How to Transplant the Human Spirit

The importance of pets, creative tools, and a sense of history in setting up off-world communities

Future space colonies will feature a wealth of transplanted Earth life. Image credit — Don Davis, NASA Ames Research Center, NASA ID Number AC75–1883.

A digital interview in the ASU Interplanetary Community in a Box project

Building sustainable off-world communities will require every ounce of our collective knowledge, expertise, creativity, and imagination. This is part of a series of Q&A with people from a wide range of disciplines and expertise that challenges them to think about what they would put in a metaphorical “community-in-a-box” to help kick-start an extraterrestrial community, and why.

Who are you?

I’m a PhD candidate in the School of Earth and Space Exploration at Arizona State University. I’ve been dreaming of space exploration for as long as I can remember, and as a graduate student, I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to contribute to our species’ effort to step out into the cosmos. My research is about developing methods for determining what materials are on the surface of the planets and asteroids in our solar system.

When not working on research, I like to mountain bike, play racquetball, woodwork, write, play video games, and hike with my dog. I also teach an after-school science club for sixth graders.

What does your particular expertise bring to establishing vibrant and sustainable communities in space?

Utilizing resources in space is one of the major logistical stepping stones that a truly sustainable community will have to cross. These resources include drinking water, life support, and mineral resources for things like agriculture, construction, and industry. However, the process of extracting and using resources requires that we actually know where they are. I study two methods for investigating the surface composition of other planets. The first is reflectance spectroscopy, which is used to determine the minerals that make up a planetary surface by measuring the color of that surface. The second is neutron spectroscopy, which can be used to estimate the water content in the top three feet of a planetary surface. My research as a graduate student contributes to our knowledge of identifying and quantifying certain materials in space. This kind of knowledge will be used to guide the location and development of settlement on another world.

I am also passionate about education. I think that education gives people the tools to improve their lives and the lives of their children. Making a better world for children is the underlying goal of why humans have explored before, and the ultimate exploration and settlement of space. I have experienced being in a classroom and encouraged young students to think of themselves as scientists by practicing a process of inquiry for exploring the natural world. Children born in a future space settlement will need to be educated on a vast amount of knowledge just to understand the context of their lives, and I would greatly enjoy being a part of that education.

Thirdly, I am super excited about the new sports that are possible in low-gravity environments. I play racquetball pretty regularly, and I am constantly thinking about how fun (and maybe more challenging!) a game like that would be in a low-gravity setting. I like to daydream about what sports will be in the “Space Olympics”.

This video shows astronauts onboard NASA’s Skylab space station experimenting with motion and activity in low-gravity. Video published by NASA/Discovery.

What, in your opinion, are some of the most important things that a group of people would need to know in order to set up an off-Earth community?

I believe that the people who expand into space will need to know that they are the latest in a long line of successful human explorations, and that they carry with them the hopes and dreams of all those who came before them. Space exploration is the greatest adventure on which our species has ever embarked, and people leaving our planet for good should have some good historical context for their mission. It should be comforting to know that the expansion of human civilization around the surface of the Earth was not easy, and that we all should expect there to be challenges during the exploration of space. In short, context is critical.

What are the top three things you would put in an Interplanetary Community in a Box, and why?

Imagine a scenario where 100 people are going to another planetary body in our solar system (e.g. Mars, or the Moon). Now imagine they are taking a “box” with them that contains all the knowledge they will need to build a vibrant and sustainable community — a kick-starter “Community-in-a-Box”.

1. Some kind of e-reader tablet of the future that contains a truly vast collection of reading material. These materials should include primary historical texts, a very thorough survey of humanity’s scientific literature, and a comprehensive compilation of artistic endeavors throughout history. I think if one were to try to capture what it means to be human, they might end up with something like this — an archive of who we’ve been and what we did during our tenure on Earth. I think Carl Sagan said something like, “You can’t transmit the human spirit through an antenna.” But maybe you can pack it into a box? And maybe — just to be safe — we should bring a couple of copies…
2. The second thing I would pack into the box are non-human companions, assuming all necessary life support is included. I think that each person, if wanting, should bring with them their beloved dog(s), cat(s), goldfish, bearded dragon, ant colony, or banana plant. Whatever it is, humans need companionship in the form of non-humans. Our success on this planet has been wholly coupled with the success of other living creatures, and I believe that our success elsewhere in the universe will be similarly co-dependent. Plus, imagine how awesome it would be to develop alongside these animals and plants in low gravity environments.
3. The final thing I would encourage to be in the box are whatever means the settlers need to be creative. I believe that people are inherently driven to build, create, compose, and craft. We should bring with us tools, paintbrushes, 3D printers, virtual reality headsets, musical instruments, and anything else the crew might need to express themselves. I personally love to cook, and so I would bring cookware and a spice rack to end all spice racks. Imagine flipping pancakes on the Moon or making enchiladas on Mars. I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from making a joke about red chili sauce on the red planet.

The Parkes Radio Observatory was one of several used to receive live, televised images from the Apollo 11 Moon landing. This photograph, taken in 1969, shows how the observatory may have looked during that pivotal moment in human history. Image courtesy of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation.

For more from the ASU Interplanetary Initiative Community In A Box Project, check out our Medium Publication