The Space Barons by Christian Davenport - Book Report #243

This was a terrific read.

Best of all, the book was published this year, making the information very current.

I’ve been frustrated over the years at the lack of information to be found on the websites of SpaceX, Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin.  But with this book, Mr. Davenport was able to connect many of the dots and to clearly show where these three companies are headed.

Having grown up with Apollo, I was four years old when Armstrong and Aldrin landed on the moon, I feel an entire generation (mine) has missed the promise and wonder of space.  The shuttle never lived up to increasing access to space and we have not left Low Earth Orbit (LEO) since Apollo 17.

In these pages we learn that we are witnessing the birth of a new golden age of human space flight.  But, instead of building on the legacy of the Saturn V, rockets have been reinvented from the ground up.  They are a very different type of craft, being designed on reusability.

I couldn’t help thinking that if it wasn’t for the International Space Station being a government funded destination in space, we’d not be as far along as we are.  Thank goodness it is there.

You couldn’t ask for a better book to learn about space in the hands of the next generation.

It is an accessible read and will open the door to many Google searches to dive deeper into the subjects covered here.

Highly recommended. 

Ad Astra.

Christian Davenport

Powersat by Ben Bova - Book Review #154

06/15/2016

This is the kind of stuff I like.  Plausible SF without aliens or FTL.

Bova has been delivering this kind of fiction for decades and I really enjoyed this audio book.

That's not to say it was perfect, to be honest I found his love scenes to be ham-fisted and the women were depicted in an antiquated way; only ONE woman was not driven by love.  That's not to say they were not strong or smart, each one was, but the underlying driver was that they were in love with the main character Dan Randolph.

Randolph himself was irrationally in love with a senator to the point that his proclamations of love to her grated on me.  I found myself saying, "Really??" a lot.

Okay, many of the characters were just a bit off, but one must remember that Bova has been writing this kind of thing right from the tail end if the pulps and for the entire life of the paperback thriller era.  His plotting was excellent, his villains were diabolical and Randolph's competitors were formidable.

I kept thinking that this was very close to what Elon Musk and SpaceX must have felt like when they were getting started.  Without the body count.  That's not to say the book is very violent.  The industrial espionage within was believable and the action sequences were thrilling and cinematic.

All in all, none of it felt impossible and I found myself wishing SpaceX would take up the challenge of developing space based power generation.  Randolph and Musk share the same vision, they want to make the world a better place and are willing to take fantastic risks to get it done. They are men of vision.

Perhaps that is what makes this book work for me; there is a real life Dan Randolph, and Tony Stark rolled into one and he is Elon Musk.

Go SpaceX!

Go Ben Bova!

Elon Musk by Ashlee Vance - Book Report #146

Subtitle Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future

Think what you will but you've got to agree that Elon Musk is a very interesting man.  He's often been described as a real world Tony Stark of the Iron Man comics and movies.  And in many ways he is; in at least how motivated he is to think outside the box and to see his vision come to fruition.

He is a billionaire who is unafraid to risk all of it to make things work.  To him, it seems, money is only a tool, much like a hammer, to achieve his ultimate goals for humanity.  Money is a luxury most people lack and he is using his for a greater good.

I was fascinated by this book.  I took every opportunity to read a page or two when I could not devote a nice slice of time to it. He is also sometimes compared to Steve Jobs, at least in how abrasive and quick to fire people who do not meet his expectations.  Unlike Jobs he is motivated by forcing humanity into a sustainable and space faring world of the science fiction he read in his youth.  Not by creating a gadget.  He is not content with the pace of progress we've been experiencing for the last 50 years.

I've got to say; I agree with him.  Ever since Apollo ended the promise of  a technological, space-traveling future has withered away.  The world needs risk-taking, motivated individuals like Tesla, Edison, Bell, Diamandis, Branson, Jobs, Berners-Lee and Musk.  These folks, and so many others, have transformed our world in profound ways, making the world a better place.

On the subject of Musk; only time will tell what his contributions will do to transform our live.  He certainly knows what he wants to get out of his endeavors - nothing less than Mars!  Just think about all the ancillary benefits this kind of goal would bring to people around the world.  The massive effort needed would employ so many folks that it is staggering to even contemplate.

Think about how many new jobs, jobs that did not exist 30 years ago, have been created by the adoption of the Internet. Musk will not be satisfied with anything less than a paradigm shift in humanity's direction as a single people.

In any case I found the book fascinating and I am so glad I had the opportunity to read it and learn about this interesting man.

Ashlee Vance's web page is here:  http://www.ashleevance.com/

Elon Musk

Ashlee Vance