The Space Center by Flight Director, Bracken Funk

Hello Troops,  

Bracken gave me permission to repost this essay on the Space Center written for his personal blog.  I enjoyed the read, except for the disparaging remarks about my state of mind and the extremely unflattering photo of me taken during one of my restorative sessions at my desk - necessary to maintain my calm and unflustered demeanor ; 
Mr. W.

And Now Bracken's Post

Last night, and into this morning, I worked an overnighter at the Space Center. These are my favorite of camps. I like the ability to establish the feel of being in an actual vessel, and crewing it. There is character development, and there is time to strike fear into the hearts of the crew. These overnighters are the best of our product, and I enjoy them so.

Crew of the Voyager during an Overnight Mission

The Space Center has given me tons of opportunities that I would never have had otherwise. I love to work with the kids, and watch them grow over the course of one of our missions. Just by way of information, here at the space center we do simulations in the universe of Star Trek. What you're looking at here is the bridge of the starship Voyager. She was built in 1990 by Victor Williamson, and if you want to hear me tell you why he's awesome, click here. He wanted to incorporate simulation into educational experiences. He was and is an educator, and he started doing this "simulational education" idea with his 6th grade class using paper and poster board controls. He would sit behind his desk on the floor, and play the voices of the computer, his engineer, and the alien characters the crew would encounter. His class loved it, and he wanted to evolve the idea to an actual starship set. Voyager was born, and since 1990, the Christa McAuliffe Space Education Center has grown through 7 simulators, thousands of campers, and bulls forward today.

Today, the Center has 5 simulators, each with their own set of stories, controls, and ideas. We host nearly 1,200 kids a week, and teach them different problem solving, situational skills and social studies. It really is a joy to work with them, and even learn from them.

I found the Space Center in Elementary School. I had done missions in 5th grade, and came back multiple times with my friends. I was already in love with the place. When I was in 6th grade we came to do an overnighter, and I realized that I wanted to be here a lot. Back in those days, the volunteer pool wasn't overfilled, so I applied to volunteer a couple of weeks later. I remember that day well. It was a Saturday morning, about 11. My sister had a soccer game. I was in my cleats, and shorts and a t-shirt. Her game was at Central Elementary's field. I had a soccer ball, and I was kicking it around. I accidentally kicked it down the hill in the back, and when I looked over as I chased it, I saw Mr. Williamson outside taking out the trash. I ran over to my mother, and begged her to let me go talk to him (she had to give me permission to breathe as a child, which I appreciated then. It kept me from being kidnapped, or worse). She was against it at first, but I continued to beg. She allowed me to go, and I sprinted over to the door. Out of breath, I begged this powerful looking man to let me work at the center.

I can only imagine what it looked like from Mr. Williamson's point of view. This lanky kid runs up to you, in soccer gear, cleats, and panting asks "hey, Mr. Williamson, can I volunteer, here?" Knowing what I know of him now, I would say that his hesitation was annoyance, but he doesn't have it in him to say "no" to kids that have a desire to work here. He just doesn't have the heart for it. 

Victor Williamson in his natural habitat. Looking Distinguished

He stared at me blankly for a moment. I said, "please!". He said, "I'm sure we could find a place for you." And we entered through the door in which the brig is located, and came into the office to receive his schpeel on becoming a volunteer.

Once again, knowing what I know now, I doubt that he thought I would actually return these documents. Who could blame him- I was dressed in soccer gear, and didn't look all that responsible. However, within 4 days, it was back in his hands at the very same desk you see above.

Me, today, holding my original volunteer submission from 10 years ago.

I thought it would be fun to retype my original submission so that you can see how much evolution has occurred in my head:

Dear Christa McAuliffe Space Education Center,

My name is Bracken Funk, I love the Space Center; a very creative idea!!!

I love Star Trek, Star Trek The Next Generation and Star Trek Voyager, I know a great deal about each which helps because that is what you based the Space Center on!! I want to work at the Space Center because I enjoy learning about different things about space!!

I also am a great leader, for example, any time we play German Spy Dodgeball; my team always asms ME who the spy is going to be. I accomplish my work and get good grades!

I have also worked in the Student Council at Barratt!! (I wish I were at Central!!!)

I really want to work at the Space Center!

Sincerely,

Bracken Funk

I laugh when I read this now. That describes me pretty well. I'm a little less in your face with everything, and I feel a little more mellow, but there you go. That was me. 

I asked Vic what he thought about this particular day in Space Center history, these were his words about it: 

I had no thoughts. You were just a kid, and you just asked to be a volunteer. 

What do you want from me?

So apparently he doesn't care about such things. However, that isn't the most concerning of things to me, he's become senile over the last few years, and his memory is failing him. That's ok. He has earned such rights.

Yes. Senility.

At least he doesn't show up for work late. Anyways, I have now worked here for about 10 years. I have enjoyed every minute of it. There have been rough spots, and tough people, but even that has been a learning and growing experience. There is no better place to work than the Space Center.

So here is to 10 years of volunteering/working/playing at the space center. Thanks to all of those who have stood behind me when I was obnoxious, worked with me when I was bossy, and helped me when I was beaten.

Bracken Funk

A Midnight Post From my Desk. It is Good to Be Back.

Hello Troops,
The disturbance in the Force has been corrected.  After several weeks of sleeping in the gym, the boys on tonight's Overnight Camp are sleeping in the ship.  There are more boys than girls, and everyone knows that the larger of the two groups always sleeps in the Voyager.

I have access to my desk and a fairly quiet room surrounding me.  The gym is louder with every noise amplified by the volume of the room.  I still have to content with what I think are the brightest EXIT signs in in the free world and air conditioners made for rooms twice the size of my classroom (I think the District purchased them used from NASA's wind tunnels at Moffit Field, California).  The best thing is knowing that I won't be woken up in the middle of the night by a collapsing cot caused by a careless boy who wasn't listening to my 'How To Get Into a Space Center Cot' demonstration given before lights out. 

"Attention, Attention.  Stand by for a demonstration on the proper procedure for entering and exiting a Space Center Cot."  The boys give me that 'are you serious' look.  I continue.  "To enter a cot one first finds the exact center of the cot.  I suggest you look for the center set of legs.  Once the exact center is found, one sits down carefully, not wanting to rock the cot too much.  Think of getting in and out of an unstable row boat. Once seated, you may then turn 90 degrees and stretch out.  Use the same procedure when exiting a cot.  Your cot will not collapse in these procedures are followed exactly."

When I'm sleeping in front of my desk the only thing I listen for are sleepwalking boys who open one of the emergency exits in a bid for freedom from whatever haunts their sleep.  Oh, there is also the thing I listen for, a boy tumbling from the top tier of our 3 level bunk beds.  The fall can be nasty and painful if one measures true pain by the amount of weeping and wailing produced by the injured camper. 

Jon Parker just disturbed my solitude and wistful enjoyment of sitting at my desk as the clock struck midnight.

"This broke off the Voyager Right Wing desk," he said while holding up a long section of the blue trim surrounding the Voyager's desk top.  I wondered if this was his calculated attempt at ruining my night.  I'm tired, its late and I've much to write and even more to do.  I wanted to take the long blue shard and play out a scene I affectionately call 'Victor, the Vampire Slayer' where killing the messenger is common fare.

My brain went into work mode.  I thought of the time it would take to have the District's wood shop make a new desk top.  My calculations indicated there was at least a 90% chance I wouldn't live long enough to see the repair completed to my satisfaction.  I handed Jon a roll of clear plastic packing tape and a pair of scissors.

"Do the best you can," I ordered. I asked him to document the midnight repair for a special PBS documentary on 'The Insane and How They Hide Among Us."

 The Damaged Desk.  You can see the large shard missing from the bottom of the blue trim.

Jon is holding the shard into place while he peels off a section of packing tape and applies it using an elbow as a brace. 

    

Jon's adds a few finishing touches before calling the repair compete.

I'll have all our inquisitive Troubadour readers know how proud we are of the fact that many sections of our simulators are held together with tape, wire and generous amounts of prayer fussed over by our more religiously inclined staff and volunteers.  You'll never know where the repairs are unless you look long and hard.  We have a policy to counter snoops like that.  We go to red alert, switch to red lights and release the dreaded Slime Devil.  Moments later, the snooping child is showered with Slime Devil venom from our Enola Gay Atomic Action Water Blaster.  Down to Sick Bay he goes for a lengthy recovery.  A recovery not even a generous amount of M&M's can shorten. 

Well, its time for bed.  I'm tired and ready for some down time with my pad, pillows and blankets waiting for me on the floor in front of my desk!  

Mr. W.   

Could the Enterprise Be Built Today?

 

By Nancy Atkinson

Universe Today

In Star Trek lore, the first Starship Enterprise will be built by the year 2245. But today, an engineer has proposed — and outlined in meticulous detail — building a full-sized, ion-powered version of the Enterprise complete with 1G of gravity on board, and says it could be done with current technology, within 20 years.

"We have the technological reach to build the first generation of the spaceship known as the USS Enterprise — so let's do it," writes the curator of the Build The Enterprise website, who goes by the name of BTE Dan.

This "Gen1" Enterprise could get to Mars in 90 days, to the moon in three, and "could hop from planet to planet dropping off robotic probes of all sorts en masse — rovers, special-built planes and satellites,” BTE Dan says.

Complete with conceptual designs, ship specs, a funding schedule and almost every other imaginable detail, the BTE website was launched just this week and covers almost every aspect of how the project could be done. This Enterprise would be built entirely in space, have a rotating gravity section inside of the saucer, and be similar in size with the same look as the USS Enterprise that we know from classic "Star Trek."

“It ends up that this ship configuration is quite functional,” writes BTE Dan, even though his design moves a few parts around for better performance with today’s technology. This version of the Enterprise would be three things in one: a spaceship, a space station and a spaceport. A thousand people can be on board at once — either as crew members or as adventurous visitors.

While the ship will not travel at warp speed, with an ion propulsion engine powered by a 1.5GW nuclear reactor, it can travel at a constant acceleration so that the ship can easily get to key points of interest in our solar system. Three additional nuclear reactors would create all of the electricity needed for operation of the ship.

The saucer section would be a 0.3-mile-diameter (536-meter-diameter) rotating, magnetically suspended gravity wheel that would create 1G of gravity.

The first assignments for the Enterprise would have the ship serving as a space station and spaceport, but then go on to missions to the moon, Mars, Venus, various asteroids and even Europa, where the ship's laser would be used not for combat but for cutting through the moon's icy crust to enable a probe to descend to the ocean below.

Of course, like all spaceships today, the big "if" for such an effort would be getting Congress to provide NASA the funding to do a huge 20-year project. But BTE Dan has that all worked out, and between tax increases and spreading out budget cuts to areas like defense, health and human services, housing and urban development, education and energy, the cuts to areas of discretionary spending are not large, and the tax increases could be small.

"These changes to spending and taxes will not sink the republic," says the website. "In fact, these will barely be noticed. It’s amazing that a program as fantastic as the building a fleet of USS Enterprise spaceships can be done with so little impact."

BTE Dan adds that "the only obstacles to us doing it are the limitations we place on our collective imagination." His proposal says that NASA could still receive funding for the science, astronomy and robotic missions it currently undertakes.
But he proposes not just one Enterprise-class ship, but multiple ships, one of which can be built every 33 years — once per generation — giving three new ships per century. "Each will be more advanced than the prior one. Older ships can be continually upgraded over several generations until they are eventually decommissioned."

BTE Dan, who did not respond to emails, lists himself as a systems engineer and electrical engineer who has worked at a Fortune 500 company for the past 30 years.

The website includes a blog, a forum and a Q&A section, where BTE Dan answers the question, "What if someone can prove that building the Gen1 Enterprise is beyond our technological reach?"
Answer: "If someone can convince me that it is not technically possible (ignoring political and funding issues), then I will state on the BuildTheEnterprise site that I have been found to be wrong. In that case, building the first Enterprise will have to wait for, say, another half century. But I don’t think that anyone will be able to convince me it can’t be done. My position is that we can — and should — immediately start working on it.”

For the complete space nerd experience, check out Build The Enterprise.

And for another great sci fi read:  What's Wrong with Today's Sci Fi