Comments by "Tony Wilson" (@tonywilson4713) on "Heartbreaking Impact Elon's DOGE Chaos Is Having On Real People" video.

@Robertlynschultz Its called spin-off technologies and NASA has been doing it since the Apollo program. The computer you are on right now can trace parts of its history back to Apollo. Actual digital computing was given a giant kick start via Apollo. Many of the manufacturing techniques and methods can trace their history back to Apollo. On local transportation anything to do with aerodynamic efficiency that's prevalent in trains, buses, trucks, modern jets.... etc can trace its way back to NASA and its predecessor the NACA. There's a staggering amount of modern alloys have history in NASA. For American industry and the American economy NASA has been the gift that keeps on giving. It just doesn't advertise it well.
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@Robertlynschultz I remember the "NASA Tech Briefs" and the system they had. It was brilliant until it wasn't. So I absolutely agree with your point that that tech pipeline has slowed (and possibly stopped) BUT THEN that begs the question. WHY? If there is something that needs asking is WHY has the tech pipeline slowed or stopped? Scott Manley did a great video on the absurd situation with SLS and the 2 teams doing the same job because 2 senators want to keep those jobs in their states. If they'd stop and think then NOBODY would need to lose their jobs just re-assign them to other tasks. Right now one of the main reasons nobody has been back to the moon is because there are so many technologies that are NOT ready. So does NASA need to rethink what it does and how it does things? YES, YES and YES a 1,000 more times.
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Australian Aerospace engineer here - I did my degree in American and have classmates at NASA. I truly feel for what you guys are facing. Here's something you and NASA can fight back with. I did my degree in the late 80s and when the Challenger accident happened. In the aftermath there were many people who called for NASA to be chopped up and sold off. In response the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) commissioned a report into the value of NASA. I forget who did that but it might have been Deloitte. Eventually the AIAA notified everyone with a summary. In those days the AIAA published a monthly magazine called "Aerospace America." In one of those right inside the front cover on page 1 was a letter to members from the President announcing this study. It was took difficult to analyse all of NASA so they just looked at the Apollo Program because it has finished and they could check money spent and assess it against money earned from technology spinoffs. The basic summary was the Apollo Program was FINANCIALLY the greatest investment in human history having returned in tax (yes tax) over $9 for every $1 spent. By tax they meant the taxes paid on profits earned by companies and income tax paid by employees of those companies that were using Apollo derived technologies. By that stage 100s of American companies and 1000s of American people were producing goods and services based on Apollo derived technology. You see in making it to the moon many new materials and manufacturing technologies were developed. By the late 80s things like digital computers, aluminum alloys, plastics (including Teflon) and a pile of manufacturing technologies and techniques had not only filtered out into American industry but was giving many American companies technological advantages over the rest of the world. Remember by the late 80s companies like Microsoft were emerging and a lot of the computer tech had history in the Apollo Program. Basically Apollo wasn't just a few small steps by 12 guys across the Moon. It was bunch of giant leaps forward in technologies many of which are still earning the American people lots of money. its a story few people know about. I hope you guys can find that report. I'd suggest asking the AIAA to look at issues they might still have of Aerospace America from 1986 & 87. best of luck.
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@oohhboy-funhouse Go read about the AIAA report that followed the Challenger Disaster I wrote about in another reply in this thread.
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