Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Nicholas StFleur
Published on 2024-02-16 09:30:44
our experiments into longer periods to see if we can do a much longer deep space-duration hibernation in space. That’s a step in that direction toward what’s called torpor, which is a naturally occurring ability for animals to lower their body temperature and metabolism to survive difficult times. Then on the other hand is suspended animation, getting people to be able to remain in that state for weeks, months, potentially even years. So the body would stop aging, and then you would wake up when you arrived at your destination. This is all science fiction becoming science reality. What are the implications of this research for medicine on Earth? It’s huge. Every time you push people to operate in new ways in extreme environments, extreme isolation, and extreme pressure to innovate, you get a number of things. You get medical devices that are smaller, lighter, and portable. You get pharmaceuticals that can be tailored and made faster to health issues emerging in real-time. You get diagnostics that have a lot less resources and can be used by a non-physician. You just get big jumps in technology. Because everything we do starts with money coming from NASA. So that funding stream gave us things like the baby food that comes in a pouch. It gave us cordless electric tools. It gave us the ability to navigate around GPS. All these areas of technology were initially supported by NASA, and they brought us back a lot of value. Particularly with human space flight, because of the fact there are no hospitals nearby, every single thing you need, you have to have, and you have to be prepared for any emergency. SpaceX’s current CEO, Elon Musk, has said that ultimately all of his pioneering in space is really based on the fact that we need to escape this planet in order to ensure human survival. You’ve been working in this field for a long time, and I know you are also really excited about the Artemis III mission. What’s your perspective on that? It was the dream of humanity to explore the universe. It was the Vikings and the Romans and the Greeks. This is really just another fulfillment of that vision. I would say people are always excited when you fulfill these grand visions, and it’s a very grand vision. We’re going to go to one of the things that’s very important to us, which is this very bright light in the sky, which really helped the world as we know it develop. It was the first calendar, with the moon phases. It was the first surveillance and deciphering of a year. It was our entire calendar structure. It is something that has never, to my knowledge, been equaled. There are grand potentialities for what this mission could bring back in terms of furtherment of high technology, not to mention recognition, national pride, and the understanding that there are certain missions that have to be done for humanity to survive. I think it’s super cool. I can’t wait to see it. And then where would you really like to see us go? What’s next? I’m going to channel the person who loves to be in the moment and tell you that I care very much about the world that we live in right now, so I’m very much focused on this one step. I’ll end on a poetic note because I think it encompasses where we should go: “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” So the one small step is whatever your particular step is going to be. But the giant leap for mankind is the sum total of all those steps that we ultimately take. That’s where I’m going. I’m taking one step at a time and making it as meaningful as possible. Thank you for your time and your insight, Dr. Donoviel.
