2011 Public Symposium

Focused Attention on Future Scientific Challenges

Kloor Panel Member Ansari Scobee

Symposium Track Audience

Sci-fi Author Signing

RFI Panel Members

Discussions at the first 100 Year Starship Public Symposium focused on identifying and discussing future scientific challenges. The event promoted a compelling dialog among academia, business, the public, and government about issues related to long term, long distance space exploration with the intent that the knowledge gained would be directly relevant to the Department of Defense. People from all over the world gathered at the Hilton Orlando Convention Center in Orlando, Florida to discuss a wide array of topics covering time-distance problems and solutions, habitats, financing and organization of the Initiative, and philosophical topics, among many others.

Panels & Paper Topics

There were several presentation tracks, each being led by a distinguished and knowledgeable track chair.

Time and Distance Solutions

Chaired by Jim Benford, PhD, President, Microwave Sciences

Propulsion, time/space manipulation and/or dilation, near speed of light navigation, faster than light navigation, observations and sensing at near speed of light or faster than light.

Habitats and Environmental Science

Chaired by Chris McKay, PhD. NASA Ames, Planetary Scientist

To have gravity or not, space and radiation effects, environmental toxins, energy collection and use, agriculture, self-supporting environments, optimal habitat sizing.

Biology and Space Medicine

Chaired by Neal Pellis, PhD, USRA

Physiology in space, Psychology in space, human life suspension (e.g. cryogenic), medical facilities and capabilities in space, on-scene (end of journey), spawning from genetic material.

Education, Social, Economic and Legal Considerations

Chaired by Mae Jemison, MD, The Jemison Group, Inc.

Education as a mission, who goes, who stays, to profit or not, economies in space, communications back to Earth, political ramifications, round trip legacy investments and assets left behind.

Destinations

Chaired by Jill Tarter, PhD, SETI Research

Criteria for destination selection, what to take, how many destinations and missions, probes versus journeys of faith.

Philosophical and Religious Considerations

Chaired by Steward Brand, Co-Founder and Director of The Long Now Foundation

Why go to the stars, moral and ethical issues, implications of finding hospitable worlds, implications of finding life elsewhere, implications of being left behind.

Communication of the Vision

Chaired by Harry Kloor, PhD, Jupiter 9 Productions

Storytelling as a means of inspiration, linkage between incentives, payback and investment, uses of movies, television and books to popularize long term research, long term journeys.

select papers & presentations

Nuclear Thermal Propulsion
G. Landis, NASA Glen Research Center
A Necessary Condition for Practical Communications at Cosmic Distances
S. Lazareanu
A Hypothesis on Biological protection From Space Radiation Through the use of New Therapeutic Gases
M. Schoenfield, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center
Ethical Economics
J. Blodgett, Lifeboat Foundation
Artificial Gravity: Current and Future Concepts
D.Buckland, MIT. Harvard Medical School
The Wait Calculation
A. Kennedy

Exploratory Research for an Interstellar Mission – Technology Readiness, Stakeholders and Research Sustainability
A.H Nein, K. Long, Icarus Interstellar
Extrasolar Planets
J. Coughlin, New Mexico State University
Terraforming Planets, Geoengineering Earth
J. R. Fleming, Colby College
Inertia of Past Futures
K. Denning, York University, Canada
Pulsar Navigation and Maser Navigation in 100 Year Starship
D. Jiang, YunNan Astronomical Observatory
Starship Affordability
F. Eilingsfeld PRICE Systems, LLC