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Should we colonise space? How not to debate that question.

Philip Ball · 4 Sept 2023

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2 korrents from this piece ↓

Philip Ball did not write this page.

Every claim below was made in this piece, quoted word for word and numbered in the order the piece makes them, so you can read it there rather than take our word for it. The sentence above each quote is our reading of the claim, not their wording. Each quote was checked against a stored copy of the page at build time; where the two differ, the quote is the fact.

  1. Our reading

    An off-world colony as a back-up for civilization on Earth going off the rails is an incoherent idea.

    Their wordsspecifically about the popular idea that an off-world colony would be a back-up for civilization on Earth going off the rails. The threats we currently face can’t credibly be extrapolated to the point where a human settlement on Mars (say) might plausibly be entirely self-sufficient. And in any event, the argument seems incoherent.

  2. Our reading

    Governance of space settlements founded by billionaires such as Musk or Bezos is a concern.

    Their wordsI’d not want to be living on Mars under the aegis and whim of a Musk or a Bezos. I just feel governance is an issue some might like to think about.

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