Dis-Placed: Space, Settlement, and Agency

This article introduces the special issue ‘Dis-placed’. Questioning the term ‘refugee’ as an identity marker and pointing at the problematic connotations it embodies, the article explores the spatial forms of refugee experience. The knowledge of space, as produced within disciplines such as geography, urban planning, and architecture, is deployed by states to limit the movements of forced migrants across and within national borders. In response, the article calls for social/spatial justice, arguing that this can only be achieved through the blurring of the boundaries between host and refugee identities. The contributions in this special issue present investigations on different facets of the spatiality of forced migration through various disciplinary approaches and methodologies. Taken together, they underline the importance of the link between space and refugee agency in tackling forced migration.

Biology, Adaptability, and The Economic Applications of Tardigrades In Future

Tardigrades are small microscopic creatures also known as moss piglets or water bears. They are extremophiles and well known for its survivability. After successfully ruling the space tardigrades are now expected to save lives. From being a ‘survivor’ tardigrade is now headed to be a ‘savior’. This survivability is due to a special type of sugar known as “Trehalose”. Trehalose can be found in extremophiles organisms including tardigrades. The unique feature of this sugar is the ability to preserve biological molecules. One of the big applications of the tardigrades are the “dry vaccine”. Our world is struggling through a big crisis of covid-19 vaccine, it is next to impossible to make the highest demanded vaccine available to every corner of the earth at the low-temperature range in such a short period of time, and according to WHO half of the vaccines get wasted due to the cold chain method So, we can implement these dry vaccines for covid-19, to reduce the freezing cost, increasing the shelf life of vaccine and make every vaccine reach to needy in a live condition. Now, trehalose is not only confined to preserve vaccines but this can help in preserve the organs that are going to be used either for transplantology or organ donation. This special protein is yet to give a new turn to not only the medical field and to save human life but tardigrades can be implemented for plants in increasing the tolerance to a stressful environment for future climate changes and space settlement hence this paper provides an overview regarding the application and economical aspects of the tardigrades

The Value of Science in Space Exploration

The Value of Science in Space Exploration provides a rigorous assessment of the value of scientific knowledge and understanding in the context of contemporary space exploration. It argues that traditional spaceflight rationales are deficient, and that the strongest defense of spaceflight comes from its potential to produce intrinsically and instrumentally valuable knowledge and understanding. It engages with contemporary epistemology to articulate an account of the intrinsic value of scientific knowledge and understanding. It also parleys with recent work in science policy and social philosophy of science to characterize the instrumental value of scientific research, identifying space research as an effective generator of new knowledge and understanding. These values found an ethical obligation to engage in scientific examination of the space environment. This obligation has important implications for major space policy discussions, including debates surrounding planetary protection policies, space resource exploitation, and human space settlement. Whereas planetary protection policies are currently employed to prevent biological contamination only of sites of interest in the search for extraterrestrial life, it contends that all sites of interest to space science ought to be protected. Meanwhile, space resource exploitation and human space settlement would result in extensive disruption or destruction of pristine space environments. The overall ethical value of these environments in the production of new knowledge and understanding is greater than their value as commercial or real commodities, and thus, exploitation and settlement of space should be avoided until the scientific community adequately understands these environments.

The Need for Forbearance in Space Settlement

This chapter argues that there is not an urgent need for humans to establish space settlements. It defends the existence of an in-principle obligation to settle space to ensure long-term human survival, and shows that such an obligation is not defeated by various forms of skepticism about duties to future generations, including the “Non-Identity” problem. However, it argues that for the foreseeable future, space settlements will not be effective tools for ensuring long-term human survival, and that for the time being, the scientific exploration of space should be prioritized over space settlement. It also argues that space settlements would risk the wrongful exploitation of settlers and their descendants, and that space settlement would be impermissible if it led to diminution of reproductive autonomy.

Rationales for Space Exploration

This chapter considers and rejects traditional spaceflight rationales, accenting the insubstantial evidence that is usually offered in their support. It uses regression analyses and public opinion data to show that spaceflight activities do not have a clear impact on either STEM degree conferral rates or overall scientific literacy within the United States. Next, it uses public opinion data to show that the general public is not especially interested in astrobiology or in the scientific search for extraterrestrial life. It also uses genetics and anthropological research to show that there is no innate human biological compulsion to explore space. Finally, it describes and criticizes the “space frontier” metaphor as well as basic arguments for space resource exploitation and space settlement.