Thursday, April 4, 2013

Packing for Mars - April 2013

April 2013 Book Selection

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet  Tuesday, April 16th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our April book: Packing for Mars by Mary Roach.

(Please note new day and date this month)

Discussion questions are below.

Here are some links for additional background and information:

The Daily Show interview with Mary Roach

Wikipedia article about Pascal Lee

News article about Devon Island and some Mars Society FAQs





After this month, we’re back to our normal second Thursday of the month meeting time.

Coming up, we have the following book to look forward to reading:

Thurs., May 9           The Sandcastle Girls by Chris Bohjalian

Bohjalian powerfully narrates an intricately nuanced romance with a complicated historical event at the forefront. With the centennial of the Armenian genocide fast approaching, this is not to be missed. Simply astounding….. Library Journal


Thanks for reading with us. I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library


DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Packing for Mars by Mary Roach

1.    Did you or someone you know want to become an astronaut when you were a kid? Has this book changed your view of what it would be like? How?
2.    What do you think is the hardest part about being an astronaut? Easiest?
3.    Potential astronauts are observed for a number of days in close quarters with other candidates to see how they cope in stressful situations. How do you think you would fare in this type of experiment? Would you make it to the end? What type of personality traits would you need to make it through?
4.    When Mary Roach visits the Flight Analogs Research Unit, she meets people who are paid to lie in bed to simulate the body’s degradations during space flight. Besides the money, why would people be interested in becoming human guinea pigs? Would you consider trying this?
5.    Roach talks about the first test flights using rhesus monkeys after World War II. What do you think of this type of animal testing? Was it necessary? How could it have been different?
6.    Why do you think humans are so fascinated by the prospect of visiting Mars and beyond? What is it about the unknown that is so intriguing?
7.    Why do you think nations glorify astronauts? Do they risk more than people in other dangerous professions?
8.    Cultural differences can cause major problems on space flights. How do you think space agencies should deal with these differences? How can people from various national backgrounds be taught to understand other cultures?
9.    How do you think the space program will progress in the future? Do you think we should try to reach the outer limits of visible space?
10. Roach ends her work very optimistically about the future of space travel. After reading about all the dangers and costs associated with space travel, do you think it is worth it?
11. Most reviewers have talked about the humor in Mary Roach's book, a number using the word "hilarious." What do you find particularly funny in Packing for Mars? Does her humor enhance her narrative...or, as one lonely reader thought, become tiresome and distracting?
12. Does this book's irreverent look at space travel deflate your balloon—reverence you may have felt for the men and women who don space suits and enter the zone of zero gravity? Does the book bring astronauts back down to earth a bit too precipitously for your taste? In other words, has Mary Roach made human space travel a noble endeavor...or an absurd one?
13. Talk about the toll that zero gravity has on humans—biologically and psychologically. What is the most difficult challenge for long-term manned (or womanned) space travel?
14. After having read this book, and knowing how space travel affects the human body and its bodily functions, would you, if given a chance, want to go into space? Of all the problems/issues Roach describes—biological, social, psychological—which would be the hardest for you?
15. Did this book alter—or confirm—your view of NASA and the people who devote their lives to space travel? Do you feel differently about the entire space program—its long-range goals and its costs?
16. Should the U.S. continue its efforts to travel to Mars? With humans...or robots?
17. What were some of the things that most surprised you in reading Roach's book? Which chapters did you find most interesting...and why?
18. Of the former astronauts Roach interviewed, do any, in particular, stand out—some you admire more than others or found more engaging?
19. Do you think some of Roach's interview questions are too close to the bone—too personal or probing? Or do you think her inteview technique enables her to uncover valuable and heretofore unkown information?