I've been waiting for ages for technology to catch up with me, and finally it has. I've just uploaded my first Music Video. It's quite primitive in that all you get are the words and the music on a nice background--but that's because I don't have a voice worth speaking of (especially after a nasty bout with a cold, bronchitis, sinusitis--you name it, I got it). This is an experiment to see how well YouTube works for hosting a variety of my videos.

 

Enjoy!

 

P.S. The actual video looks a lot better than the title shot YouTube picked!

 

 

 Theresa Holmes

 

 

 

I got tagged by Peppermint on my Townhall blog (http://phoenix-rising.townhall.com) and had to come up with six "weird" things about myself, as well as tag six other folks. That was fun! Not only that, but it certainly got the attention of fellow bloggers about me and my work on space development and settlement, because I borrowed Don Davis' painting showing the interior of a Stanford Torus and posted it in that entry.

 

Meanwhile, the debate over Kim Peart's proposed campaign to educate large numbers of Earth's population about the value of space development and settlement continues apace at the SSAC online. The problem was that Kim is gravely concerned about Global Warming and its likely effects on the world economy. I inadvertantly sparked a "loud" discussion about just how serious the threat from Global Warming actually is. My take is that a.) climate change happens, b.) while humankind probably has contributed something to the process, our contribution is tiny compared to non-human controlled contributing factors such as the Sun's energy output, the shape of Earth's orbit, and the angle and direction of tilt of the Earth's rotational axis. And c.) we'd be far better off to plan on adapting as needed, using the free market to encourage human ingenuity, than to struggle to freeze things to a steady state by killing the economic freedom of the US. Global warming may or may not be real in the scientific sense, but as a political movement, it is both real and very dangerous because it's a badly disguised excuse for socialism. The Chinese and Indians can pollute all they like because they're exempt from the Kyoto Accords, but the US is supposed to destroy its economy in a draconian effort to return our output of greenhouse gases to pre-2000 levels? What's wrong with this picture?

 

Be that as it may, the fire fight seems to be dying down some, for the moment. I made the comment fairly late in the debate that I'd love to see everyone on both sides put as much energy and passion into why we should settle space as they did into whether global warming is real and dangerous or nothing but a lot of hot air. We'll see if anyone takes me seriously.

 

Al Globus, chair of the committee, made an interesting comment to me in a private email that space development doesn't actually have any short term answers to the problem of global warming. I told him it didn't need to have short term answers because what it does provide is hope of escape, not only from global warming, but also all the other conflicts in the world. It is the third alternative, and if presented as such, in a positive manner, has the potential to cut off debate on almost every other problem in favor of working together on this bigger challenge.

 

I believe it was Albert Einstein who pointed out that nothing seen as a problem can be solved on its own level of logic. You have to move up to the next level of logic in order to see solutions to any given problem. All of the major conflicts in the world are a consequence of the need for a frontier. The third alternative to the wars in Europe during the 15th and 16th Centuries was the exploration and settlement of the Americas. The third alternative to the wars and threat of nuclear warfare in this century is the exploration and settlement of the Solar System. It's this message that we need to share with all the passion in us.

 

And Bart Leahy, another member of the SSAC, proposes to do just that with a book called "A Shining City." I expect to be providing a lot of encouragement and commentary to him over the next few months as he works on this project. I'll keep everyone posted on his progress from time to time.

 

Meanwhile, I recently got a Casio WK8000 88 key keyboard workstation and can now do some serious music composition and development. I've already started developing a couple of my space songs into pieces that can form the cores of music videos once I get my super system rebuilt so I can do the video development. It's my hope to have at least one of these two songs, preferably both, available for ISDC '07 in Dallas, after which I plan to make them available for download from Phoenix Lady's Nest, along with my novels. Who knows, maybe there's a new career for me in multimedia productions.

 

So far, 2007 shows every evidence of being a very interesting year for me and for space development and settlement. Keep checking this space for more updates.

 

Our Space Settlement Advocacy Committee for the National Space Society has been debating a definition of Space Settlement. The following is Kim Peart's contribution. I'm sharing it because he writes it much better than I could.

 

 

Space Settlement: Expanding human civilization on Earth into the Solar
System and toward the stars.

     Because sizable communities must cooperate to create living space in
space, space settlement will be the movement of civilization rather than the
initiative of individuals.

     Unless our Sun is renamed, then it will also be commonly called Sol.
Would the civilization around Sol refer to itself as Earth? We begin to
define the future today. Don't forget Hoyle's joke, when he mockingly named
the beginning of space and time the Big Bang. It seems to have stuck.

     One day in the decades ahead the good folk of Sol beyond Earth, all
using solar energy for their light bulbs and toasters, might well outnumber
Earthlings, contemplating the first migrations to the stars in their orbital
cities, solar petals stretched out toward the Sun, may merrilly sing of
their achievemnets with their Solar civilization. "Sunar" doesn't quite work
in that context.

     I have puzzled long on the Solar economy (using a capital "S"
differentiates the word and the term from "solar" energy) and suggest that
we can think about the matter quite differently.

     The meaning of achieving a sustainable and self-suffient presence in
the Solar System beyond Earth is to be in a position where no further
resources are required from Earth, with unlimited solar energy, with access
to the raw materials around the Solar System, with automated and robot run
factories than can make anything we instruct them to and able to manufacture
as many orbital settlements as required, even enough to hold the whole
population of Earth in an emergency. The establishment cost is huge, but the
subsequent situation is limited only by the energy of our Sun, the resources
of the Solar System and our ability to survive in space. With this potential
at our fingertips, we are able to think differently about our future of
human civilization, how we organise our society and the opportunities we
create for all Earth's children.

     We moved on from the days of the kings into the age of the democracies.
The demands of securing our civilization in the Solar System may open the
way to a new development in governance, in which all citizens play a direct
role in considering the basic rights and responsibilities of all citizens.

     Designing for security in space may the key to the new way, where we
will either decide to protect ourselves with the violence that can create
more violence, or invest in practical compassion toward offering hope for
all Earth's children, thus diminishing the threat at it root.

     The current Chinese missile strike on a satellite is a clear warning of
the danger we face in space, a threat that could easily terminate the space
adventure for all before we even get off the planet properly.

     We may need to decide if the amazing wealth of the Solar System is
sitting there for the benefit of the few, whether that be a corporation, the
Chinese government, or a combination of the two, or whether we start to
build a future in the Solar System that involves the whole Human family.

     If we choose the inclusive way, the good wishes of many will be with
us, especially when we include the needs of our old Earth in our thinking.
Good attracts good. If we choose the the exclusive way, we could be asking
for terminal trouble, as this path generates the exclusion that can create
an environment of resentment and in resentment are the seeds of terrorism
and war.

     I like to look at the Declaration of Independence and the Charter of
the United Nations and wonder, will there be a third great historic
document, drafted in the Solar System to craft the way for the future of
humanity in space.

          Celestially,
                                Kim Peart

No, I'm not going to tell you what's in space for you, because I have no idea what's important to you. Instead, I'm including here a copy of a survey created by Kim Peart of the Tasmanian Space Society (yes, Tasmania as in Australia). His contact info is at the end of the survey. I strongly encourage you to answer his questions honestly and email them to him.

 

Survey Questions

 

Question 1

   Do you like the proposal for an Earth citizen’s campaign for space?

 

Question 2

   What should the carefully crafted message include that will inspire widespread support for space?

 

Question 3

   What activities could an International campaign for space include?

 

   As with Al Gore’s campaign, this could include a seminar presentation and a documentary film on the message, as well as a display and a publication on the Earth citizen’s plan for space.

 

Question 4

   What percentage of Earth’s citizens should such a campaign aim to inspire to participate in a Giant Leap for space, to maximise the prospect for success?

 

   The Chinese government could mobilise twenty per cent of Earth’s population for space, if they had a mind to, as well as drawing in the support of many other nations.

 

Question 5

   What banner name could an International campaign for space be best run under?

 

   One possible name is “Free Space”. No organization of this name is found through Google. The name chosen would need to be clear in it’s meaning and inspire confidence in the campaign. The term “Free Space” could work well, because it can imply freedom from harm for all Earth’s children in a Solar civilization, as well as gaining the freedom of space and the stars.

 

Question 6

   What on-going and effective activities could an Earth citizen’s campaign for space promote around the World?

 

   This could include the concept of a “Space Centre”, which would be run locally and connected Internationally, as a way for people in local communities to participate in the vision for space. A “Space Centre” could include space displays, an education space, a gallery of space related art, a café, a large screen for watching live space events and space programs, a space shop, offer internet services, provide information on space careers and tourism, encourage space related initiatives and offer workshops and seminars on space topics.

 

Question 7

   Would you like to participate in an Earth citizen’s campaign for space?

 

   A campaign for space could include the support of individuals, as well as participation by many organizations around the World, who share the view that space offers hope.

 

 

   A Think Tank may be needed to start crafting the message, planning the campaign and preparing the way for creating our Solar civilization.

 

 

Anything may be possible, if we can imagine it.

We live in a World where the impossible now exists,

that was once only imagined.

 

 

Kim Peart   ~Tasmanian Space Society~

Ph.  61  (0)3  4248 1373

Em.  kimpeart@keypoint.com.au

 

 

 

 

 

Just so everyone who drops by knows, the Space Settlement section of the National Space Society site is now available. Just go to www.nss.org and click on the word "Settlement."

 

The next piece of news is that NASA-Ames and NSS will be co-sponsoring NASA's yearly Space Settlement Design Contest for junior and senior high students. The following letter is from a college student at University of Central Florida concerning how participation in this contest, among others, has helped him a great deal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Alas, I couldn't go this year for a variety of reasons. But the X-Prize Foundation is webcasting the events at the Las Cruces Air (and Space) Port. If you want to check it out, just click here.

 

In other news, I've finally managed to start taking the next step on the Space Settlement Design Competition.

 

Meanwhile, I'm going to go watch more of the X-Prize Cup webcast.

 

Just a quick note to let everyone know I've finished updating the framework for the website. That is, all the pages now have the same format. Also, I've added blurbs for the novels so you have some idea what they're about before you pick one to download, and I've improved the instructions for how to download them. They're all still free, of course. For some unknown reason, I can't bring myself to charge anything for them, although if I did, I'd probably charge $4 to $10 depending on the length and how much artwork I've included.

 

What do you think? Should I charge for them? The mechanics would be easy enough, but would you, or anyone else, be willing to pay for them like you would a paperback you get from Barnes & Noble? After all, you'll never see these novels on their book shelves. They belong somewhere in the Long Tail beyond the reach (or interest) of the brick and mortar book sellers. That's not because they're poorly written, only because their appeal is not to the masses, but to people like you, with more discriminating tastes.

 

And yes, I just finished reading "The Long Tail" by the editor of Wired Magazine. Very educational, especially as it applies to marketing, and to the Starfield Valley Tales, where the Village of Tomorrow concept is based on the economics of abundance.

 

In other news, I've applied for a supervisor position at the call center where I work. I had a lot of fun putting together a Power Point Presentation as requested. If I get the position, I'll probably be very busy for awhile as I learn the ropes, so it may be awhile before you see a new update. That's one of the reasons I've spent so much time the last couple of weekends redoing my website, so it could run on automatic.

 

Go check it out by clicking here.

I've spent most of today (way more than I should have, actually) reconfiguring my primary website. You'll find it by clicking on My Novels and More. It is mostly my novels at present, but eventually I plan to add more products, some available for sale, such as jewelry I've designed, as well as plan books based on my single and multi-family home designs, as well as the petal, tile, and hex designs. I'll also redo the index pages for the novels eventually, but not tonight.

 

It's been busy at work, and busy here, and I've been letting my space advocacy work slide. My bad. I'll see if I can focus a little more attention on it this week.

 

In the meantime, Ad Astra per Levitas Nostra!

Sorry it's been so long since my last entry. I tried to make one a couple of weeks ago, but it wouldn't save for some reason.

 

So here I am, in the middle of September. It's been getting quite busy at work, as we go through the integration of the former Adelphia systems in L.A. with the former Comcast systems and the current Time Warner Cable systems (oh, I didn't mention I work as a tech support engineer for Time Warner Cable--formerly for Adelphia. TWC bought our call center and we all became TWC employees on August 1st). Be that as it may, this last week has been crazy to say the least.

 

I've also finished the first draft of The Gordian Knot, a new novel in the Starfield Valley Tales. For those of you who haven't read any of my novels, the Starfield Valley Tales are based on the tile, petal, and hex designs you see in the slide show. They explore how the idea of space development can provide a whole new perspective on life and human relationships. I'm not going to post the novel yet, however. It needs to settle for a month or two before I read it again and decide whether it needs revision or not, and if so, how I'll do it. I also want to develop some illustrations for inclusion in the pdf file.

 

 In other news, it looks like I've finally managed to interest the rest of the Space Settlement Advocacy Cmte that blogs are a good thing. We're now looking at how to interest Glenn Reynolds, the Insta-Pundit (and very long time NSS member) to work with us to educate the blogosphere about how space development can impact the future in a positive way.

 

I've been a bit lax on the design competition, largely because of the novel, but now that that's done and in the cooler for awhile, I plan to get back to work on the contest project. More on that later.

 

In fact more on everything later.

 

I've been a bit busy, lately, between blogging on my Townhall blog, leaving comments all over the boards there, and working on a new novel in the Starfield Valley Tales. This one is called The Gordian Knot, for reasons that will become obvious when I finish it and you get a chance to read it. I'm up to Chapter Thirteen, probably about a 3rd of the way through the tale. Although I have a general framework for the plot, as is typical of most of my novels, this tale is character and problem driven.

 

One reason I'm not pushing very hard to sell my novels to the mass market is because I write them mainly for my pleasure and comfort, as a kind of thought experiment process exploring ways to solve problems I see in the world that are too large for any one person to deal with. As I said in a comment on Townhall yesterday, I believe it was Albert Einstein who said the solution to any problem can't be found on the same level as the causes of the problem. I'd love to get the actual quote, but I can't even remember where I read it originally and I'm too lazy to do a search on it.

 

As I see it, a lot of the world's problems are a result of the apparent loss of the frontier as a place where those discontented with the status quo can go to create their own ideas of what Heaven (or at least the Cities of Grace and Truth) looks like. Sure, there are the oceans, and the deserts, and so on--but at this point essentially all the land area is claimed by one nation or another, and the oceans are considered too hard to settle.

 

Konstantin Tsiolkovsky once said it wasn't wise to leave all our eggs in one basket. Al Globus, chair of our Space Settlement Advocacy Committee of the National Space Society also has a quote I like (don't know if it's original to him or not), "If the dinosaurs had had a space program, they'd still be here." And sorry, the order Aves doesn't count. Given that we recently saw a mountain-sized rock scalp us (well within lunar distance, possibly within geo-sync orbit if I remember right), don't you think cities in space (orbit, the Moon, Mars, and beyond) might be a good idea? And that presupposes we don't scalp ourselves first with a major nuclear exchange.

 

If nothing else, development of cities in space would give us essentially infinite room for expansion, to say nothing of access to limitless quantities of energy and other resources.

 

Perhaps the reason so little has been published in the mainstream media is because there's no sense of interest on the part of the general populace. But that's a case of circular reasoning. How can the general populace be interested if they don't have a clue about what's possible? I think another reason is that many in the media themselves are at best disinterested in, at worst hostile to, the whole idea of leaving Earth to build cities in space. And perhaps a third reason is that so far, we who are interested in building space cities haven't figured out how to educate the media, to say nothing of the general public. Our SSAC is working on that problem, and making a goodly amount of progress. Check out the links to NSS and to the L-5 News showing on My Space Places from time to time for more info.

 

I think, however, that we also need to follow the lead of the Mars Society in finding places here on earth where we can actually build some of designs proposed for off world settlements (mine included, of course) to test them for construction techniques, livability, and marketability. To do this, we have to reach out to the architects and civil engineers, many of whom are already interested in these areas of design and development, because they're the ones who can turn our concept drawings into construction drawings--and they have a lot better connections into the realm of money and marketing than most of us space advocates do.

 

To that end, as my primary project for the SSAC, I have proposed development of a design competition for cities that can be built on Earth or in space for adults, be they college students, laypeople (like me) or professionals with an interest in sustainable design. I've sent out emails to contacts at AIAA, AIA, and ASCE within the last day or so, and hope to have a progress report on this project soon.

 

In the meantime, Ad Astra per Levitas Nostra! (To the stars through our own High Spirits!)

 

I have FINALLY gotten all of my completed novels and story collections online, and I've now updated the link over on the List to the right (under My Space Places).

 

These are pdf files. They WILL take time to download as they range from about 1 MB to about 3 MB, depending on the length of the story. You may feel free to save them to disk for reading offline. You may also print ONE copy for yourself if you wish, the better to enjoy the artwork and/or the plan drawings in the Starfield Valley Tales. However, please respect my copyright notices and don't print multiple copies for sale. Why not just refer your friends here so they can download their own copies?

 

Of course, if you happen to know an agent who might be interested in representing me in efforts to sell publication rights to a major league publisher, or to a movie-making outfit...

 

Comments are always welcome (even negative ones if written in the manner of constructive criticism). You have no idea how glad I am that technology has finally caught up with me to the point where I can share my tales (and my artwork) with you.

 

Enjoy!

 

I have been reminded by Burt Bregman that I forgot to include The Mars Society on my list of Space Places. My apologies to Bob Zubrin and his merry band. The Mars Society does at least as much hard work as they do talk in places like Devon Island (north of the Arctic Circle in Canada) and Utah (the most Mars-like desert they can find) to prepare for the day when it becomes possible to begin the exploration, development, and settlement of Mars.

 

I've known Bob Zubrin for at least 15 years. Back then, the Front Range L5 Chapter of the National Space Society produced a public access TV show called "Spacerise." For one of those episodes, my husband got to interview Bob about the Mars Direct proposal. I have a tape of this show somewhere, but you would do better to contact the Front Range L5 (through the NSS website, under chapters) for information about possibly getting your own copy. After the taping session (I was one of the camera people), we adjourned to the nearby Dennys (on the other side of what is now Invesco Field, home of the Broncos, in Denver) for our usual party. Here I got to witness Bob's demonstration of how to bootstrap the exploration of Mars--using coffee creamers to represent the spacecraft. It was very instructive--and hilarious as one of the coffee creamers had a leak...

 

The only difference of opinion I have with Bob about Mars Direct is the Direct part. Yes, it could be done with government funding through NASA--if we had enough grassroots support to really push for it--and it would be a LOT cheaper than NASA's original (and perhaps current) plans. The problem is, we don't have enough grassroots support (the Mars movie to the contrary notwithstanding, even if it was based on Bob's plans).

 

My feeling at this point in time (always subject to change, of course) is that we need to strongly encourage the privatization of space development and the development of the tourist trade into the Earth-Moon system, as we are beginning to see with Virgin Galactic and Bigelow Aerospace. Once we've got enough reasonably wealthy people who've been to the edge of space, or into orbit, as tourists, we'll begin to see more private funding of space ventures, followed by a slow groundswell of grassroots support as people begin to realize space travel isn't just for government employees.

 

I believe that by 2020, Mars Direct will become a distinct possibility, as a largely privately funded venture. The overall plan will probably remain the same, although if we have any on-orbit facilities able to support construction using lunar materials, most of the vehicles can be built on-orbit and launched from there at a much lower cost per pound than is currently expected.

 

In the meantime, all the work being done by the Mars Society at Devon Island and in Utah will ensure that the people who go are well prepared to deal with the alien environment to be found on Mars--and beyond.

 

My focus, as always, is to help lay the ground work by providing my take on other people's ideas (as much in a positive light as possible), as well as my encouragement. I also feel that my purpose in life demands that I bring a woman's perspective to the question of what we will live in once the initial beachheads have been established in orbit, on the Moon, on Mars and beyond. Men may be comfortable roughing it indefinitely, but women expect something better. In the past, the women have allowed themselves to be dragged in the footsteps of the men and have suffered greatly for it (read the letters of some of the early women settlers in the Union Colony that became Greeley, Colorado if you don't believe me). I want to see us women go side by side with our men and keep reminding them of what we want those settlements off world to be like--beautiful and comfortable places to live and raise our children.

 

Think about it, fellows. Then take a look at my designs to get an idea of what I, at least, consider to be beautiful and comfortable. And read my Starfield Valley Tales (starting with "A Little Bit of Heaven") to see what living in such a place could be like if it were built here on Earth to serve as a test bed for similar settlements built out there.

 

And don't forget to look at the entire slide show about how we can settle the Solar System in 3 Easy Steps.

 

The NSS Space Settlement Advocacy Committee is making substantial progress on developing a section of the NSS website devoted to space settlements. I've updated the link to the L5 News and added a link to all the Don Dixon artwork done for the Stanford Torus Design, the Bernal Sphere Design, and the O'Neill Cylinder Design. Check the Space Places List to the right.

 

I'm also about to upload all my novels to a new free website (at least temporarily). Once I've done that, I'll correct the link for the Novel Sampler.

 

I'm also working on a new novel. I'll let you know when it's finished (probably at least a month or two). This one is in the Starfield Valley Tales.

 

I wish I were as good an artist as Don Dixon so I could do renderings of my designs. Oh well. Maybe someday. The problem with his renderings is now everyone thinks the different settlement types have to be built to look like the renderings. If we did that, they would be horribly expensive--far more so than they need to be--so they'd probably never be built. That's why I've developed my integrated design principles and applied them to my designs. Although I have yet to convince anyone to take me seriously, based on my years of experience in the building industry (or at least on the edge of it), I feel my designs are far more easily built, both here on Earth (as test beds) and out there (once we've worked the bugs out and developed shielding material). Not only that, but I expect my designs are a lot more livable, both here and out there, than any of the ideas I've seen so far, largely because I first asked myself what I (particularly as a woman) would want to live in.

 

But enough of that. When I can find the time, I'll see what I can do in the way of developing some renderings of my designs, particularly for Von Braun Station and Armstrong-Aldrin City.

 

I've been reading conservative news and commentary on Townhall.com for some time now, and finally decided to set up a blog there so I can comment on the columns and other entries, and show how space development relates to what's going on in the world. Check out my blog at http://phoenix-rising.townhall.com.

 

I've also been working to convert the rest of my completed novels and story collections to pdf files and to find space for all of them before the end of the month. Once I do, I'll update the link for my novel sampler and you'll have access to every novel I currently have available (about 15 of them), some of them with color illustrations from my designs or assorted portraits of characters and the occasional action illustration. The dates show I did them a very long time ago--which is more a commentary on how long it has taken self-publishing technology to catch up with me (or me with it, as the case may be).

 

In any case, I'll keep blogging here from time to time, but the Townhall blog will likely be updated more often, mostly because it gives me something to do between calls here at work.

 

 

Just a note to let everyone know I've finally rejoined NSS after about three years away (for a lot of reasons you don't want to hear about).

 

I started out as an old L-5 member way back in 1980. When we moved to Montana in 1983, I lost track of what was happening in space development for about 4 years. When we moved to Colorado in 1988, I just missed the Denver ISDC (Dang!), and didn't get back into NSS until the following fall, when we joined the Front Range L5 Chapter.

 

Since then, I've been a member of that chapter, started the (now defunct) Northern Colorado chapter, moved to Colorado Springs, started the (now defunct) Colorado Springs chapter, and, as Chapters Organizer for Region 4 back in the late 90's through about 2001, helped the cadets set up the USAF Academy Chapter of NSS, plus I helped several other chapters in the region get started.

 

Running a local chapter, even in a city full of space advocates and workers, is hard work I no longer have time for, so I'll leave that for others if they choose. However, I am interested in setting up a Special Interest Chapter with a focus on integrated design and construction techniques for use here on Earth as testbeds for settlements out there. If you've received my notice of update and are currently working on these ideas (you know who you are), please consider this your invitation to work with me to set up this chapter. If you're already involved in a chapter (and I know most of you are), consider this not as an additional or competing responsibility but as an additional forum. We can even set up our own space here on MSN spaces (or MySpace.com, or something similar). Or I can do it and maintain it while you blog or comment or send me things to post. If you're interested, email me at tkholmes_ssde@hotmail.com.

 

I look forward to jumping back into NSS with both feet.