Magik, no, I have not, but it’s going on my library list now. I like Bear and have read several of his, but not that one. And, yes, Robinson rocks. I’ll have to come see your Star Trek exhibit. They have a good one in Las Vegas I’ve been through twice. It’s scheduled to close at the end of 2008 after a 10-year run but there are hints it may be revived in conjunction with the new movie. Indeed, great, MQ. We live in exciting times. I really hope they find evidence of ice. That would be cool (ha ha, or, maybe, groan… )

I understand the money spent can sound excessive to some, ella. For me, at least it’s a comprehensible amount, unlike the (US) national debt, or the amount of money currently being spent on a little project that starts with the letter “W”. And has three letters. The last of which is “r”. I do think the research could be tremendously beneficial, eventually, particularly if ice is found. The human race may need somewhere to go, someday, and Mars is a good candidate. Also, I am intrigued, as are many others by the question: “Are we alone in the Universe?”—not that I think this mission will answer that, definitively. I love what you’ve quoted here, indeed right up my alley! I fear the films you mentioned will be preserved for eternity, with or without super DVD’s, though…

In addition to its sophisticated cameras, soil retrievers and mini-laboratories, Phoenix carried on its journey a mini-DVD created by the Planetary Society called “Visions of Mars.” It holds a library of science fiction stories and art, as well as the names of more than 250,000 people.

The DVD, featuring the likes of Carl Sagan, Arthur C. Clarke and Ray Bradbury, is made of material designed to last for hundreds, if not thousands, of years.

Just think, if we had that type of DVD on earth, we could preserve all those awful movies, such as Dumb and Dumber, Roger Ebert calls “teenage boy movies.”