In light of the recent and disappointing problems with the Mars robot...I couldn't help but think that therein lies our hope for survival as a species: that if we ever have the good fortune to arrive as "transplants" to a world significantly less hospitable to us than this world has been, we will be forced to think and act conservatively and ecologically. The astronauts don't piss in their water supply, and the oxygen bottles aren't filled with industrial chlorofluorocarbons before the next shuttle mission.

As houseguests on this planet, our environment has been a gracious host, kindly forgiving us as we carelessly spilled drinks on the good carpet, broke the fine china and shattered the antique crystal. But we have worn out our welcome.

I can only imagine that the next host(if there is one)wouldn't be so accomodating or tolerant of our insults and crass manners, especially from uninvited out-of-towners. We will have to be more cordial, adapting ourselves to the customs of our new home instead of insisting our new home adapt itself to us, the latter an idea that should be as unthinkable as a North American inhabiting India and imposing a McDonald's on every streetcorner.

If our space program is all about going to other worlds to strip-mine kryptonite or process dilithium crystals, then it should be abandoned and the money spent for more rational endeavors.

Sorry, Peter T., for getting off-track here, but I think if one makes a few substitutions in your Thoreau quotation, what he said could be expanded to include the Final Frontier as well.

Thanks for stirring my thoughts yet again.

Regards, Neil (stepping off soapbox and calling down to Scotty for "more power.")