Lucky Thirteen On the ISS 120
Hugh Pickens writes "Things may get a little tight in space as seven shuttle astronauts blast off from Florida on June 13 to join up with six colleagues already on the International Space Station bringing the ISS contingent to thirteen, the largest number of individuals on the platform ever at one time. The 13 space-farers represent seven from the US, two each from Russia and Canada, and one each from Europe and Japan. '"I don't know what it's going to be like," says Endeavour commander Mark Polansky, a veteran of two prior spaceflights. "We know it's going to be challenging with 13 people aboard."' During five spacewalks, an external platform will be added to the lab which will enable those experiments to be performed that require materials to be exposed to the harsh environment of space and astronauts also have to fit equipment to the exterior of the platform such as batteries and a spare space-to-ground antenna."
13? Didn't they read Harry Potter? (Score:2)
I though 13 was an unlucky number. Didn't Apollo 13 end in a bad way?
Re:13? Didn't they read Harry Potter? (Score:5, Funny)
I though 13 was an unlucky number. Didn't Apollo 13 end in a bad way?
The ending was okay. The middle bit was a bit stressful.
Re:13? Didn't they read Harry Potter? (Score:4, Funny)
No problem, the old greybeard in charge of the project just needs to supply one fine burglar [wikipedia.org], and the mission is a guaranteed success. At least financially. A few brave dwarves may die in the process, but it's a small price to pay for scientific progress.
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First gangbang in space?
Re:13? Didn't they read Harry Potter? (Score:5, Funny)
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If you believe in numerology...
Apollo 13 ended happily with capsule and crew recovered, yet we lost 7 astronauts twice. And you thought 13 was supposed to be unlucky and 7 was supposed to be lucky...
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Of course, in the most popular form of numerology, there are no two-digit numbers. So there is no 13. You would take the two digits of 13 and add them together, so 13 would be 1+3=4. The number 4 is one of stable partnerships.
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If you believe in numerology...
...then I really hope you have nothing to do with the space industry.
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If you believe in numerology...
Apollo 13 ended happily with capsule and crew recovered, yet we lost 7 astronauts twice. And you thought 13 was supposed to be unlucky and 7 was supposed to be lucky...
Not that' it's any more logical, but it should be noted that the above has nothing to do with numerology, just with popular superstition.
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Overbearing managers? If I recall correctly the estimated probability of failure seemed to lose an order of magnitude every time it went up a level of management.
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Apollo 1 burned up during testing due to pure O2 being used instead of a mixed gas environment. Apollo 13 started out well, broke down in route to the moon but everyone made it back to earth safe...
So really always avoid Version 1.0
Cancelled (Score:2)
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already delayed. (Score:5, Informative)
already delayed becuase of a hydrogen leak. [nasa.gov]
a Canadian astronaut [www.cbc.ca] was also inconvenienced.
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Argh, there's no way to undo a moderation mistake except by adding a pointless post to the thread - and here it is!
Need Another Seven Astronauts (Score:3, Funny)
Need Another Seven Astronauts!
And by the way, Europe is not a country.
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By the way, many people see Europe as a country to some extent. This includes not only a lot of Europeans, it also include a lot of people outside of Europe.
Besides, Frank de Bruin is working for the EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY, not the Belgian space agency, so just what was wrong with saying he is from Europe when he is sent up for European taxpayers money?
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By the way, many people see Europe as a country to some extent.
"Many" as in "a handful", yes. For normal people, Europe is not a country.
Re:Need Another Seven Astronauts (Score:5, Insightful)
Why not? Justify your statement.
Not that I'm disagreeing with you, there just aren't many definitions of 'country' that include the USA and exclude the EU. Common currency? Common language? How many Americans speak Spanish as a first language now? Common culture? You mean like Massachusetts and Louisiana right? Common government? Most of our law comes from the EU now. Constitution? Britain doesn't have a written constitution, but not many will deny that it is a country. If you view a constitution as a body of law then European law is pretty formidable.
Would the majority of Europeans describe themselves as European first? No. But neither would the majority of English, Irish*, Scots or Texans.
I don't disagree per se. But a country is one of those things you point at and say; "that's a country" without really knowing why.
*Though this one is more complex.
Re:Need Another Seven Astronauts (Score:4, Interesting)
"Set of countries" is much more realistic, IMHO. Separate but united, sort of.
Re:Need Another Seven Astronauts (Score:5, Informative)
Why not? Justify your statement.
Not that I'm disagreeing with you, there just aren't many definitions of 'country' that include the USA and exclude the EU. Common currency?
Eleven countries of the European Union currently do not use the euro. They are: Denmark, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania.
(16 states do use it.)
Common language? How many Americans speak Spanish as a first language now?
The European Union has 23 official and working languages. They are: Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Irish, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovene, Spanish and Swedish.
Also, their use is very closely aligned with national boundaries.
Additionally, there are minority languages official only in some regions, like Welsh in Wales or Faroe in the Faroes.
Constitution? Britain doesn't have a written constitution, but not many will deny that it is a country.
The UK does have a constitution, but it isn't written in one document.
(Also, the GP said "Europe" was a country. Europe is a continent.)
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The EU is a Federation... not a Nation.
They have a common bond only in the regional sense, no common language and only recently a somewhat central authority.
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You mean like Canada?
Also nation is a separate concept to country. The UK is one country but contains at least four nations (more, depending on who you count).
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I live in the UK, so I am aware of the weirdness of it. The UK constitution is a body of law and tradition that makes up the running of the state. The EU has a body of law and tradition that makes up a constitution in a similar way.
Also, it's worth noting that though Denmark, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania all use their own currencies, they're actually pegged to the Euro, so they don't operate an independent monetary policy.
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Nice load of BS, there!
Anyway, I spent more than a third of my life living abroad (in Europe). I speak 5 languages, but would never describe myself as European first.
Neither would any of the hundreds of people I met.
Right off my ass, I would say that less than 0.01% Europeans would describe themselves as Europeans first.
The cultural gradient is so much bigger in Europe than in the US, it's pointless to try to compare both on a common ground.
It might come one day, but we're not there yet.
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If I ask people in my circles I would argue that 90% feels European first.
Your 0.01 % does not agree with the statistics (and I wonder in what hole you have been hiding for that number).
I have seen statistical data, and the percentage of people who felt only European was around 10% IIRC, then there was a large group who felt both European and $nationality, and a group who only felt $nationality and another who didn't really feel anything.
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--sabre86
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Here in the UK (which is why I chose it :p) the convention seems to be that the UK is a country and Scotland, England &c are nations. Hence things like the Six Nations.
Which is entirely semantic. And, as you observe, to my point.
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Why not? Justify your statement.
[Large amount of irrelevant points deleted.]
I don't disagree per se. But a country is one of those things you point at and say; "that's a country" without really knowing why.
I know exactly why. It's because we call it a country. You're looking for some objective criteria in an utterly inappropriate place. It's like asking "Does Canada really have provinces, or states?" It's a stupid question. Canada has provinces. The US has states. Why and what's the difference? The why is historical and the difference is the term we use, period. Japan has prefectures. Not provinces, not states, and no argument about how the subdivisions of the country match some supposed bogus defin
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The reason has nothing to do with what their attributes are, it has entirely to do with language and convention.
So, your think the reason we call a Ford Pinto a car is because it just is. Isn't more because it has 4 wheels and an engine?
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You're looking for some objective criteria in an utterly inappropriate place.
This is kind of my point. GGP just said "Europe is not a country" without any real basis one way or the other. As the point is unanswerable I thought it was a bit of a sweeping statement to make. And I know quite a few people who view Europe as a country, though my sample of ERASMUS students is probably more than a little biased. I personally don't, but I do view Europeans as one people, and believe there are definable elements of European culture and I also believe in a united Europe.
There we go /., a Fede
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I'm certainly not the first to say it, but: Europe has a flag no one salutes and an anthem no one sings.
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Patriotism.
I'm certainly not the first to say it, but: Europe has a flag no one salutes and an anthem no one sings.
The Anthem of Europe doesn't have any lyrics: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2PDaWAGXss [youtube.com]
And Europeans don't generally salute flags anyway.
And both gestures show nationalism, anyway.
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By the way, many uninformed people see Europe as a country to some extent. This insults not only a lot of Europeans, it also include a lot of people outside of Europe.
There. Fixed that for ya.
The big problem is, that this "union" is force-fed to us Europeans, without there being a point to it.
That is the real thing here: There is a global "urge" to union us all, under one government. Thereby removing all abilities to go somewhere else, if you don't like it there.
Which unfortunately be, what many people want to do, with the current totalitarian oppression regimes rising.
And if you argue that you could make a new party. Then look at how well that works out for the current
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The Union is not force fed. It has been moving in precisely the direction that was pointed out when the Union was founded.
From the Schuman declaration on the foundation of the Union:
The pooling of coal and steel production should immediately provide for the setting up of common foundations for economic development as a first step in the federation of Europe, and will change the destinies of those regions which have long been devoted to the manufacture of munitions of war, of which they have been the most co
Re:Need Another Seven Astronauts (Score:4, Funny)
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No it's not. And frankly, if will only over my cold dead body. If it has to come to war against an illegal and illegitimate EU government, I am prepared.
Yes, that's how important this is to us.
I look over your statement, because you did not know this. But I recommend being sensitive.
Or we might call US-Americans Mexocanadians. ^^
*cocks gun^W^Wadds "Mexocanadian" to his dictionary*
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No it's not. And frankly, if will only over my cold dead body. If it has to come to war against an illegal and illegitimate EU government, I am prepared.
It will be. The union of Europe is a generational process. As time passes, people are brought up seeing more union and just accepting that as the norm, and those brought up in eras of less unity pass on. Rest assured, your cold dead body will lie in a grave someday in a perfectly united Europe with probably even less local sovereignty than American states have on paper (in fact, American states have long since lost that sovereignty too).
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I'm Belgian, you insensitive clod!
What's a European? (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:What's a European? (Score:5, Insightful)
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So would Canadians be referred to as Europeans, considering they're members of the ESA?
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I'm French, I don't mind being called an European, and I know quite a few others who don't mind either.
Just because we like cheese doesn't make us xenophobes or even condescending, you know.
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Looks like I've used a stereotype to combat another stereotype. Only excuse for me is that most of the thing's I know about French people is from working for a company, which makes French webpages. Typically this is done with our French partner. Most of end clients typically insult us when it is revealed that we are not from France. But yes, there are some nice people too.
Re:What's a European? (Score:5, Insightful)
Many a stupid piece of political correctness, came from people deciding what would, or wouldn't be offensive to other people.
Those two people don't represent the other 700 million, who probably don't care, and are off to the pub.
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I'm not sure I can explain it any better, but tip-toeing around calling people European, is just one step away from calling us "Continentally challenged".
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And you're the expert, right? I bet you call yourself an "American", completely ignoring that you are one of 35 countries.
The *only* ones talking about "Europeans", are uneducated US-Americans (not all), and politicians trying to force this "union" down our throat at all cost.
Come here, go around and ask people what country they are from. You will be old and gray, before finding some confused soul naming not his own country. ^^
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Don't you mean off to the beach, in a Speedo?
Re:What's a European? (Score:5, Funny)
I quite like being labelled a 'European'. It makes me feel like we're united.
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I quite like being called European. I don't much like the bits of culture that are specific to my country, but I do like the bits that are broadly European.
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Think of it like this: Where will you go, when your government, continuing on its current course, will be an oppressive totalitarian one, forcing everyone to walk in lock-step?
The next country? Well, that would then be either Russia, an Arabic country, or going overseas to Africa or America. At least until they are "united" too.
Yay. :/
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I do not mind. I live in the Netherlands, have been living in the UK and is original from Stockholm and have a Belgian girlfriend.
I call my self European, I am pretty annoyed when people call me Swedish when this is clearly not how I feel. There is nothing more annoying than people calling Europeans by their statehood.
Europe is almost a country (it even has its own entry in the CIA world fact book because it has so many state like properties), and for any person who is not living here the EU is probably ind
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Most Europeans I have met personally label themselve that way too. It's as if they don't want to be limited to the expectations of just one culture when they are the product of many and frequently move around within them.
It's almost a badge of honor with them. I can see someone not liking it when they live in the same place all their life without really going outside that country. I really think that's the main difference.
For Americans, we have, and historically have had (at least since WWII and the cold wa
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You have met the wrong People. I lived in Cologne (Germany), Luxemburg, Spain, and came around much. And I know for sure, that not a single person i ever met would call himself an "European", when asked for his country.
Maybe someone thought: "Oh, an US-American. From the funny TV-Spots know that they can't tell Iraq from their own country on a map. So I say 'Europe', and maybe get a chance at him knowing it"
Sure, this is just as insulting and filled with prejudice. But, here too, as everywhere, not all peo
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Oops. I apologize for the typos around "funny TV spots I know". I saw a funny TV spot at that moment, and forgot to fix it. ;)
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Actually the question is usually where are you from, not what country are you from. Perhaps it's all in the semantics.
Interesting way you phrase that (Score:2)
I'd wager the people who wouldn't identify themselves as "European" come from/live in backwater towns, and the ones who would are from big cities.
Also, that would be "a US-American," firstly, as the phoneme that starts the pronunciation of "US" in this context is a "y" sound, considered a consonant in this case, and secondly, no one says "US-American" or "United Statesian" other than idiots.
It is commonly understood outside the context of formal geographical discussion that "American" means "of or having to
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And I know for sure, that not a single person i ever met would call himself an "European", when asked for his country.
Who on earth "asks for your country"? No one asks that. What people ask is "where are you from?" Many if not most of the Europeans I've met tend to answer that question, "I'm European," however my sample is probably not representative, being high on people from the "low countries", as well as, for reasons I'm not sure of, Scandinavians of one sort or another.
It must also be noted, though, that how people will answer that question depends very much on who's asking. For example, if most people in the worl
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Oh yeah, because the indigenous peoples of Africa are genetically and culturally homogeneous. Oh wait, that isn't even remotely true, it just happens that many of them make a lot of melanin.
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Nobody did. :)
It's this mindset of "Europe" *having* to become a country!!!!11!1!one, that is spread by politicians, without there being a point to it, other than total centralized power and control from one fake-democracy government (yeah, like the USA), that disturbs us. Especially since it grows in the minds of the uninformed, until nobody looks strange at you anymore, when you mention it. (A bit like a virus of "getting used to it".)
Wait until politicians and big company spokespersons start calling us "
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Sure, had the Nazis taken over a global government instead of just the German government in the late 1930's, the results probably would have been much worse.
When government is good, giving more power to them seems harmless. But over the long run, they don't stay good.
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Like most one-worlders, you neglect this small (to you) fact in favor of what's obviously supposed to happen. Those who don't study history are doomed to repeat it.
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I'm also an European and I don't mind being called that.
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I'm from Romania so a strong argument can be made that I like to be called an European in order to wash out some of the sin behind the dirt and corruption staining the name of my home country. Be that as it may, I'm a strong believer that a united Europe is the only way to proceed through the following decades from an economical point of view. I also believe that the countries in Eastern Europe will bring a lot to the table for all the other Euro
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And Europeans have higher standards of education, healthcare, safety, and cooperation. We actually care about the planet we share, and we try not to use every resource in sight just because we can.
Americans == virtually bankrupt, selfish, greedy bigots, whose biggest exports are violence both real and imaginary and Imaginary, sorry, intellectual property. People who think you can own thoughts and mathematics. People who want to char
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BTW, when was the last time your armed forces were used for defence ? Not since 1945 in my opinion.
If you apply a wide definition of defense, they're currently being used for defense. If you apply a narrow definition of defense, they haven't been used for defense since, I think, 1848. Certainly not in 1945 -- that was a war in another country, attempting to "preserve democracy" in nations where it was arguably none of our business. If you don't think American should project power abroad in that matter, we really should never have gotten involved in WWII. (And for those who say we were attacked, it sh
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BTW, when was the last time your armed forces were used for defence?
used to defend our freedom to exploit others? well i'd say that covers most of our wars
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Interesting, given that I most often use the term being used by Europeans. Are you saying Europeans annoy even themselves?
(Actually, that's a silly question. I know enough of them to know that nothing annoys Europeans more than Europeans...)
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There's nothing more annoying to "Europeans" than by labeling them all "Europeans". I learnt that the hard way by a very irate French woman and German man a year ago. "Europe" is not a country, the article doesn't say "seven from North America", does it?
Well, I'm European. I would continue, but that says it all really, doesn't it?
I work in a fairly small office with people from the UK, Spain, France, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Italy. I suppose that working in an international environment has colored my perceptions, so I think of myself as "European" first, but if I could get a passport that simply said "Europe" I would do it.
And it's not that there is anything wrong with the country I was born in (and still live in); I feel at home, I feel the culture i
thats too many people (Score:2)
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From what? Weight? :-P
In Space... (Score:1)
...only 12 people can hear you screaaaaaammmmmmmmmmmmm 'who's been eating MY sandwiches'
Who here... (Score:2, Offtopic)
...likes chili?
I read the subject line as... (Score:4, Funny)
You can't make this pi$$ up (Score:2, Interesting)
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That's only a small part of what they are doing. There's a bunch of spacewalks, maintenance, etc... More info here. [spaceflightnow.com]
Did they bring Tiki lamps? (Score:2)
What, no quatorzien? (Score:2)
Lucky 13??? (Score:2)
wow (Score:2)
Potty Mouth (Score:2, Funny)
who was the first couple to have sex in space? (Score:2)
The "three hundred mile high" club? I've looked everywhere on wikipedia for the answer, without success... Another thought: were they straight or gay? Inquiring minds want to know!
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Posted AC for irony.
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