A Colony on Mars (35 page)

The General Accounting Office not only had charge of posting and transferring credits but were oversaw the Securities Exchange Commission, that kept an eye on the Corporations, and the Planetary Deposit Insurance Corporation that kept an eye on the banks

The General Public could challenge the actions taken by any agency. In some cases by circulating a petition and in other cases by filing a civil action. There was a lot more to the Government than that but the system worked.

CHAPTER – The Criminal Justice System

There was no capital punishment. The entire justice system was dedicated to criminal reform and behavior modification. In most cases the punishment fit the crime. Community Service rather than Incarceration was the customary penalty for violations of the Criminal Code. Probation was the custom. The worst violators, the absolute Incorrigibles were sedated, put on a shuttle and dropped off at some remote location thousands of miles from the United States. When they awoke they had no idea where on Earth they were. They were told that if they ever showed up in the United States again they would be put on Moon Base. There had been a special section of Moon Base walled off . Tasteless food powder and running water but only one gallon per day would be provided, inmates would have an air mattress, a blanket and a toilet but nothing else. No one had ever sent to Moon Base. Most convicted criminals just did their public service, fol owed the advise of their counselor and their probation officer. They attended the mandatory classes and tried to put the matter behind them. If they had been unskil ed they were taught a marketable skill and placed in a paying job where they could apply that skil . The Government ran trade schools that taught useful skil s to all unskil ed workers that wanted to better themselves. No one needed to live in substandard housing. Everyone was entitled to a Government job that paid the minimum wage. Even people who were pertinently confined to bed had the job of lying in bed and received the minimum wage. If anyone ever refused to do any work at all they were removed to Catalina Island where they were provided with tasteless powdered food they could remain there until they notified authorities by phone that they were seeking employment.

PART V

CHAPTER Four Thousand years later.

January 1, 6385: Four Thousand years had passed since the arrival of the refugees from Dedov. The planet Earth had become a virtual paradise. There had not been a war on Earth since the holocaust. There had not been a battle fought. Hardly anyone on the planet could be identified as being from any but the same race. The population of Earth was approaching five Bil ion. There was one nation and one language. They had devised an entirely different system of government, economic organization, production and distribution. Most people were happy with the way the system worked because it worked for everyone.

January 10, 6385: One lone ship materialized in Earth orbit. The commander identified himself as Commander Whigl of The Intergalactic Association of Civilized Planets. “People of Earth,”he began “We have been observing your progress careful y over the last forty Earth centuries. Our Supreme Council has carefully considered all aspects of your civilization and come to the conclusion that you are now ready.” He then extended the invitation to Earth to join the Association as a probationary member. Recent article from University of Washington

University of Washington --A new means of propelling spacecraft being developed at the University of Washington could dramatically cut the time needed for astronauts to travel to and from Mars and could make humans a permanent fixture in space.

In fact, with magnetized-beam plasma propulsion, or mag-beam, quick trips to distant parts of the solar system could become routine, said Robert Winglee, a UW Earth and space sciences professor who is leading the project. Currently, using conventional technology and adjusting for the orbits of both the Earth and Mars around the sun, it would take astronauts about 2.5 years to travel to Mars, conduct their scientific mission and return.

"We're trying to get to Mars and back in 90 days," Winglee said. "Our philosophy is that, if it's going to take two-and-a-half years, the chances of a successful mission are pretty low."

Mag-beam is one of 12 proposals that this month began receiving support from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Institute for Advanced Concepts. Each gets $75,000 for a six-month study to validate the concept and identify challenges in developing it. Projects that make it through that phase are eligible for as much as $400,000 more over two years. Under the mag-beam concept, a space-based station would generate a stream of magnetized ions that would interact with a magnetic sail on a spacecraft and propel it through the solar system at high speeds that increase with the size of the plasma beam.

Winglee estimates that a control nozzle 32 meters wide would generate a plasma beam capable of propelling a spacecraft at 11.7 kilometers per second. That translates to more than 26,000 miles an hour or more than 625,000 miles a day.

Mars is an average of 48 mil ion miles from Earth, though the distance can vary greatly depending on where the two planets are in their orbits around the sun. At that distance, a spacecraft traveling 625,000 miles a day would take more than 76 days to get to the red planet. But Winglee is working on ways to devise even greater speeds so the round trip could be accomplished in three months.

But to make such high speeds practical, another plasma unit must be stationed on a platform at the other end of the trip to apply brakes to the spacecraft.

"Rather than a spacecraft having to carry these big powerful propulsion units, you can have much smal er payloads," he said. Winglee envisions units being placed around the solar system by missions already planned by NASA. One could be used as an integral part of a research mission to Jupiter, for instance, and then left in orbit there when the mission is completed. Units placed farther out in the solar system would use nuclear power to create the ionized plasma; those closer to the sun would be able to use electricity generated by solar panels.

The mag-beam concept grew out of an earlier effort Winglee led to develop a system cal ed mini-magnetospheric plasma propulsion. In that system, a plasma bubble would be created around a spacecraft and sail on the solar wind. The mag-beam concept removes reliance on the solar wind, replacing it with a plasma beam that can be controlled for strength and direction.

A mag-beam test mission could be possible within five years if financial support remains consistent, he said. The project wil be among the topics during the sixth annual NASA Advanced Concepts Institute meeting Tuesday and Wednesday at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Seattle. The meeting is free and open to the public.

Winglee acknowledges that it would take an initial investment of bil ions of dol ars to place stations around the solar system. But once they are in place, their power sources should allow them to generate plasma indefinitely. The system ultimately would reduce spacecraft costs, since individual craft would no longer have to carry their own propulsion systems. They would get up to speed quickly with a strong push from a plasma station, then coast at high speed until they reach their destination, where they would be slowed by another plasma station.

"This would facilitate a permanent human presence in space," Winglee said. "That's what we are trying to get to."

University of Washington