5 ms·

NASA had to train Apollo 11's astronauts to not use profanity (2019)

58 points by cybermango 6mo ago

anigbrowl 6mo ago
[flagged]
- robbyking 6mo ago
  It's funny as a parent, because I'm expected to tell my son that he shouldn't curse even though his mom and I do. And all of our friends. And coworkers. And my boss. And his boss. And our CEO. And the fucking president. It's ridiculous.
  - TeMPOraL 6mo ago
    It's ridiculous now. It might have not been when we were kids, just that our parents and grandparents weren't able to make the lesson stick.
  - Clamchop 6mo ago
    I think the underlying needle this is trying to thread is teaching kids to know their audience and adjust their register for it (which is a much broader skill than just whether or not to curse), but I agree that the fucking president ;) doing it gives kids ammo to argue against the rule. Idk if that's a good or a bad thing, maybe just neutral.
  - doubled112 6mo ago
    What is ridiculous is how funny it is when your three year old stubs his toe on the coffee table and yells "oh for fucks sake!", but you have to hide all that amusement. Good job expressing yourself, little man. It was accurate and concise, but we're going to try not to say that.
  - balamatom 6mo ago
    >his mom and I do. And all of our friends. And coworkers. And my boss. And his boss. And our CEO. And the fucking president. >I'm expected So, who's doing the expecting? Only half joking: do him a favor and teach him to avoid the passive voice like that.
- The_Blade 6mo ago
  your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries
- dannyobrien 6mo ago
  Can you give an example of a country where this is the case? (I suspect there are other taboos there, but am genuinely unsure.)
  - anigbrowl 6mo ago
    Just read any UK or Irish broadsheet.
- _--__--__ 6mo ago
  Everyone in this thread is bashing on religious causes but cursing was one of the very few obvious social class signifiers in 20th century America, which was part of why it was so harped on by parents and schoolteachers of that era.
singleshot_ 6mo ago
“That’s one small step for man, one… oh, fuck.”
- ddellacosta 6mo ago
  I couldn't help but think of this when I read your comment: https://theonion.com/july-21-1969-1819587599/ https://theonion.com/july-21-1969-1819587599/ "Neil Armstrong on the surface of the fucking moon."
incognito124 6mo ago
English is my second language, but all the examples in TFA* seem... mild. I wonder if they were filtered for the purposes of the article, or profanity just became more widespread in the past 50 years. * = :)
- nomel 6mo ago
  Yes, as any old person will tell you, everyone is rude and disrespectful these days (by comparison).
  - maybewhenthesun 6mo ago
    The eufemism treadmill works bot ways. Eufemisms loose their politeness. Swearwords loose their strength (to be replaced by new ones). Language changes. I don't think people are inherently more rude and disrespectful. "The children now love luxury; they have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise." - Socrates
- mzk185 6mo ago
  Swearing was taken as more severe back then. The F word was legitimately nuclear in polite company in the 1960s. But these things evolve. In Puritan times, “damn” would have gotten you two days in the stocks but “shit” and “fuck” we’re just uncouth. Today it’s identity slurs that are untouchable, which is an improvement because a lot of those words are legitimately hurtful and really shouldn’t be used casually. And there are languages like Korean and Japanese where there are no profane words at our level of severity but there are ways of saying things that will end your career, e.g. certain second person pronouns and verb inflections that no one uses these days but are still recognized as viscous attacks.
john_strinlai 6mo ago
>Dr. Larry Poland, president of the non-denominational Miami Bible College, contacted NASA and President Richard Nixon to complain about the profuse profanity from the Apollo 10 crew, demanding they apologize for their behavior. despite my best efforts, i have never been able to understand why or how swear words are inherently offensive. it just does not click with me. a request like this just seems absolutely ridiculous (especially given the context the offending words were said).
- Kenji 6mo ago
  [dead]
- mholt 6mo ago
  Using profanity indicates a weak vocabulary. A lack of discipline. A degree of unrefinement unbecoming of astronauts representing the "best" of humanity and their country. Depending on the type of profanity it can divide societies by reinforcing social schisms/prejudices. Such words typically cluster around areas of cultural discomfort such as religion, sex, and hygiene, causing polarizing emotional reactions. It's biological as well as cultural. Seems like the "best and bravest humanity has to offer" can probably represent a little better than that for one of the most significant feats of history.
  - RealityVoid 6mo ago
    > Using profanity indicates a weak vocabulary. A lack of discipline. A degree of unrefinement unbecoming Says you. I think not swearing obviously indicates a weaker vocabulary since there's a lot of things you can't or won't say. Of course, swear words can be offensive if you're their target, and I don't really enjoy that side. But they are _very_ effective in communicating frustration, anger, surprise. I think using them brings a bit of spice to life and a well placed "Fuck!" can feel extremely cathartic and... dare I say... pleasant.
  - carefree-bob 6mo ago
    If you think astronauts are supposed to be "the best of humanity" then you are going to be dissapointed. Astronauts are chosen because they can withstand high G forces and keep cool under pressure. It is very similar to how race car drivers are chosen. No one believes formula 1 drivers are "the best of humanity". And I wouldn't care if astronaut cursed anymore than if a formula 1 driver did.
Rotdhizon 6mo ago
Growing up I never cursed. As an older teen and young adult I started to around my friends but never in the home around my family. Then I entered the military and very quickly cursing became deeply ingrained in my speech. To the point it was difficult to speak a entire sentence without a curse word. Towards the end I embraced religion heavily and made it a point to cut out cursing entirely. Nowadays I do not curse at all nor do I even think about doing so, even the muscle memory is completely gone from my speech. As someone now who does not curse whatsoever under any circumstance, hearing those around me curse, it literally hurts my ears. I can pick those words out of a crowd like they're being spoken into a speakerphone. Especially being around military people still who curse every few words and just about every single sentence has an F word throw in, it's very uncomfortable.
- nemomarx 6mo ago
  You've removed them from your speech but I worry you've still given them some special power over you in your mind with that sensitivity. It would be freeing to treat them like any other word and not react to them so strongly for you, I think.
  - nashashmi 6mo ago
    Profanity doesn't have power over a person. They have a lack of eloquence and a laziness in language. It demonstrates indiscipline and thoughtlessness. And it conjures the wrong kinds of images in the head. Separating yourself from it is a sign of sophistication. And you want to be more sophisticated over time. And you want to be around sophisticated people as well.
- estimator7292 6mo ago
  They're just words. If you want to give those words so much power over you, that's your own problem to deal with. What right do you have to demand the rest of society cater to your particular hangups? When I hear curse words, they elicit exactly the same emotional response as any other word. There's nothing magical or inherently special about them, it's all in your own psychology.
AbraKdabra 6mo ago
As the great and only Shrek said "better out than in", if someone is offended by you cursing the fuck out of your lungs, just curse more and scare them out of your sight.
mzk185 6mo ago
Farisa has entered the forest.
dbvn 6mo ago
wow - people are lame. I want to hear their authentic reaction to being 240,000 miles from Earth... not what the pastor down the street thinks they should say.
doormatt 6mo ago
>Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins cursed fewer than 15 times during their moon-landing mission, based on NASA transcripts. Most of that came from command-module pilot Collins. Aldrin cursed just once and Armstrong didn’t at all. From what I've read about Armstrong, absolutely no surprise there.
- philipallstar 6mo ago
  Yeah he was apparently a great guy.
newtonsmethod 6mo ago
Unless they mean another "f word", the f word was used in Apollo 10. It's just that the transcripts change it to "freaking": > Oh, shit' What they did, they made it a two - Ain't this smart' Ain't that a smart freaking sack. ( https://apollojournals.org/afj/ap10fj/as10-day2-pt9.html https://apollojournals.org/afj/ap10fj/as10-day2-pt9.html ) It can be found in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQVEsfa15SY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQVEsfa15SY
PowerElectronix 6mo ago
I would't be able to stay polite if I were walking on the f-ing moon.
- piloto_ciego 6mo ago
  I was a pilot for many years. It's a profanity laden profession. You don't do difficult and dangerous flying of any kind without a few f-bombs here or there. As is tradition.
deleted 6mo ago
[deleted]
popeda 6mo ago
Popopo.. NASA this NASA that, they marble photos are quite fake..
xtiansimon 6mo ago
I started at a new employer, and my colleague’s swearing could put my teeth on end. We were 8 people in an open office. Cursing would just get in my head whenever their cursing syncopated with my new-guy-at-new-job stressing. My System 2 brain knew they were not cursing at me, but my System 1 brain would flinch at each curse. I asked them to please reduce the cursing. Later I knew I had come out of the funk when I let fly a few choice words of my own, and that colleague would rib me for it.

58 points by cybermango 6mo ago

anigbrowl 6mo ago

[flagged]

robbyking 6mo ago
It's funny as a parent, because I'm expected to tell my son that he shouldn't curse even though his mom and I do. And all of our friends. And coworkers. And my boss. And his boss. And our CEO. And the fucking president. It's ridiculous.
- TeMPOraL 6mo ago
  It's ridiculous now. It might have not been when we were kids, just that our parents and grandparents weren't able to make the lesson stick.
- Clamchop 6mo ago
  I think the underlying needle this is trying to thread is teaching kids to know their audience and adjust their register for it (which is a much broader skill than just whether or not to curse), but I agree that the fucking president ;) doing it gives kids ammo to argue against the rule. Idk if that's a good or a bad thing, maybe just neutral.
- doubled112 6mo ago
  What is ridiculous is how funny it is when your three year old stubs his toe on the coffee table and yells "oh for fucks sake!", but you have to hide all that amusement. Good job expressing yourself, little man. It was accurate and concise, but we're going to try not to say that.
- balamatom 6mo ago
  >his mom and I do. And all of our friends. And coworkers. And my boss. And his boss. And our CEO. And the fucking president. >I'm expected So, who's doing the expecting? Only half joking: do him a favor and teach him to avoid the passive voice like that.
The_Blade 6mo ago
your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries
dannyobrien 6mo ago
Can you give an example of a country where this is the case? (I suspect there are other taboos there, but am genuinely unsure.)
- anigbrowl 6mo ago
  Just read any UK or Irish broadsheet.
_--__--__ 6mo ago
Everyone in this thread is bashing on religious causes but cursing was one of the very few obvious social class signifiers in 20th century America, which was part of why it was so harped on by parents and schoolteachers of that era.

singleshot_ 6mo ago

“That’s one small step for man, one… oh, fuck.”

ddellacosta 6mo ago
I couldn't help but think of this when I read your comment: https://theonion.com/july-21-1969-1819587599/ https://theonion.com/july-21-1969-1819587599/ "Neil Armstrong on the surface of the fucking moon."

incognito124 6mo ago

English is my second language, but all the examples in TFA* seem... mild. I wonder if they were filtered for the purposes of the article, or profanity just became more widespread in the past 50 years. * = :)

nomel 6mo ago
Yes, as any old person will tell you, everyone is rude and disrespectful these days (by comparison).
- maybewhenthesun 6mo ago
  The eufemism treadmill works bot ways. Eufemisms loose their politeness. Swearwords loose their strength (to be replaced by new ones). Language changes. I don't think people are inherently more rude and disrespectful. "The children now love luxury; they have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise." - Socrates
mzk185 6mo ago
Swearing was taken as more severe back then. The F word was legitimately nuclear in polite company in the 1960s. But these things evolve. In Puritan times, “damn” would have gotten you two days in the stocks but “shit” and “fuck” we’re just uncouth. Today it’s identity slurs that are untouchable, which is an improvement because a lot of those words are legitimately hurtful and really shouldn’t be used casually. And there are languages like Korean and Japanese where there are no profane words at our level of severity but there are ways of saying things that will end your career, e.g. certain second person pronouns and verb inflections that no one uses these days but are still recognized as viscous attacks.

john_strinlai 6mo ago

>Dr. Larry Poland, president of the non-denominational Miami Bible College, contacted NASA and President Richard Nixon to complain about the profuse profanity from the Apollo 10 crew, demanding they apologize for their behavior. despite my best efforts, i have never been able to understand why or how swear words are inherently offensive. it just does not click with me. a request like this just seems absolutely ridiculous (especially given the context the offending words were said).

Kenji 6mo ago
[dead]
mholt 6mo ago
Using profanity indicates a weak vocabulary. A lack of discipline. A degree of unrefinement unbecoming of astronauts representing the "best" of humanity and their country. Depending on the type of profanity it can divide societies by reinforcing social schisms/prejudices. Such words typically cluster around areas of cultural discomfort such as religion, sex, and hygiene, causing polarizing emotional reactions. It's biological as well as cultural. Seems like the "best and bravest humanity has to offer" can probably represent a little better than that for one of the most significant feats of history.
- RealityVoid 6mo ago
  > Using profanity indicates a weak vocabulary. A lack of discipline. A degree of unrefinement unbecoming Says you. I think not swearing obviously indicates a weaker vocabulary since there's a lot of things you can't or won't say. Of course, swear words can be offensive if you're their target, and I don't really enjoy that side. But they are _very_ effective in communicating frustration, anger, surprise. I think using them brings a bit of spice to life and a well placed "Fuck!" can feel extremely cathartic and... dare I say... pleasant.
- carefree-bob 6mo ago
  If you think astronauts are supposed to be "the best of humanity" then you are going to be dissapointed. Astronauts are chosen because they can withstand high G forces and keep cool under pressure. It is very similar to how race car drivers are chosen. No one believes formula 1 drivers are "the best of humanity". And I wouldn't care if astronaut cursed anymore than if a formula 1 driver did.

Rotdhizon 6mo ago

Growing up I never cursed. As an older teen and young adult I started to around my friends but never in the home around my family. Then I entered the military and very quickly cursing became deeply ingrained in my speech. To the point it was difficult to speak a entire sentence without a curse word. Towards the end I embraced religion heavily and made it a point to cut out cursing entirely. Nowadays I do not curse at all nor do I even think about doing so, even the muscle memory is completely gone from my speech. As someone now who does not curse whatsoever under any circumstance, hearing those around me curse, it literally hurts my ears. I can pick those words out of a crowd like they're being spoken into a speakerphone. Especially being around military people still who curse every few words and just about every single sentence has an F word throw in, it's very uncomfortable.

nemomarx 6mo ago
You've removed them from your speech but I worry you've still given them some special power over you in your mind with that sensitivity. It would be freeing to treat them like any other word and not react to them so strongly for you, I think.
- nashashmi 6mo ago
  Profanity doesn't have power over a person. They have a lack of eloquence and a laziness in language. It demonstrates indiscipline and thoughtlessness. And it conjures the wrong kinds of images in the head. Separating yourself from it is a sign of sophistication. And you want to be more sophisticated over time. And you want to be around sophisticated people as well.
estimator7292 6mo ago
They're just words. If you want to give those words so much power over you, that's your own problem to deal with. What right do you have to demand the rest of society cater to your particular hangups? When I hear curse words, they elicit exactly the same emotional response as any other word. There's nothing magical or inherently special about them, it's all in your own psychology.

AbraKdabra 6mo ago

As the great and only Shrek said "better out than in", if someone is offended by you cursing the fuck out of your lungs, just curse more and scare them out of your sight.

mzk185 6mo ago

Farisa has entered the forest.

dbvn 6mo ago

wow - people are lame. I want to hear their authentic reaction to being 240,000 miles from Earth... not what the pastor down the street thinks they should say.

doormatt 6mo ago

>Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins cursed fewer than 15 times during their moon-landing mission, based on NASA transcripts. Most of that came from command-module pilot Collins. Aldrin cursed just once and Armstrong didn’t at all. From what I've read about Armstrong, absolutely no surprise there.

philipallstar 6mo ago
Yeah he was apparently a great guy.

newtonsmethod 6mo ago

Unless they mean another "f word", the f word was used in Apollo 10. It's just that the transcripts change it to "freaking": > Oh, shit' What they did, they made it a two - Ain't this smart' Ain't that a smart freaking sack. ( https://apollojournals.org/afj/ap10fj/as10-day2-pt9.html https://apollojournals.org/afj/ap10fj/as10-day2-pt9.html ) It can be found in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQVEsfa15SY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQVEsfa15SY

PowerElectronix 6mo ago

I would't be able to stay polite if I were walking on the f-ing moon.

piloto_ciego 6mo ago
I was a pilot for many years. It's a profanity laden profession. You don't do difficult and dangerous flying of any kind without a few f-bombs here or there. As is tradition.

deleted 6mo ago

[deleted]

popeda 6mo ago

Popopo.. NASA this NASA that, they marble photos are quite fake..

xtiansimon 6mo ago

I started at a new employer, and my colleague’s swearing could put my teeth on end. We were 8 people in an open office. Cursing would just get in my head whenever their cursing syncopated with my new-guy-at-new-job stressing. My System 2 brain knew they were not cursing at me, but my System 1 brain would flinch at each curse. I asked them to please reduce the cursing. Later I knew I had come out of the funk when I let fly a few choice words of my own, and that colleague would rib me for it.