RE: starship-design: Re: Starship design

["L. Parker" <lparker@cacaphony.net>]

On Wednesday, October 01, 1997 12:10 PM, Steve VanDevender 
[SMTP:stevev@efn.org] wrote:
> KellySt@aol.com writes:
>  > >Of course, this isn't very helpful for the return trip unless the
>  > >travelers can build a boost beam in their target system, but I
>  > >believe
>  > >that among the other advances needed for interstellar travel, we'll
>  > >have
>  > >to advance past the notion that explorers should always return from
>  > >their trips.
>  >
>  > ?! This is an advance?  Throwing away a ship and crew to save fuel
>  > costs?
>
> Kelly, human history is full of explorers going on one-way trips,
> even intentionally.  Just because such a project wouldn't be likely to
> get funding from a paranoid hide-bound NASA doesn't mean that it
> couldn't happen under different cultural conditions.

Not to disagree Steve, but just which explorer went out KNOWING he wasn't 
coming back? I can't think of a single example right now...

Lee