Why You Can’t Catch a Rocket to Mars: Some Personal Reflections on Science and Society

Publisher Description:

Have you ever wondered why you can’t catch a rocket to Mars? Or Jupiter, or Pluto, or the nearest star? The latter is an exciting prospect, since it is orbited by an ‘exo’ (earth-like) planet that might support life. This richly illustrated book will explain why getting there is not as crazy an idea as you might think. It will also help you understand what has been holding back science and technology for many years, or decades, and what we can do about it; as well as providing a fascinating glimpse into a wide range of fantastic future possibilities. Artificial intelligence, or AI, which is presented as a key means for us to achieve these goals, is discussed in depth. The author, Lyndon N. Smith, is a professor in AI at a major UK university, with a background in physics and engineering, and over 25 years of research experience (on both sides of the Atlantic). After publishing 180 scientific papers and a number of academic books, he explains in this unique, provocative, and accessible book, not only what amazing tasks can be achieved by modern AI techniques such as ‘convolutional neural networks’ – but also how they actually work! This is followed by an enlightening survey of potential and definite threats that we all face (with possible responses), that include Brexit, contact with extra-terrestrials (ET), near Earth objects (NEOs) colliding with the Earth, viruses, and global warming. There is then a discussion of fascinating technological developments that we may expect to