Men on Mars

During the Cold War, the United States of America and the Soviet Union competed in the “Space Race”. The Space Race led not only to sending a man to our moon and an increase in national pride, but also to a rise in technical innovation. During the late twentieth century, movies, tv shows, and literature predicted that the 2000’s would entail flying cars, holographs and other amazing inventions. However, we are only now beginning to develop self driving cars, primitive versions of holograms, and smart watches. Why has the development of technology been limited to apps and web development? Why doesn’t the hardware we own live up the the expectations of hover boards from Back to the Future?

During the Space Race, companies were spending loads of money to develop technologies that would help a man get to the moon. International Business Machines (IBM) and Texas Instruments (TI) lead the technical innovations of the time. They created the hardware and software needed to send a man to the moon. The creation of this hardware created a ripple effect, and allowed for other companies to invent things like at-home computers, gaming systems, and colored televisions. Since someone can create the technology to send someone to the moon, these other companies felt that they could create products designed for the average consumer.

President Trump recently announced that there would be more funding going into space exploration. With more funding for space exploration, it may be a possibility to get men to Mars, the closest planet to Earth. This allows many doors to open for innovators as well as the average citizen. Space exploration will also allow for new technological innovations and advancements. Additionally, people will be less concerned with over population of humans on Earth. It also allows for people to find new places to harvest resources from, and will create a need for people to live and work in these colonies- therefore stimulating job growth.

Technological discoveries often increase in the eras where the government is in support of the innovations taking place. With President Trump funding space exploration, we could be on the verge of new technologies that can progress our society for the better — hopefully.