—Michelle Kim
MIT Technology Review Narrated: the role of the astronaut is in flux
We go to space for geopolitical prestige, manifest destiny, spiritual fulfillment, scientific curiosity, and, increasingly, business opportunities. In the wake of Artemis II, a slew of new books suggest that these justifications are subsumed by one unifying fact: humans have itchy feet, and we are simply wired to roam.
In The Ultraview Effect, space anthropologist Deana L. Weibel frames human space exploration as part of our need to embark on pilgrimages. In A Heart for Space, civilian astronaut Eiman Jahangir recounts one such voyage with Blue Origin. And in Dinner with an Astronaut, former NASA astronaut Leroy Chiao argues that people simply “need to know what’s on the other side.”
“We go into space because we want to explore,” says. “We want to see what it’s like to walk on another world.” But as our presence in space expands, we are bound to bring along the same human foibles that have stymied us on Earth.
This is our latest article to become an MIT Technology Review Narrated podcast, which we publish each week on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Just navigate to MIT Technology Review Narrated on either platform, and follow us to get all our new content as it’s released.
The must-reads
I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.
1 OpenAI is restricting its next model after rating it a “critical” cyber risk
Testing showed Astra can automate cyberattacks. (WSJ $)
+ OpenAI says it’s the first model to cross its “critical” threshold. (CNBC)
+ The company plans to give it extra security measures. (Reuters $)
+ Its safety issues could indicate cultural problems. (MIT Technology Review)