To infinity...and beyond!

I recently switched operating systems from Fedora to Ubuntu, and have been particularly happy that with the new OS. It’s almost like I upgraded my graphics card; video and 3D rendering is much smoother. The main result has been that I find myself visiting Google Earth more often. So, when after a conversation with overseas grandparents, I had to explain to my soon-to-be 5 year-old why his grandparents in the states wouldn’t be able to visit Japan for his birthday, I turned to Google Earth to show him just where we are and where they are.

And I was greeted by a refrain I’ve become used to by now. "Can I have that one on my computer?"

So after a little bit of searching I had Google Earth running on his computer, which still uses Fedora, but has the benefit of a dedicated graphics card to make things run more smoothly. I turned my back for a minute or so then heard, "Can I print this one?" Looking at the picture Jonah wanted to print, I had no idea where in the world he was.

Because he wasn’t on this world.

He had gone to Mars.

After getting his computer’s printer going and once Mars rover pictures started pouring out, I wondered at the implications this experience could have for the future. After all, if you visited Mars in pictures at the age of four, then it would seem a reasonable jump to expect to be able to visit the red planet in person as an adult. Or perhaps it would be better to put it this way; after having visited the red planet and explored it in detail at the age of four, it would be particularly disappointing to at the age of 24 not be able to go there in person.

I think of that day as one where I lost quite a bit of printer ink and paper but gained a little more hope for the future.