TODD FINALLY TRIES OUT TWITTER

For anyone interested, Todd signed up for Twitter last night and is going to try it out. He is @ctoddbarnes.

NASA ADMINISTRATOR LAYS OUT NEW MISSION

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, a former astronaut, told the Al-Jazeera network that President Obama commissioned his agency to reach out to Muslim communities and nations. I mean no offense, and everyone who knows me knows how much I care about America's space exploration program, but this story illustrates a real lack of understanding of what NASA really should be doing: learning and teaching in the scientific disciplines! Religion should have almost nothing to do with NASA's mission (notice I used the word "religion" and not contradicted God's true existence).

I am still saddened over President Obama's overall changes to NASA's vision for the future. It is a true shame that we have canceled the Constellation program and will be paying the RUSSIANS for rides to the International Space Station for the foreseeable future once the space shuttle program ends after two more flights.

If this does not change, the NASA of President Kennedy and Ronald Reagan is over.

UPDATE: (7-12-2010) The White House is now disavowing Administrator Bolden's remarks to Al-Jazeera, stating they never told him that reaching out to Muslim nations was a part of NASA's mission. Hm. Sounds like someone "misunderstood." But I don't think it was Bolden.

SUMMER VACATION

We have been enjoying a two-week summer vacation away from home. We first stayed in Pacific Grove, CA, spending about a week there. We went to the ocean (it was cold!) and visited the Monterey Bay Aquarium (see photo). Then we spent a few days in Todd's hometown of Stockton, CA, where his parents still live.