Episode 110: CWG Ponders Space and Other Life

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Ian: Hey everyone, you are listening to “Coffee with Gringos.” I'm Ian Kennedy.

Paige: I'm Paige Sutherland.

Ian: And today we're going to be talking about something that comes across everyone's mind whenever we go outside and we look up at the big sky—we see the beautiful stars at night, and we often ponder what is out there. What is in outer space? Are we alone? Are we the only ones? What's the meaning of life? All these questions start to flood to your heads—or mine, at least—whenever I go outside and take a look. So, everyone thinks about the galaxy, outer space, aliens. So, Paige and I thought it would be really fun today to talk about that, our own thoughts, and what the future holds for us in the galaxy. So, listeners, as usual, if you get lost, make sure to go online and check out that audio guide and transcript. So, Paige, some people are very into space. Are you someone that is really into it? Really interested in it?

Paige: Good question. I mean, I would say no, but I have to have a caveat that I really like looking at the stars. My family has a summer home in Maine, where it's just so remote. I would just spend hours on the water looking up at the stars and just seeing, shooting stars, and looking at the constellations. So that to me is very mystical, but the idea of space, I don't really care. People are like, “Oh, if in twenty years from now, you could go to space, would you?” No interest. I feel like it would be really cold, I feel like I would get nauseous, because there's no gravity—you are just moving around a lot. Who knows what's out there, all the creatures—zero interest in going there. What about you, Ian?

Ian: So, I'm pretty into space, and more of, I guess, the astronomical way or, like you mentioned, just the wonder of looking up at the stars and just the way it makes me feel, in general. I think as humans, we get really bogged down by our own anxieties and the little things throughout the day that worry us. And anytime I go outside and look at the stars, I'm just reminded of how small and insignificant we are amongst the universe and that a lot of the things I stress about every day, I shouldn't stress about so much—I shouldn't put so much importance into it—because really, we're just on a flying rock, flying through the universe with tons of other planets and things flying around us. So, we can’t control that so we might as well just enjoy our lives and it really puts things in perspective for me. But as far as maybe going to space one day, that's a really great question. I think if I could go and then come back to Earth then I would, but if it was an option of alright, it’s one-and-done, you go to space you can't come back, then I don't think I'm interested in that.

Paige: It's crazy too, some of the astronauts that would just be in space for years if they wanted to travel to another planet. You know, eating space food, which I bet is disgusting. You're just trapped in such a small area, you're away from family and friends and yeah, don't sign me up for that.

Ian: Right, don't go if you are claustrophobic.

Paige: And, I mean, being an astronaut too, it's pretty scary because everything's out of control. You have no idea what's really out there, so you can prepare all you want but you have no idea what's going to happen. So that's probably terrifying. I will say though, going back to the stars, and like you said, looking up at night—that was something that always gave me peace when I lived really far from home. If I was ever homesick, I would just look up and see the moon and be like, wow, this is the same moon that my mom or dad could be looking at right now back in Boston. And it always made me feel like I wasn't as far as I was even if I was 9,000 miles away.

Ian: That's really funny you mentioned that, actually, because I felt the same way about the moon, actually, for years like that. Anytime I've been far away from home or distant relatives or anyone like that, I've always thought we are looking at the same moon tonight, or we could be. And so, it does bring us together as people. It's amazing.

Paige: And also mind-boggling because you're like, how is that possible? It’s so far. So, like you said—the future—a lot of investment into space exploration. What are your thoughts on that? Do you think it's a worthwhile investment?

Ian: Yeah, I think it's absolutely a worthwhile investment. Space exploration is so important, and there are a lot of things, obviously, that we need to do here on Earth to make things better regarding climate change, regarding pollution, resources, population—all these things—but space is a valid option if we can't figure out these problems on Earth. And I think it's something really important that we need to be working on and we need really bright minds working on that too. And so, I do think we're really lucky to have bright minds, like Elon Musk, for example, who's working with his company that he founded—SpaceX—to, hopefully, be able to start civilization on Mars, if need be sometime in the future. They've already made these incredible rockets that can go up into space and then return in one piece. Basically, they are exhibiting better shows of technology and management than even NASA and these international space programs. I think even private space exploration is the direction that things are heading right now, so it's going to be really interesting to see.  

Paige: So many questions about that. I mean, obviously, this is probably so many years out but who owns those planets? Do you know what I mean? Like you're saying, Elon Musk, he would just build his own civilization there of Americans? How could we claim a planet?  I don't know, who has ownership to live on there?

Ian: Yeah, it's a good question. I mean, I guess, nobody basically. I think it would just be whoever is willing to go there as a citizen of Mars, I guess. Because, at least at the beginning, it would be a situation where if you go, it's a one-and-done. You go to Mars and you're staying there. You're going to live there and die there—it's a one-way trip. That's why I say, I think it would be amazing to go to space, but only if I can come back home. I'm not trying to go live on another planet. I’m pretty happy here on Earth.

Paige: It's such a huge decision because you can't ask anyone, “Oh, how is it?” No one knows what it'd be like—good or bad.

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Paige: Do you feel like there is other life out there? That we're not the only humans, per se?  

Ian: I would say, I am as close to 100% of you can get to saying I think there's other life. There's got to be. I think if you just look at it and you look at how many galaxies are existing in the universe that's always expanding, and you look at those numbers and they say that there are more galaxies than there are grains of sand on every beach on Earth, which is unfathomable. I mean, that number is so infinitely high that you would just have to think that there's no way that we can be the only life existing in the universe. I think there is other life and we just haven't been able to communicate with them, or maybe their life forms are way more advanced than ours and maybe they're just observing us. I mean, maybe Earth is just a reality TV show for some other galaxy or some other planet, we don't know that.

Paige: I feel like we've been so saturated with the media, Hollywood, that to think of other life, I can only think of aliens as the movies show me. So, it's weird to think of other life existing and not think of an alien as portrayed in the movies.  So, I do think there's other life. I think the movies have it wrong, though. I don't know what they'd look like but maybe somewhat human-like? I don't know—I really don't know.

Ian: Yeah, or it could be, maybe, something that could take the form of a human or it can present itself in whatever form of matter it wants to be viewed as. I mean, we don't really know for sure but it is funny to think of all these images we've always ever seen of little green men with big heads and tiny bodies. That's what we all think of when we think of aliens, but aliens could be other forms of bacteria, other forms of viruses, they could be little plants. It doesn't have to be this fully developed organism to be considered life. I think with all the research and all the findings that we found even just within our own solar system—even recently on Mercury—they found remnants of some chemicals that could show that there could have been life in the past. And we see on a lot of other planets, moons like Jupiter, underneath the ice, we see bacteria we see other signs of life that there was water, at some point before. And so, I think we just have to keep developing these technologies, and keep going out to the final frontier, as they say, out in outer space to find these answers. But it's so huge that we have to be patient, and I think we have a lot more to discover.

Paige: It would be so nuts, in twenty to thirty years from now, people are living on a different planet. It would be crazy. Yeah, I don't know who would be willing to do that. I mean, I guess maybe people who really do think the world is ending. It is the best option, I guess.

Ian: Maybe some cults. They are probably some religious cults or some sci-fi cults or some people.

Paige: I would assume you have to be very rich though, to get a seat on that ship.

Ian: Yeah, I imagine the first flights are going to be pretty expensive, so I don't think a normal person's going to be able to ditch the planet for cheap.

Ian: So, lots of things to be developed for space exploration here in the future and who knows, like you said, twenty to thirty years from now, we might have people living on Mars. We might have other discoveries, other technologies. Hopefully, we can save Earth before that becomes absolutely necessary because I, for one, I'd like to stay here for a little while. So, listeners, we could talk about this all day long, maybe we'll have another episode—space number two, perhaps. So, remember if you have any questions or need help, go online and check out that audio guide and transcript. And as usual, thanks for listening.

Paige: We'll see you next time.

Paige: “Coffee with Gringos” was brought to you by Dynamic English, where you can learn English simply by using it. If you’re interested in taking classes or just want to learn more, go to our website at dynamicenglish.cl. Thanks for listening.

Key Vocabulary, Phrases & Slang:

 1.     to ponder (verb): to think carefully about something; to wonder.

a.     Looking up at the stars makes me ponder the universe.

2.     to flood (verb): to fill and occupy something.

a.     Thoughts of my childhood flood my mind when I hear that song.

3.     caveat (noun): warning or notice about something.

a.     There are several caveats regarding the final results we found.

4.     remote (adjective): located far from population or cities.

a.     The remote location has an amazing view of the stars.

5.     shooting star (noun): type of star that appears to move quickly across the sky.

a.     She was so excited to see a shooting star for the first time.

6.     mystical (adjective): spiritual; supernatural.

a.     The universe can give us a mystical feeling if we consider what it really is.

7.     nauseous (adjective): sick, to feel like vomiting.

a.     I don’t like airplanes because they make me feel nauseous.

8.     bogged down (adjective): to feel stuck and unable to progress.

a.     It is easy for us to become bogged down by our everyday problems.

9.     one-and-done (adjective): something that once done, cannot be reversed or changed.

a.     Going to Mars right now would be a one-and-done. We wouldn’t be able to return to Earth.

10.  claustrophobic (adjective): having an extreme fear of being in small spaces.

a.     Anyone who is claustrophobic should consider this when wanting to travel in space.

11.  homesick (adjective): feeling a longing for one’s own home after being away from it.

a.     Whenever I get homesick, I look at the moon and feel connected to my family.

12.  mind-boggling (adjective): overwhelming; very difficult to understand or mentally-process something.

a.     The number of stars that exist in the sky are mind-boggling.

13.  worthwhile (adjective): worth the time, money, or effort spent to do something.

a.     It is worthwhile for us to explore outer space.

14.  NASA (acronym, noun): National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The US-government department for space research and exploration.

a.     NASA now has to compete with private companies in space exploration.

15.  per se (adjective): referring to something exactly or by itself.

a.     It is not the facts per se that are important.

16.  unfathomable (adjective): impossible to truly understand.

a.     The number of galaxies in the universe is unfathomable.

17.  to portray (verb): to depict someone or something in art or literature.

a.     The movies always portray aliens as being green with big heads.

18.  remnant (noun): a small remaining quantity of something.

a.     They found remnants of water on Jupiter’s moon.

19.  nuts (adjective, informal): crazy; very significant.

a.     It would be nuts to find other life in the solar system.

20.  cult (noun): a group of people having beliefs regarded by others as strange or bad.

a.     The cult had a following of over three hundred members.

21.  sci-fi (noun): short for science fiction.

a.     Outer space is one of the most popular themes for sci-fi books and movies.

22.  to ditch (verb): to leave something.

a.     I don’t want to ditch Earth anytime soon. I like living on this planet.