3 ms·

Lets say I am a student in India, and I want to become an aerospace engineer and work with space. I get all the relevant education, and I want to increase my na

by z3phyr 7y ago

Lets say I am a student in India, and I want to become an aerospace engineer and work with space. I get all the relevant education, and I want to increase my nation's tech capability in the sector I specialize in. There are a lot of people like me. As I understand it, you want us to squash our dreams until some other specialist destroy ALL poverty and ALL the other problems? Why did the USA went to moon when they had not solved all their segregation and racism problems? Also, ISRO is profitable. They make more money then they spend, IDK what the problem is?

GordonS 7y ago
> As I understand it, you want us to squash our dreams until some other specialist destroy ALL poverty and ALL the other problems? No, that's not what I said at all. It's all relative - the scale of poverty in India is simply staggering; so many people in India live below the poverty line in absolutely terrible conditions, lacking basic sanitation and access to education and health care. India has far bigger problems than having a space program (which AFAICS isn't even breaking new ground - what is even the point apart from reinventing the wheel?!). If you're lucky enough to train as an autospace engineer in India, is it somehow your right that you would expect your government to spend a fortune on a space program, while millions live in abject squalor and misery?
- z3phyr 7y ago
  The chairman of ISRO was a poor farmer's son. Now he is an intellectual. I can attest that lot of people who were poor in India have chosen the path of science because of such endeavors. 900Cr is actually peanuts against a lot of projects involving social upliftment projects that Indian Government invests in. And it is a long term investment. I spent about 10 years of my life in a social home, where we did not even had 10 rs to buy medicine, and now almost everyone in my extended family in my generation is an privileged Engineer. A lot of inspiration came from our home grown and cheap space program. Why does the USA pursue the space program when they still haven't solved cancer and there are a lot of creationists there, and a large amount of gun violence. It should not pursue the space program until it solves these things by your logic. India will spend about 33 Trillion rupees total in various social upliftment, subsidy, transport and energy sector this year. The Chandrayan-2 is about decimal percentage of it.
  - GordonS 7y ago
    > Why does the USA pursue the space program when they still haven't solved cancer and there are a lot of creationists there, and a large amount of gun violence. It should not pursue the space program until it solves these things by your logic. No, that really doesn't follow from my argument; as I said, it's all relative, and the extent and scale of poverty in India goes far beyond that I've seen anywhere. Anyway my initial reactive to this article was disgust, because of the terrible things I've seen first hand across India - a level of poverty, squalor and abuse that you truely cannot begin to comprehend unless you see it for yourself in India. It's difficult to separate my emotions here from logical reasoning, but I've rethought my position on this; perhaps it's not such a bad thing after all. It is a relatively small sum of money, and could be a source of hope and aspiration for many.

by z3phyr 7y ago

GordonS 7y ago

> As I understand it, you want us to squash our dreams until some other specialist destroy ALL poverty and ALL the other problems? No, that's not what I said at all. It's all relative - the scale of poverty in India is simply staggering; so many people in India live below the poverty line in absolutely terrible conditions, lacking basic sanitation and access to education and health care. India has far bigger problems than having a space program (which AFAICS isn't even breaking new ground - what is even the point apart from reinventing the wheel?!). If you're lucky enough to train as an autospace engineer in India, is it somehow your right that you would expect your government to spend a fortune on a space program, while millions live in abject squalor and misery?

z3phyr 7y ago
The chairman of ISRO was a poor farmer's son. Now he is an intellectual. I can attest that lot of people who were poor in India have chosen the path of science because of such endeavors. 900Cr is actually peanuts against a lot of projects involving social upliftment projects that Indian Government invests in. And it is a long term investment. I spent about 10 years of my life in a social home, where we did not even had 10 rs to buy medicine, and now almost everyone in my extended family in my generation is an privileged Engineer. A lot of inspiration came from our home grown and cheap space program. Why does the USA pursue the space program when they still haven't solved cancer and there are a lot of creationists there, and a large amount of gun violence. It should not pursue the space program until it solves these things by your logic. India will spend about 33 Trillion rupees total in various social upliftment, subsidy, transport and energy sector this year. The Chandrayan-2 is about decimal percentage of it.
- GordonS 7y ago
  > Why does the USA pursue the space program when they still haven't solved cancer and there are a lot of creationists there, and a large amount of gun violence. It should not pursue the space program until it solves these things by your logic. No, that really doesn't follow from my argument; as I said, it's all relative, and the extent and scale of poverty in India goes far beyond that I've seen anywhere. Anyway my initial reactive to this article was disgust, because of the terrible things I've seen first hand across India - a level of poverty, squalor and abuse that you truely cannot begin to comprehend unless you see it for yourself in India. It's difficult to separate my emotions here from logical reasoning, but I've rethought my position on this; perhaps it's not such a bad thing after all. It is a relatively small sum of money, and could be a source of hope and aspiration for many.