Erin Robinson, editor

Contents

ANNOUNCEMENTS

1. UNISPACE III

The Third United Nations Conference on the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNISPACE III) will be held in Vienna, Austria, from July 19-30, 1999. The Space Generation Forum (SGF) is the official Youth Forum of UNISPACE III, with the goal of voicing the future visions of space exploration in the new millenium. The official representative of the NAAA at UNISPACE III and the Space Generation Forum will be Mr. Andrew Hoppin (GSFC 94). For more information about the UNISPACE III go to http://www.un.or.at/OOSA/unisp-3/ and for more on the SGF go to http://space-generation.org/.

2. Annual Event

The NAAA’s Annual event is scheduled to take place in Boston, Massachusetts, during the first part of October. It will be held in conjunction with MARS Week, which is part of the Think MARS initiative formulated by a group from MIT and Harvard. Currently, the NAAA’s involvement is being discussed. If you have not already, but are interested in participating in the planning of the Annual Event, send e-mail to Ian.Ruiz@nasa-academy.org. For more information on Mars Week go to http://thinkmars.mit.edu/marsweek.html.

3. The 1999 NASA Academy is Now in Session

Just a reminder that the 1999 NASA Academy is in session at Goddard, Dryden, and Ames. If you are in the area of one of the centers, you may want to drop in and show your support. Also, keep your ears open for the alumni events later in the summer at each Academy! For specific information contact the Academies directly:

Ames Dr. Douglas O’Handley, Director dohandley@mail.arc.nasa.gov

Dryden Justin Garr, Director justin.garr@mail.dfrc.nasa.gov

Goddard Deanne Rogers, Director of Operations drogers@pop100.gsfc.nasa.gov

GET INVOLVED!

One way to become actively involved in the NAAA is to join one of the following working groups:

The Board of Advisors Working Group

The Board of Advisors working group has been tasked with developing a plan for the NAAA to form an official Board of Advisors, much the same as many other large organizations such as SEDS, The Planetary Society, and the NSS. This advisory group would most likely be populated with high-ranking leaders in the space community. Currently, the group has been examining the structure used by the aforementioned organizations in an attempt to ascertain the NAAA’s needs. Ultimately, this group will be responsible for creating a charter, which will be used for the formation of the NAAA’s advisory board. So, if you would like to have an opportunity to make contacts with high-ranking space advocates send e-mail to Ian.Ruiz@nasa-academy.org. Remember that this could give you the opportunity you have been waiting for to simply pick up the phone and call some of the individuals that are currently leading the direction of the space program.

The Outreach Working Group

The OUTREACH Working Group will finally be pulled together and have a kickoff telecon in the middle of July. This is the group of NAAA members that are interested in expanding the contact base for the Alumni Association. With the goal of improving NAAA Public Relations and using our growing influence within the aerospace industry, the Outreach working group will be strengthening the reputation and success of the NAAA. If you are interested, please email Kyle Snyder at vp-ops@nasa-academy.org.

Electronic Communications Working Group

The Electronic Communications Working Group will be outlining the future plans of the NAAA as a virtual organization that lives on the Internet. If interested, contact Joe Mueller at vp-finance@nasa.academy.org.
 

EDITOR'S MESSAGE

Welcome to the first issue of the second volume of the NAAA electronic newsletter, NAAA News! I am excited to come aboard as the new editor and hope to produce a newsletter that is informative and entertaining. As we all know, the NASA Academy wasn't a "strictly business" summer program and since the NAAA allows us to carry forward some aspects of our Academy experiences, I'd like the newsletter to include some fun and entertaining material as well as the news and business of the organization. To this end, I will need the support of you alumni in the form of articles, stories, news tidbits, and participation in "Where are they now" surveys and other polls to get a feel for the opinions and positions of the NAAA community. Please feel free to submit articles on serious topics (current space legislation, NASA activities, your involvement in space-related activities, etc) or entertaining topics (your academy memories, academy alumni get-togethers, your involvement in space-related activities, etc). I am open to any ideas, suggestions, volunteers, advice, hints, requests, and demands that you may have for the NAAA News, your newsletter. Please email me with your questions/comments/articles/jokes at erobinson@mail.arc.nasa.gov and I'll get back to you with all possible haste.

IN THIS ISSUE I would ask you to please make special note of several things. Included herein is a special "Remember When…" section written this issue by Brad Banks. Brad did a wonderful job recreating a whimsical aspect of the NASA Academy. I hope this article will get the wheels of your memories turning so that you, too, will feel inspired to recall the Academy experience to our minds with humor, warm fuzzies, seriousness, or sarcasm, whichever you prefer. The "Where Are They Now?" section will be continued in future issues, with the next academy on deck being Ames 1997. The "Just For Fun" section in this issue centers on some NAA excitement generated by Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace. Future issues can include just about anything in this section – it's all up to you. And finally, please also make note of the "Next Issue" section which includes specific requests for participation and articles for the next newsletter. In particular, I've included a poll that will help me get a feel for how the NAAA communication lines work. Please take a moment to cut, paste, and fill out this survey and email it back to me. I will also be posting the poll and a reminder on the "Where Are They Now?" a few weeks before the next newsletter, but particularly for those of you who don't read the "chat" email list, please reply from this news mailing. I appreciate your participation.

FINALLY, just by way of introduction… my full name is Erin Robinson and I attended the 1998 NASA Ames Astrobiology Academy. I am currently working on a Masters in Aerospace Engineering at the University of Colorado at Boulder. I love mountains and anything you can do in them, guitar, juggling, reading, creative writing, basketball, ultimate frisbee, and laughing and having fun. And, like most of you, I've been incurably bitten by the space exploration bug and I cried at the opening fanfare of The Phantom Menace.
 

REMEMBER WHEN…

One thing that I hate in High School yearbooks is the section of Superlatives. It is almost insulting to sum up an entire human being with a single phrase such as "Best Dressed" or "Friendliest". With all my magnificent qualities, my NASA Academy superlative would probably have been, "Most Likely to be Asleep During a Seminar". This is truly a great injustice, as I am handsome, witty, intelligent, friendly, mechanically inclined, sensitive, modest, etc.

NA Alumni have all experienced this momentary lapse of consciousness during a seminar. It has affected the most stalwart and even has overcome our directors and advisors. Even though I would not trade my NA experience for ANYTHING, face it, our lifestyle was not exactly conducive to mental alertness. After a long day at Goddard, and hours of Group Project meetings we would stagger off to bed. Sleep was futile in that sauna called the Sigma Delta Tau house. Each morning we would curse the inventor of the alarm clock but then grudgingly shuffle to the showers and then off to Goddard to start the cycle all over again. Weekends were no better, with extensive traveling, more seminars, and more traveling on top of that.

I defend sleeping during talks, seminars and lectures as a sign of genius. Why bother your conscious mind with all this new information; just let your unconscious store and catalog it all. Think back to every "information dissemination event" you have attended. Do you not remember at least one person sleeping? I was at a Wireless Communications conference just 4 days ago. One panel member presented his material and peacefully napped through the rest of the presentations - brilliant! While at Goddard in 1997, I was among a large gathering of NASA scientists to hear a lecture about the possibility of life on Mars. The number of sleepers was astounding. Among them was a truly great man who we all know, love and respect, and without whom the NASA Academy would not exist…

So, next time you are at a seminar and your eyelids begin to droop, your head begins to nod and you are whisked away into dreamland, don't feel guilty. You couldn't look smarter ... well, maybe if you were wearing glasses.

Brad was a member of the 1997 NASA Academy at Goddard and is currently pursuing his Masters of Electrical Engineering at Virginia Polytechnic and State University

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Continuing the great tradition established in past newsletters, please submit entries in the following format:

Name:

Email:

Home contact info:

Work company (or school):

Work title:

Work contact info:

Major work project(s):

Discussion (2-3 paragraphs, can be either or both personal and work related)

Ames 1997 Academy… you're up! Please send me your entry in a timely manner! Thanks!

JUST FOR FUN – Star Wars Mania Sweeps Over the NAAA

Here are the exciting results of the recent poll of Alumni reactions to Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace. Of the 23 people surveyed, there were 13 men and 10 women who responded.

Question 1: How many times have you seen The Phantom Menace so far?

NAAA Average: 2.57 times High: 6 times Low: 0 – Haven't seen it!

Surprisingly, the women were more likely to have seen it more times than the men.

Question 2: The Top Ten Favorite Scenes of the NAAA

#1 FAVORITE: The final lightsaber battle

#2 FAVORITE: The Podrace

#3 FAVORITE: Anakin accidentally blowing up the control ship from the inside and saving the day

#4 FAVORITE: The Senate Chamber

$5 FAVORITE: Main title with scrolling introduction and starry background

#6 FAVORITE: Seeing lots of new spaceships and droids that even have a sense of humor

#7 FAVORITE: Gungin versus Droid battle in the hills of Naboo

#8 FAVORITE: The Gungin underwater city

#9 FAVORITE: Initial Jedi/Droid battle on Viceroy's ship with cool unfolding droids

#10 FAVORITE: Queen Amidala using her look-alike body guard to capture throne room and Naboo

Question 3 - Does Star Wars mania have a positive effect on public feeling toward actual space exploration?

78.3% of Alumni say Yes with no significant difference between men and women's responses.

Question 4 - Have you bought any Star Wars-related toys since the beginning of Episode 1 hype?

30.4% of Alumni couldn't resist the cool toys, with women being more likely to buy than men.
 

The saga that chronicles opening night for Star Wars, The Phantom Menace, began a long time ago when we first viewed the trailer for Episode I and were told the release date: May 21, 1999. I do not believe I ever saw Trailer 1; Trailer 2 I downloaded off the web prior to its release in cinemas. I walked around quoting Queen Amidala in front of the Senate "I was not elected Queen to watch my people suffer and die while you discuss this invasion in committee." (Suitable English accent on "committee). As an employee of a Dilbert-esque government lab, the quote seemed appropriate. Of course, as the force moves through us, it also moved the release date up to May 19^th, but only the trivia-consumed Star Wars fans seemed to mind.

When we were in graduate school, Joe and I had no problem playing hooky to stand in line for the re-release of the Special Editions of Episodes IV, V and VI. At least the tickets went on sale the same day the movies were released so standing in line for Star Wars was not an exercise in redundancy. However, Joe and I are now responsible full-time employees of the government paying more in taxes than we earned as grad students in a year. Therefore, it was not a fiscally sound decision for us to stand in line for tickets.

Now Keith, our nanny’s boyfriend, is a nice enough guy and a student at UNM. We had met him a few times and were convinced of his ability to handle this important responsibility. Monday, May 10^th, the word from the Nanny was that Keith was all set. He and his friend, Luke, were going to camp out Tuesday night, May 11^th. Tuesday morning, May 11^th, my nanny shows up to work and says that Keith’s boss at the pizza parlor will not let him off work on Wednesday, May 12^th. It seems all the pizza geeks were suffering from Wookie Hookie. After an initial start at a meltdown, the nanny reassures me that Keith and Luke are still going to get to the theater the night before and Luke will stay in line while Keith is at work.

Late afternoon, May 11^th, the movie theater notifies the public that nobody will be allowed to camp out at the theater and access to the theater property will not be granted until 6 am May 12^th. A telephone conference with Keith in the evening is tinged with doom. Keith is sick and cannot go early the following morning with Luke to stand in line before going to work. Luke is our only hope.

Having scored "you are the cold-blooded killer, Boba Fett" on the Star Wars career test, you can imagine that I do not easily trust strangers. At 5:45 am the morning of May 12^th I am at the theater to verify Luke’s presence in line under the pretense of dropping off more cash and asking if he wants me to bring him some lunch. As I park the car, I realize that I have never met Luke and have no idea what he looks like. I fashion a sign out of cardboard and a black marker and head to the front of an already very long cue forming in front of the theater. The doom becomes blacker. Very casual questions regarding the time people were allowed to get in line reveals a 4 am start. My god, the plan was for Luke to get in line at 6 am. What if he was late, what if he isn’t here yet? Fear is the path to the dark side and Darth Sideous was looking like Darth Tedious compared to my mood at that moment.

I raised my sign above my head and began a quest in search of my only hope for opening night tickets. My sign read "Luke, are you buying my tickets?". In order to increase my efficiency, I began shouting, "Luke, Luke!". Well, you can imagine the rest. A line full of college students, high on Java and major Star Wars fans were very amused. "That was Episode IV…", "Come take a look at my Wookie.." were just a few of the comments. But I was not deterred. There was a higher purpose that outweighed my humiliation. I finally found Luke somewhere towards the end of the still growing line. He is with some scruffy looking nerf herder that I do not recognize. Trying to remain positive and mentioning something like "Well, at least we will get to see the movie by the weekend", I gave Luke his money and asked if he needed anything. He had nothing. He needed water, a chair, food…the works.

I hurry home to relieve Joe of baby duty. He took Rachel to daycare and went to work. I took a chair, water, food, reading material and the baby back to the movie theater for Luke. The baby was not for Luke and was just along for the ride. I drive the car up to the place where Luke was in line. There was no Luke. Now I am panicked. I park the car, take the baby and start looking for Luke again. The crowd was bigger and I start shouting his name again. "Luke, Luke!" They were kinder to a women with a child, but not much. Finally, towards the front of a line I spot the nerf herder and ask him about Luke. Thank the maker! Luke and his friend found some buddies standing in the front of the line and got to cut in! A New Hope springs forth in my heart…we are going to see Star Wars, The Phantom Menace, opening night! Luke went to get some food. I guess I took too long. I gave all the "stuff" to Luke’s friend, dropped off the baby at home now that the nanny is there and go to work. It was never my favorite character, but as far as I was concerned, Luke was a god!

We had tickets for opening night at 8 pm and we were psyched! Being the most impatient of my circle of friends, I left work around 4:30 pm to get in line at the movie theater. I properly charge vacation time for leaving early and my boss could care less. Actually, my boss and his son were two of the people for whom we arranged Luke to purchase tickets. I got to the movie theater and there were four people in line for the 8 pm show ahead of me. As expected, each person in front of me was holding a space for at least 10 others or more. Hell, so was I. I knew, though, that my chances for excellent seats were awesome, so I just sat on the pavement and savored the moment. Joe, being the considerate and smart husband, brought food and a chair. I savored the moment some more. The people in line brought none of the bad reviews with them-we knew George Lucas would not let us down-we were right.

Most of the adventure for opening night, prior to watching the movie, was involved in getting tickets. In the good old days the two would have happened at the same time. Actual cost for tickets for Luke, Joe and I ($24.00), cost for babysitter ($30.00), cost for Opening Night seats to see Star Wars, The Phantom Menace (priceless).

Christine and Rachel Wehlburg attended the 1994 GSFC Academy. Confused? Rachel attended the entire academy and was born December 14, 1994. Christine and her husband, Joe, work at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, NM. Rachel is now 4 (for the mathematically challenged) and Stephen, the newest addition, is 8 months old.
 

If you missed the Star Wars Career Test discussion on the NAA 'chat' email list, the following is a summary of results for the NAA Alumni.

16 Obi-Wan Kenobi

2 Darth Vader

3 Han Solo

1 Chewbacca

2 Luke

1. Boba Fett

1. Princess Leia

Princess Leia: The cast's lone major female character is your match. A high-flying executive, or diplomat, who doesn't even notice a glass ceiling. Your sheer will and determination will drive you through the corporate ranks like a light saber through an unarmored foe.

Boba Fett: Ruthless bounty hunter, or glorified UPS man with a few scalps on his belt? Yes, your match is a bad-ass fan favorite and amoral gun-for-hire. But he also ends up hauling carcasses around and delivering them to his boss of the moment.

Luke Skywalker: The heroic everyman. Your doppelganger is a whiny teen until circumstances make him a galactic hero. Lift your sails and catch that breeze, you won't be stuck on Tatooine forever.

C-3PO: You've made a match with C-3PO. The dapper protocol droid cringes at the first sign of trouble but can enrapture Ewoks with amusing anecdotes. Seek a nice, quite cubicle in the corporate communications department. And don't leave home without Brasso.

Obi-Wan Kenobi: No, not the brash, young Jedi currently on screen, but Alec Guiness' wise hermit of the Classic Trilogy. You are a quietly graceful leader who people seek out. You may have fallen from grace, perhaps had power usurped by young upstarts, but the right people know you are on the mark.

Darth Vader: So you wonder why people make fun of Bill Gates and think that Machiavelli was a softie. The Sith Lord is your man. Promotions will be yours, whether they are offered or not.

Chewbacca: The Wookiee always gets the short shrift, but where would Han Solo be without his soulful partner? You are the clever admin who keeps the ship running, while your boss gets the glory. Just like on the Millennium Falcon.

Han Solo: Lucky you, you've matched up with the feisty adventurer and most successful actor once the Classic Trilogy ended. You won't end up running the company, but you'll live your life the way you want, and take charge of your immediate surroundings.
 

NEXT ISSUE

"Where Are They Now?" - Ames Academy 1997

Please email your formatted response (see above) to erobinson@mail.arc.nasa.gov as soon as possible! Thanks!

July Poll – Please fill out and return to erobinson@mail.arc.nasa.gov.

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Did you read the June 1999 NAAA News? _____Yes _____No

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_____informative _____lacking information _____boring

Would you be willing to contribute articles to future editions of the NAAA News?

Please list suggestions for article topics you would like to see appear in future editions:
 

CONTACT INFORMATION

Your comments and suggestions are welcome.

Newsletter Editor: Erin Robinson erobinson@mail.arc.nasa.gov

The Executive Committee: ec@nasa-academy.org

Ian Ruiz, President president@nasa-academy.org
Kyle Snyder, Vice-president of Operations vp-ops@nasa.academy.org
Joe Mueller, Vice-president of Finance vp-finance@nasa.academy.org