Mark C. Baumann
exploring big ideas, the imagination, and the human spirit
Interstellar Travel and the Incentive Trap
Should we begin our journey to the stars now, or wait until we have faster technology?
Sailing to the Stars on a Beam of Light
Interstellar Spacecraft #4: How existing technology can send a spacecraft to the nearest star in less than a human lifetime.
Interstellar Ramjets and Antimatter Drives
Interstellar Spacecraft #3: Spacecraft need so much fuel to travel interstellar distances that fuel becomes the only thing they can bring along. Are there any solutions to this problem? This article looks at two: interstellar ramjets and antimatter drives.
Learning Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Through a Scientific Lens
How is learning Brazilian Jiu-jitsu similar to learning physics, language, music, or chess?
The Nature of Reality: Is Consciousness All There Is? (Part 2)
Through a combination of philosophy, mathematics, computer science, and physics, I describe and analyze the theory of conscious realism.
Surfing to the Stars on a Nuclear Blast Wave
Interstellar Spacecraft #2: Could the destructive power of our nuclear weapons arsenal be repurposed to transport humankind to the stars?
Chemistry Won’t Get Us to the Stars. What Will?
Interstellar Spacecraft #1: Astrophysicist Philip Lubin has said, “Chemistry will get you to Mars, but it won’t get you to the stars.” What did he mean by that? And, if chemistry won't get us to the stars, what will?
Very Far From Home: The James Webb Space Telescope
The James Webb Space Telescope is being positioned 4x farther from Earth than the Moon, where it cannot be reached by astronauts for maintenance or refueling. Why? This article explores the reasons and their consequences.
The Nature of Reality: Is Consciousness All There Is? (Part 1)
Do we see the world as it really is? I describe and discuss Hoffman's evolutionary game theory approach to answering this question.