I’ve been worrying about this development for decades. Looks like it’s on the doorstep. It won’t just be used by militaries. Just another nail in the coffin of privacy.
Category Archives: Technology and Society
The NASA Budget Battle
Bob Zimmerman has the latest. Space policy will continue to be a mess until someone with vision for it is put into place (and probably even then). It’s not at all clear that Duffy knows which end the fire comes out of.
A Dyspeptic Futurist
Jeff Foust read what appears to be a dumb book so you don’t have to.
Science Fiction
What if it’s our best window to the future? A discussion with David Brin.
He’s more down on lunar resources than I am, but I agree with his critique of Artemis.
The New Interim Administrator
Thoughts from Eric Berger on Sean Duffy’s additional job.
Unlike many on this platform, speaking as a space-policy expert, I have no idea whether it will hurt NASA to lose those 2000+ GS13-GS15 "senior executives," or if Duffy will be able to provide any more "leadership" than Janet Petro. I simply know too little about who they are.
— Rand Simberg (@Simberg_Space) July 10, 2025
[Afternoon update]
Speaking of interim administrators, here’s an interesting interview with Jared Isaacman.
AI, Emerson, The Diamond Age, and Education
Thoughts on how to make kids more self reliant, from Neils Stephenson and Ferguson (except the latter is a Niall).
Heading Home
I had terrible flights, today. I have a cold, so I was miserable to start. Then at DCA, Americans delayed my flight to Phoenix, then had me go to a different terminal to catch it, while changing my seat from my window toward the front to a center toward the rear(with no explanation), with a woman in the window seat who had zero interest in what was going on outside, so I spent over four hours in a semi-claustrophobic condition. (As an aside, I’m kind of astonished at how many people in window seats have zero curiosity and desire to see where they are, keeping shades down throughout).
Then, when I get to Phoenix, my connection to LA is delayed three hours, which is why I have time to bitch about it. But I hope I’ll be home soon, with Patricia and the cats, after being gone for over a week.
The Global Baby Bust
Three long-shot ways of solving it. One of them is space.
Still On The Road
ISDC is over, and I’m flying to DC in the morning. Driving down to Norfolk from there on Thursday to do a presentation on equatorial LEO at CRASTE. But I’ll have more time to check in this week once I’m ensconced there. I heard something about a bomber raid in Iran.
[Monday-afternoon update]
What next with Iran? Ten questions from VDH.
I’m No Munitions Expert, But…
OK, so I understand that if you want to quickly bust a bunker, you need a bunker buster. But what if there's no hurry? Because you completely dominate the skies? Why can't Israel just keep dropping more-conventional bombs, one after another, in each consecutive crater? Wouldn't…
— Not-So-OK Boomer (@Rand_Simberg) June 17, 2025