From: michael@janeandi.fsnet.co.uk   
      
   "none" <""frans\"@.retro.com (none)> wrote in message   
   news:90e1b$437da61e$91639e1a$24329@news2.tudelft.nl...   
   > For school I have to make a papaer over the benefits of space exploration   
   > for leisure. A hard case for me. I am only familiar with a few inventions.   
   Snip   
   > Greetings from The Netherland, Frans   
      
      
   Hi there,   
      
   Off the top of my head: Teflon coating and extreme heat resistant materials,   
   cordless power tools, batteries, lasers, optics (polarised glass),   
   robotics, telemetric/radio systems. The facility for our better   
   understanding of micro wave (ovens), weather, ocean, astronomy and super   
   computing systems, closed human environments that are dependent on precious   
   resources. The ‘black’ art form of engineering the lightest structures to   
   perform, absolutely, in the harshest of dynamic conditions and the science   
   of combustion, getting a rocket motor to propel at maximum thrust, without   
   exploding! Perhaps to support the most precious of cargo, ourselves. Also   
   the understanding of how to persuade the most complicated, autonomous   
   instruments millions of miles away from earth to do the most delicate of   
   manoeuvres and missions, without the aid of ’real time’ control, whilst   
   it's being bombarded by particles and radiation. This, to my mind represents   
   an exquisite, yet very expensive mechanical ballot dance. The leap of   
   knowledge   
   of how to be able to error correct and re-programme software on the ’fly’ to   
   flex a system, adapting perhaps to; part system failure or unpredictable   
   physical circumstances. Naturally this is what we do, as humans, to maximise   
   the odds of success out of potential failure. space exploration is   
   challenging and tapping into, in varying degrees, all our mental,   
   physical and financial resources, to build on the knowledge base of the   
   past, for our people of the future. I also observe that their appears to be   
   a collective/collaborative desire to do this stuff by all/most peoples of   
   the world,   
   transcending boundaries, creed and wealth. Intriguingly the ultimate   
   product/prize/understanding of this monumental effort is pricelessly   
   unknown.   
      
   I’m sorry about shifting a tad off topic, but once I get going on this   
   subject ;~) I’m also not involved in the space business in any way, but I’m   
   pleased to be supporting it, in a small way, through taxation, Michael.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)