expansion of technology
Star in a bottle -- potential new energy source
"As the frontier of human knowledge pushes forward, so, too, does the cost and complexity of further exploration. Telescopes grow larger. Space is probed at greater depths. Atomic particles are smashed more forcefully."
~Raffi Khatchadourian, A Star in a Bottle (page 23)
Summary
The New Yorker article, "A Star in a Bottle" explained the ambitious project world wide physicists and engineers are embarking on-- the creation of an artificial "star" which humanity hopes to use it's energy to energize and power our civilization. This "artificial star" is essentially a controlled fusion reaction which, when successful, releases a massive amount of energy (gamma rays, in compliance with E=mc^2) that they can then harness as electricity. The current machine (work in progress) is the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). This is an international project, which China, the U.S., Russia, and several European countries are participating in. The collaborators at ITER hope to use the machine to solve a major problem humanity faces as a civilization- the pollution in the atmosphere created by the burning of fossil fuels. The ITER project began during the Cold War in the mid-21st century. Apart from the obvious economic and environmental assets of such a machine, the curiosity of American physicists in the 21st century as a major catalyst. Primitive humans saw the sun and were amazed by it's warmth. Being human, they wondered, "How can I have one of those?" For decades, humans experimented, first with fire. The Argentinian president, Juan Peron, incorrectly announced that his scientists had successfully constructed fusion machine. Americans, despite the fact that Peron's claim was a fraud, began to ponder and wonder that a thermonuclear fusion machine would look like. At that point, the U.S. government began to pour large amounts of money into the project, and was constantly disrupted by numerous set-backs and obstacles. One of the major problems the entire international collaboration faced was the issue of cost and each country's economic devotion to the project. The author claimed that as science and it's frontier continued to advance, both the cost and complexity of further exploration sky rockets as well, which the ITER project clearly portrays.
Connection to thesis
This article, Star in a Bottle, connects to the thesis statement by portraying the progression of the metaphorical frontier along with the crucial role that American creativity, curiosity, and perseverance plays in the ITER project. The world-wide attempt to construct an "artificial star" for clean energy portrays both an attempt to advance American society (by providing clean energy, thus decreasing reliance on fossil fuels and therefore decreasing the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses in the sky) and American technology. American perseverance, another prevailing element in the American experience that is directly related to creativity and curiosity, was evident in America's relentless effort to succeed, despite the challenging obstacles they faced and continued to face as technicians, physicists, and engineers. Perseverance has been a distinctive element in the fabric of American society, from the struggle for independence from Great Britain, to John F. Kennedy's "New Frontier" speech. American curiosity and desire to expand knowledge and scientific achievement also is a motive, as ever since the idea of creating a thermonuclear reactor crossed the minds of Americans, they were determined to experiment until they had a working model-- so they could answer their looming question- "How does a thermonuclear reactor work?"
The New Yorker article, "A Star in a Bottle" explained the ambitious project world wide physicists and engineers are embarking on-- the creation of an artificial "star" which humanity hopes to use it's energy to energize and power our civilization. This "artificial star" is essentially a controlled fusion reaction which, when successful, releases a massive amount of energy (gamma rays, in compliance with E=mc^2) that they can then harness as electricity. The current machine (work in progress) is the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). This is an international project, which China, the U.S., Russia, and several European countries are participating in. The collaborators at ITER hope to use the machine to solve a major problem humanity faces as a civilization- the pollution in the atmosphere created by the burning of fossil fuels. The ITER project began during the Cold War in the mid-21st century. Apart from the obvious economic and environmental assets of such a machine, the curiosity of American physicists in the 21st century as a major catalyst. Primitive humans saw the sun and were amazed by it's warmth. Being human, they wondered, "How can I have one of those?" For decades, humans experimented, first with fire. The Argentinian president, Juan Peron, incorrectly announced that his scientists had successfully constructed fusion machine. Americans, despite the fact that Peron's claim was a fraud, began to ponder and wonder that a thermonuclear fusion machine would look like. At that point, the U.S. government began to pour large amounts of money into the project, and was constantly disrupted by numerous set-backs and obstacles. One of the major problems the entire international collaboration faced was the issue of cost and each country's economic devotion to the project. The author claimed that as science and it's frontier continued to advance, both the cost and complexity of further exploration sky rockets as well, which the ITER project clearly portrays.
Connection to thesis
This article, Star in a Bottle, connects to the thesis statement by portraying the progression of the metaphorical frontier along with the crucial role that American creativity, curiosity, and perseverance plays in the ITER project. The world-wide attempt to construct an "artificial star" for clean energy portrays both an attempt to advance American society (by providing clean energy, thus decreasing reliance on fossil fuels and therefore decreasing the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses in the sky) and American technology. American perseverance, another prevailing element in the American experience that is directly related to creativity and curiosity, was evident in America's relentless effort to succeed, despite the challenging obstacles they faced and continued to face as technicians, physicists, and engineers. Perseverance has been a distinctive element in the fabric of American society, from the struggle for independence from Great Britain, to John F. Kennedy's "New Frontier" speech. American curiosity and desire to expand knowledge and scientific achievement also is a motive, as ever since the idea of creating a thermonuclear reactor crossed the minds of Americans, they were determined to experiment until they had a working model-- so they could answer their looming question- "How does a thermonuclear reactor work?"