islamic Jihadi behaviour. The Arab spring gone wrong, the misery of the poor in the Islamic world (and the rest of the world) and the greed of the wealthy powerbrokers in much of the west have further fuelled it.
It seems whatever we do, we are condemned to lose. It is likely that Islamic extremism will be defeated but at what cost? 1984 is coming to a country and neighbourhood near you!
Read More…
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Brownout – new ebook novel now available
Brownout is a story of sexuality, suspense, injustice and the grubby world of political power spread over two continents and three countries. the USA, Philippines and Australia
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– See more at: http://www.creativityandpower.com/freedom_disappearing_before_our_eyes/#sthash.SWWFTQzD.dpuf
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Posted by J R Spencer, anarchist | 0 Comments
8 January
2015
The recent terrorist attack in Paris by extremist Islamist Jihadis poses a double whammy for free thinking people. On the one hand, these Jihadis totally disagree laws to combat this threat. Where does this leave us? It is becoming increasingly likely that most of our cherished freedoms will cease to exist (that is if you ever believed in “freedoms” in the first place). Throughout the history of mankind freedom has always been a handmaiden of power.
The really sad thing, apart from the loss of innocent lives, about these terrorist attacks is that they give the looney right a political leg up in their quest to promote a totally miserable and inequitable world. Lying idiots like Tony Abbott and Campbell Newman (I haven’t even called into question their honesty or political integrity) make headway under these conditions by distracting the populace from the major issues closer to home.
I must apologise for the miserable image of Mohammed at the top of this post. It was the most reasonable one I could find. Having never personally met the man I have no idea what he looked like. However, if he and his religion are worth anything whatsoever (which I doubt), he would be rolling over in his grave at what the extremist Islamist Jihadis are doing in his name. If the Jihadis are offended by my post, bring it on! They simply cannot kill all of us.
To me, the ignorance and stupidity behind this extremism has its roots in the Old Testament of the Christian bible, the Koran (obviously) and the Telmut and Torah of the Jews. Sure we all need to believe in something beyond ourselves, presumably. Nonetheless, we could choose to believe in positive things. The tenets of Buddhism and also Hinduism do not preach violence at all. Buddhism particularly reveres all life. Acts of violence committed by Buddhists and Hindus are not committed in the name of their religion. They are committed by their followers in the name of all too human concerns and exhibit a lack of spiritual understanding of those religions or else are simply a result of human weakness.
Most Muslims despise terrorism of any sort but it does seem odd that so many followers can interpret their beliefs into supporting savage violence. I am not forgetting about the killings done in the name of various sections of the Christian religion in previous centuries. All I am asking is, “What is it about Islam that seems to be malleable enough to lend some support to obviously deranged and hideous views.
The Jihadis seem to have a great appreciation of death. That in itself isn’t necessarily a bad thing since we all die. Nonetheless, a true appreciation of death and life allows life to take its natural course without wanton violence and killing.
There are of course political and economic causes also behind the upsurge of extremist Islamic Jihadi behaviour. The Arab spring gone wrong, the misery of the poor in the Islamic world (and the rest of the world) and the greed of the wealthy powerbrokers in much of the west have further fuelled it.
It seems whatever we do, we are condemned to lose. It is likely that Islamic extremism will be defeated but at what cost? 1984 is coming to a country and neighbourhood near you!
Read More…
Share This!
RSS feed
Brownout – new ebook novel now available
Brownout is a story of sexuality, suspense, injustice and the grubby world of political power spread over two continents and three countries. the USA, Philippines and Australia
© 2015 John Spencer. All Rights Reserved. Powered by HostBaby.
ShareThis Copy and Paste
– See more at: http://www.creativityandpower.com/freedom_disappearing_before_our_eyes/#sthash.SWWFTQzD.dpuf
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