In the news

lol no

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaOC9danxNo

Really NASA? Really?

oh god

jesus... and people wonder why space exploration is underfunded. bottom left isn't even doing the doctor spock vulcan hand-hello thing properly!

This is indicative of the underfunding, not the cause. If Nasa had Hollywood money, could you imagine the space landings they could fake?

it's a pisstake, shirley?

They didn't fake a space landing, it was a moon landing. Landing on space would be a bit daft since there is nothing there to land on, and no one to hear you scream.

He's doing a force push, it's a Jedi telekenisis thing.

Do you even a sci fi?

That's no moon... #etc

oh god

It's full of stars!

Just did an actual lol. Is this an episode of that Big Bang Thingy or something?

If I went to Mars I'd miss science, reading journals, dreaming about space travel and and my caravan in Skegness. Oh wait, I'd be doing nothing but those things all the time, I'd miss hobnobs, eyelashes and drinking until I'm naked.

Christ: https://www.opendemocracy.net/ourkingdom/peter-oborne/why-i-have-resigned-from-telegraph

Yes I am being judgmental - I think that those are ridiculous things to possibly 'miss' while out on Mars.

I think they are ridiculous things to single out from an interview with a PHD student. For what it's worth, those things are actually the main reason I didn't apply.

And hobnobs. What I wouldn't miss on mars is cheap-shot sexist bullshit like that picture with that quote.

So... Anyone remember that bit from hitch hikers guide to the galaxy where a civilisation launched all the useless people into space first?

http://youtu.be/zBmdkhDGZ8A?t=17m30s

No, I wouldn't go that far. It's better to explain to people they are being sexist rather than just fire them off into space, where they'll never learn anything.

Good shout, really interesting read.

Hang on, does this mean that logically first contact with an alien race would be handled by Jeez?

I'm all for it. They'll never find the time to destroy us all while they're kept busy responding to his twenty paragraph, point-by-point, basic-common-sense takedowns of everything they say and do.

That cheap-shot sexist etc is from the BBC.

The bbc put that quote with the picture? That's really shit. I owe you an apology, Kev, I genuinely thought that was a meme put together to mock her.

Specifically BBC Newsbeat, which is aimed at teenagers and yoot. Teenagers and yoot, for better or for worse, are generally assumed to not give much of a shit about anyone's PHD, and to want more simplistic and reductive news stories.

I think that's a shame, but that's what Newsbeat is, and that's why the article is so infantile. I doubt the childishness of the interview is down specifically to Maggie and I don't think it's reasonable to blame her for it.