Speech #7 – research your topic
Cosmic dust (10-02-2017)
Tiny solid particles
Floating and traveling through space
Holding clues of the origin of the stars
Competition of nations to discover the beginning of life
Fellow Toastmasters and guests,
After World War II, the Cold War was fueled by the competition for technology superiority, military superpower and economic establishment. The epic battle for dominion of space between the United States and the Soviet Union was labeled Space Race, the struggle to reach the stars and conquer the Moon. A topic that I am not dispassionate.
Becoming the first in space exploration and using the laws of physics to travel long distances, Soviet engineers and scientists built rockets, studied trajectories, and explored mathematics. On October 4, 1957, they became the first to launch an artificial satellite to Earth’s orbit with the help of the powerful Sputnik 1 (Russian for traveler). Sputnik 2 put Laika, the first dog in orbit on November 3, 1957.
In 1958, the U.S. not only launched its own satellite, but President Dwight Eisenhower established the creation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
On September 14, 1959, the Soviet space program took another step forward by the impact of the space probe Luna 2 on the moon.
On April 12, 1961, Yuri Gagarin became the first person to orbit Earth traveling in the capsule Vostok 1. On May 5, twenty-three days later, Alan Shepard became the first American in space, but not in orbit.
Despite the fact that all the efforts seemed to work for the Soviets, President John F. Kennedy made a bold statement. He claimed that the U.S. will land a man on the moon before the end of the decade.
On February 20, 1962, John Glenn became the first American to orbit Earth. A year when NASA established the foundations for the Apollo program.
On June 16, 1963, Valentina Tereshkova was the first civilian and first woman in space.
The 60s saw a very productive race for both nations, flybys, launching of satellites, and human spaceflights. A race with great advantages for NASA by involving a great increase in budget, 34000 employees and 375000 industrial and university collaborators.
On December 21, 1968, Apollo 8 was the first human spaceflight to orbit the moon.
It was not until July 16, 1969, when American astronauts Neil Armstrong, Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin and Michael Collins set off on the Apollo 11 mission. After landing successfully on July 20, Armstrong became the first man to walk on the moon’s surface. A moment that will be forever remembered: “one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”
If we can beat the barriers of sound and reach the frontiers outside Earth’s atmosphere, we can reach unity by understanding our differences.
The universe stretches for billions of light years; our generation has covered a very tiny fraction. On February 14, 1990 from a distance of 4 billion miles, the spacecraft Voyager 1 turned around and took a photograph of Earth. Inspired by this image, Carl Sagan wrote the book Pale Blue Dot in 1994.
Some of the lines from that book are:
"Look again at that dot. That’s here. That’s home. That’s us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was lived out their lives…"
"Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark…"
"The Earth is the only world known so far to harbor life…"
"Like it or not, for the moment the Earth is where we make our stand…"
"It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character-building experience. There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits that this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known."
Alvaro R.
Tiny solid particles
Floating and traveling through space
Holding clues of the origin of the stars
Competition of nations to discover the beginning of life
Fellow Toastmasters and guests,
After World War II, the Cold War was fueled by the competition for technology superiority, military superpower and economic establishment. The epic battle for dominion of space between the United States and the Soviet Union was labeled Space Race, the struggle to reach the stars and conquer the Moon. A topic that I am not dispassionate.
Becoming the first in space exploration and using the laws of physics to travel long distances, Soviet engineers and scientists built rockets, studied trajectories, and explored mathematics. On October 4, 1957, they became the first to launch an artificial satellite to Earth’s orbit with the help of the powerful Sputnik 1 (Russian for traveler). Sputnik 2 put Laika, the first dog in orbit on November 3, 1957.
In 1958, the U.S. not only launched its own satellite, but President Dwight Eisenhower established the creation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
On September 14, 1959, the Soviet space program took another step forward by the impact of the space probe Luna 2 on the moon.
On April 12, 1961, Yuri Gagarin became the first person to orbit Earth traveling in the capsule Vostok 1. On May 5, twenty-three days later, Alan Shepard became the first American in space, but not in orbit.
Despite the fact that all the efforts seemed to work for the Soviets, President John F. Kennedy made a bold statement. He claimed that the U.S. will land a man on the moon before the end of the decade.
On February 20, 1962, John Glenn became the first American to orbit Earth. A year when NASA established the foundations for the Apollo program.
On June 16, 1963, Valentina Tereshkova was the first civilian and first woman in space.
The 60s saw a very productive race for both nations, flybys, launching of satellites, and human spaceflights. A race with great advantages for NASA by involving a great increase in budget, 34000 employees and 375000 industrial and university collaborators.
On December 21, 1968, Apollo 8 was the first human spaceflight to orbit the moon.
It was not until July 16, 1969, when American astronauts Neil Armstrong, Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin and Michael Collins set off on the Apollo 11 mission. After landing successfully on July 20, Armstrong became the first man to walk on the moon’s surface. A moment that will be forever remembered: “one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”
If we can beat the barriers of sound and reach the frontiers outside Earth’s atmosphere, we can reach unity by understanding our differences.
The universe stretches for billions of light years; our generation has covered a very tiny fraction. On February 14, 1990 from a distance of 4 billion miles, the spacecraft Voyager 1 turned around and took a photograph of Earth. Inspired by this image, Carl Sagan wrote the book Pale Blue Dot in 1994.
Some of the lines from that book are:
"Look again at that dot. That’s here. That’s home. That’s us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was lived out their lives…"
"Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark…"
"The Earth is the only world known so far to harbor life…"
"Like it or not, for the moment the Earth is where we make our stand…"
"It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character-building experience. There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits that this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known."
Alvaro R.