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Television Media

NBC Signs Up To Broadcast "Destination Mir" 238

Posted by timothy from the free-duct-tape-for-everyone! dept.
Fraser Cain writes: "Mark Burnett, producer of the hit show "Survivor," has sold the rights to his new show, "Destination Mir" to NBC for $40 million. The show will follow a group of 13-15 would-be cosmonauts as they train for a trip to the Mir space station." I love this line from the article: "Each week, a contestant will be removed by Russian Space Officials until the final winner is launched into orbit on a special, live broadcast." I certainly hope the Russian Space Officials are gentle with both the runners up and the eventual winner.
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NBC Signs Up To Broadcast "Destination Mir" More

NBC Signs Up To Broadcast "Destination Mir"

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  • More interesting... (Score:5)

    by photozz ( 168291 ) <photozz@g[ ]l.com ['mai' in gap]> on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @10:03AM (#784688) Homepage
    Ship 7 people up to mir, force them to perform tasks in zero-G between puting out fires and sealing holes... whoever wins that week, gets to come home. Thats a real "Survivor"

  • Mir has been up there a VERY long time.

    Yep, it's been there a long time. Hasn't killed anyone yet (scared 'em a bit -- but it was a US astronaut who's now trying to make big $$ on book sales, that it apparently scared the most... Shannon Lucid, OTOH, appears to have had bigger ovaries than the aforementioned astronaut did.

    NASA has been insisting that the station has outlived it's operating lifetime.

    Oh, yeah! It's just like when NASA scrapped the last couple of functional Saturn V launchers (literally laid 'em out as lawn exhibits), so they couldn't compete with the Shuttle... NASA doesn't want anything to compete with the IIS (and especially they don't want Russia to spend rubles on other stuff, seeing that they don't have very many of them, and their space funds have largely come from NASA anyhow!)

    It has a decaying orbit.

    Low Earth Orbit == Decaying Orbit. Mir has been reboosted several times, just as Salyut before it, and the IIS after it. SkyLab was supposed to be reboosted, too -- but Shuttle wasn't ready in time, so it sorta rained parts on Australia...

    Reboosting is just part of what needs to be done, not a reason to avoid Mir.

    Why in the world would ANYBODY in there right mind want to risk a trip up there?

    Because it's there, just like Mt. Everest?

    I suggest you ask people like climbers, skydivers, scuba divers, pilots... you'll find lots of people who can't figure out why you don't want to do it!

    Me, I'd go in a hot second.

    ---

  • 1) Has anyone fixed the leaks in the Spektr module yet?

    2) Does the cosmonaut training include lessons in how to realign the platform to the sun before it loses power?

    3) Do we *have* to go up on a Soyuz/Proton?

    I'm not even going to discuss EVA's, or whether or not the "winner" is going to be drafted to do any in order to keep the crew alive ..

  • Better story link (Score:5)

    by Tairan ( 167707 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @10:04AM (#784691) Homepage
    I did some searching around and found http://www.mirstation.com./news_news15. html [www.mirstation.com] It gives a more in-depth look at what the show hopes to do (other than draw ratings)
  • in which the kid wins a contest to go to any place on earth, and construes the rule to force the sponsors to send him to the space station?
  • You only drive 400 times a year?
  • Fisher's capsule history is here [spacepen.com]. He doesn't mention a $2M government contract. Are you sure that's real?

    Bruce

  • And to think I hought it was a joke, but The Bug scooped this one last month. Well...almost.
  • Heh... This time with a working link [thebug.com]

  • Somewhat OTP - "Big Brother" (Score:3)

    by Masem ( 1171 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @10:41AM (#784697)
    On a related note, if you haven't followed the entertainment news, tomorrow night should be an interesting night on the show Big Brother. I don't watch it myself, but it's like watching a train wreck - you know it's terrible but you can't help looking anyway.

    The deal is, last week the producers offered the remaining 6 contestants $500k to walk out of the house; the contestant that left would be replaced by a buxom young blonde (seriously!) for the remainder of the show. None of the contestants took it, and were themselves outraged that all 6 are threatening to walk out of the house at the same time as to end the show and to split the grand prize 6 ways. CBS is of course furious if this happens, but many predict this might be the windfall for the 'real life' gameshows if networks try to intervien too much into them.

  • whoever the Russian mafia says. I mean, really, do they think they can keep this uncorrupted? There going to use all Russian models, and the winner is going to be a fat woman in a black dress like in those old Pepsi ads: "Shvimvear.... Shpacesuit..."
  • I for one admire the Russian capability to jury-rig their technology. I have often thought that a combination Russian/American space venture (where both sides were designing and maintaining the technology) would stay up for a long, long, time and be really cool. :)

    Pope Felix the Scurrilous.

  • Gee. Did you get up on the wrong side of the bed this morning or something?

    I don't think Mir is much different from Skylab, which would have survived until today except that we put all of our eggs in the Shuttle basket and then had nothing to maintain its orbit after that solid-fuel firecracker did what firecrackers often do. Had Skylab survived, it might be just as nasty today :-)

    Bruce

  • Actually, in Russian, the word is borchsh. The "chsh" is my my best attempt to transliterate a soft "sh" sound -- it is about the same sound you would use when telling a child to be quite. There is not t at the end.

  • Re:hm (Score:1)

    by Tower ( 37395 )
    John Rocker blo up even before launch...

    hey, there's an idea - I know who to send to Mir.....
    --
  • Using a pencil on a space station would be a big no-no; considering that chunks of the pencil itself would be flying off all the time, graphite dust would be flying everywhere (mucking up machines as well as lungs), and you'd have a hell of a time using a conventional pencil-sharpener.

    --
  • This was also done on either SNL or MadTV (forget which i saw it on) they mocked up the Who wants to be a millionaire set. the contestent was up to a whole bowl of rice and one question away from winning a goat...
  • Please do not propogate this urban legend. It is not true.
  • I don't like the idea of jury-rigged life support, though if it keeps me breathing I will live with it for exactly as long as it's necessary. Those oxygen-emitting candles that the Russians use are especially scary.

    I think we started out with the goal of losing no lives. We lost more anyway, but I'm not sure the Soviets #1 goal was to lose no lives.

    Bruce

  • No, no... send 14 people up and the loosers each week have to remain on board the clunky rustbucket until the next round!

    The final looser remaining gets to be the one to steer the station on a crash-collision course with the Pacific Ocean. Re-entry must begin over North America at 8pm EST on a clear night.

  • NEWS? Try their TV shows! Ugh...someone pull a Kevorkian and pull the plug already!

  • 'The Real World' goes to SpaceCamp.

    Count me excited.

    --K
    ---
  • I have doubts about this as well.

    But I might actually apply. And, if Russian space officials are doing the selecting, have a chance at making it. Why might I be selected? Reasons:

    • I'm very intelligent (IQ ~170) (yeah, I know even thinking about this is rather dumb).
    • Degree in physics
    • 9 years as a NASA contractor as a software engineer
    • Bit of a leader in space groups at U.S. national level (NSS, L5 Society)
    • High mileage runner who finished the Marine Corps Marathon in 1996. When a NASA contractor I was in top 10 NASA people (civil servant and contractor) in my age group for the Intercenter Two Mile "Fun" Runs. Yes, I'm in rather good physical condition.
    • Accomplished space artist (URL: http://home.earthlink.net/~chuckdivine/sfart/)
    • Accomplished photographer and writer
    • Even done some amateur acting

    In short, I'm alot closer to real astronauts in ability, training and desire than the average person on the street.

    Why would I do this? A few reasons:

    • Get attention (Boy, would it).
    • Get soapbox to advance both ideas about space exploration/development and what's wrong with NASA/American aerospace today (there's too much to cram into a short slashdot posting).
    • Frankly, have a real great thrill (e.g., I ski down low expert ski trails now).
    • Get some great photographs and unique story lines.

    Yes, I know it could be really dangerous. But, for me, the rewards could be considerable. No, I wouldn't recommend this for most people. Read Dragonfly by Bryan Burrough for reasons.

    Going up to Mir really scares me. See Dragonfly. Even applying does so. But it might be worth it.

    Opinions? Is this completely crazy?

  • Hmm... where are they going to get 15 people who would even want to go up into that tin can?

  • hm (Score:1)

    by abelsson ( 21706 )
    Just imagine if the "winners" rocker blows up a few seconds after launch.

    Ouch.

    -henrik
  • no, you're guessing.

    Apollo 12 landed on the moon 11/19/1969 and returned safely to Earth with Conrad, Gordon and Bean

    Apollo-12 mission summary [nasa.gov]

  • are going to let the Mir decay in its orbit and gradually crash into to ocean. OH WAIT...that would be NBC's ratings!

  • Heh, that actor is Swedish. Just so you know.
    His name is Peter Stormare.
    He was in that Jurrasic Park 2 movie along with some other nice films.
  • ...is if they had the contestants vote each other off, so that the least-talented person would win.

    ----------

  • DestinationMirsucks.com (Score:3)

    by hedgeman ( 217881 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @10:06AM (#784717) Homepage
    I'm glad that even in the misery that these shows seem destined to reap upon us, someone has figured out how to make a buck off those who fain dislike and secretly can't get enough of it.
  • how does one sign up for this?

    can you say "opportunity of a lifetime"? I think that would be an amazing trip.

    or one hell of a publicity stunt for MIR/NASA or whatever agency you want....

    Atticka

  • When someone wins, and they get to be shot into space.. which contry is going to do the shoting?? USA has a far better/safer program, but Russia is cheaper, and gives you that genuine "Cosmonaut" experience.....

  • ...actually.

    Who will survive six months on the MIR?

    If past missions are any indication, this could be a really exciting show! Gas leaks, collisions, power failures... Getting voted off the station (with no way home!) and more!

  • That said, I would still go.

    Where do I sign up?
  • I believe you are confusing the Mir space station with the International Space Station. Mir is Russian-constructed, and IIRC currently owned by a corporation, and the ISS is, well, international.

    Yeah, doesn't make sense at all...an American producer, making a show destined for an American audience, having the cast of the show be Americans. Don't know what he was thinking.

    Of course, there could probably be a Canadian or two on the show, and I don't think anyone would even notice.

  • And now a word from our sponsors... pizza hut!
  • I did that on my last birthday. I almost had an unfortunate accident with the flux capacitor, however, and this time I plan to be fully clothed.
  • Anyone remember that crazy russian space station guy from that one movie? You know what I'm talking about... Anyway, that's what I picture happening.

  • Re:Why not send the LOSER to Mir? (Score:4)

    by slam smith ( 61863 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @12:03PM (#784738) Homepage
    Well at least the russians haven't parked their space station in the outback. I also heard a story about the russian and pens in space. Normal ballpoint pens don't work in space. American solution: Spend lots of money and develop pens that work in space. Russian solution: use pencils. For extra credit guess what a major part of the first mission to skylab was. Well I'll spare the suspense. It was to fix it. You see would couldn't even launch the damn thing without breaking it. Skylab only had three crews before we ran out of money and ultimately treated the aussies to a multimillion dollar fireworks show. I have no clue how many crews mir has had, except it is a damn sight more than three. Considering the harsh enviroment in which mir operates, it has lasted exceptionally well. BTW do you think it is an accident that of the three modules of the ISS currently in space that 2 were built by russians.

  • Your final prize (Score:4)

    by byee ( 221083 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @09:54AM (#784739)
    You will be greeted at Mir with: slow degeneration of your muscles, great tasting food, and fires in the living quarters. Great Prize.
  • Not until a couple of the cosmonauts sneak off into the jungle outside Novosibirsk for a bit of nookie.

    --
  • Verily, I think it'd be much more interesting to see what happens *after* they pick a winner and send them to Mir. Screw the elimination process, let's see the results.

  • what I'd prefer to see (Score:5)

    by jailbrekr2 ( 139577 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @09:55AM (#784742) Homepage
    Is to send 14 ppl up and cram them into Mir, and have them eliminated 1 by 1.

    Now *that* would be entertainment......

  • Removed how? (Score:3)

    by stx23 ( 14942 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @10:09AM (#784743) Homepage Journal
    "Each week, a contestant will be removed by Russian Space Officials until the final winner is launched into orbit on a special, live broadcast." I certainly hope the Russian Space Officials are gentle with both the runners up and the eventual winner.
    Would that be removed as in 'sneak up behind the loser and drug them' removed?
  • Pfft..FOX has all sorts of stuff up their sleve:

    World's scariest near-misses by asteroids
    Single Female Lawyer In Space
    The Simpsons on Mars

    All of course followed by that great FOX News coverage you expect of the show you just watched along with other topical news ("Will Space Debris Fall on Your House? Find out at 10PM!").
  • Comment removed based on user account deletion
  • What are the odds that the final "survivor" will be blown up during launch? My guess is about 1 in 100. That is not a prize I would take.

  • Only Americans Need Apply (Score:3)

    by tranZent ( 224631 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @10:13AM (#784750)
    In typical American fashion, Burnett is (again) restricting contest entry to only U.S. citizens.

    So much for the *international* space effort.

  • OK, PARDON ME FOR SHOUTING but I'm not getting your attention. The story that you quoted says that Fisher spent $2M of his own money to develop the pen. Maybe he did - I'm doubtful about the amount. But the urban rumour is that the U.S. spent the money. That isn't so.

    Am I getting through now? Thank you.

  • Legitimate accounts of the space pen development seem to say that it was Fisher's own money. I find this reassuring, even though I doubt the amount stated.

    The Fisher corporate office is in Boulder city on the route between Las Vegas and the Hoover Dam. It doesn't look like the kind of establishment that runs $2M research programs. I'm not putting them down - I can't even spell the name for the semi-solid ink, no less pronounce it. But I suspect there's a little hyperbole involved in the price tag on that research.

    Bruce

  • Something George W could do when he loses his bid for election this fall is start up a survivor type show with inmates on death row, and each week someone new dies. Now that I'd watch.

  • I hope they build their space stations better than they build their submarines!

  • Once Aboard The Satellite... (Score:3)

    by Steve B ( 42864 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @10:56AM (#784768)
    ...the subject will be forced to watch Survivor episodes and build himself a couple of robots for company....
    /.

  • Maybe they could call it DeathWish... (Score:5)

    by cybrpnk ( 94636 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @10:16AM (#784772)
    As much as I want to go into space, even I have some hesitation about applying for this. I've been to Russia and built a couple of experiments that have flown on MIR, so I have some first hand observations about this. First, the Russians are in this for the money, period. When I went there as part of a Boeing experiment team, everything was about what could they do to soak more cash from us and they could care less about the flight. Secondly, their infrastructure is shot, particularly at the launch site. Third, they are totally unable to keep to a schedule - look at the Space Station, it's 2 years late from Russians having to delay their main part. Most importantly, this thing can't be declared safe. MIR is fifteen years old, it's had a fire and a major depresurization while US astronauts were aboard, either of which could have easily killed someone. Look at their recent sub disaster and TV station fire, too - they are just stretched too thin running old equipment with people that haven't been paid in far too long. It sounds romantic, but it's being pushed by people with NO spaceflight experience and little if any experience with the realities of Russia today. The Russians aren't going to raise a single flag as long as there's enough zeros on the end of the check. If this pulls thru, it's going to be luck more than anything....
  • The first science fiction story I read was about a young kid who won a competition that allowed him to ask for a spaceflight as prize. That was probably around 1975. After all these years it's finally come true! Of course the original author couldn't have guessed just how tacky a show it would be in the year 2000. Now I'd love to reread this book. Can anyone ID it for me? I think it may have been written by AC Clarke. Did he write such a book? I vaguely remember that the prize was actually a trip anywhere in the world and the prizegivers were actually surprised the kid chose a space station. Ring any bells with anyone? Anyway...it's a great thing this is happening. Anything that gets interest in spaceflight means we might actually catch up with where science fiction writers expected us to be by now.
    --
  • When the U.S. astronauts visited Mir, they brought their Fisher Space Pens. Those were no doubt the most reliable pieces of equipment on the space station.

    When NASA realized that a regular pen doesn't work in zero G they set on a big expensive project to develop a special pen.

    The russians use pencils.

    The aging space shuttle is not more reliable than Mir, it's just that it can run back to mommmy earth at the slightest hint of trouble and get the several month long overhaul it needs before each flight.

    The russians tough it out and solve their problems. You gotta respect that. Which of these approaches results in more useful experience for future habitation in space?

    The state of Mir is more a matter of public perception than actual fact.

    ----
  • It's not really fair to keep on bashing Mir's supposed "unreliability". Remember that it was designed and built to operate only until 1992-1993 (don't remember the exact date), which means that it has been used for 7-8 years longer than its scheduled operational life. I, for one, would like to see how does the space shuttle operate in 2025... if it's still operating at all.
  • Actually, the Fisher company does pretty well for itself, and did so even before the Space Pen, I understand. When I lived in Boulder City, they were a cornerstone of the business community, but had just moved there in the late 70's (perhaps abandoning their multi-million-dollar research compound ;^). Although $2M might be exaggerated, I imagine the equipment to produce that special ink and nitrogen-pressurized ink cartridges could get costly. But hey, they still do quite a business (and are still on every manned NASA mission), so it was an excellent investment whatever the actual price was.
  • Thanks to Bob Rivers of Twisted Tunes [twistedtunes.com], there's a perfect theme song for the show. Click here [twistedtunes.com] (ISDN line speed or better required. 28.8k version here [twistedtunes.com]) .
  • I saw an article a few weeks ago interviewing all the creator of survivor. Apparently, one of his criteria for selecting an applicant was that they be a bit neurotic. This was to produce the "soap opera" effect.

    Do we really want people who would engage in the kind of back-biting that went on in "Survivor" going to space?

    --

  • What is it with this new fad?

    Ya know, I still don't understand calling this a new fad. Candid Camera is one of the oldest shows on television after all!

    Survivor/Real World/et alia are just sitcoms to Candid Camera's sketch comedy.

  • I believe the idea was what Jared Diamond termed the "Anna Karenina principle." As Tolstoy put it in that novel, "Happy families are all alike. Every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."

    The upshot is, people like voyeurism. Always have, always will.

  • Each week, a contestant will be removed by Russian Space Officials until the final winner is launched into orbit
    If they're going to be launching the winner into orbit, I wonder what the hell they're going to be doing to the people who lose!

  • Why not send the LOSER to Mir? (Score:4)

    by Bruce Perens ( 3872 ) <bruce@perens.com> on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @10:31AM (#784810) Homepage Journal
    When the U.S. astronauts visited Mir, they brought their Fisher Space Pens. Those were no doubt the most reliable pieces of equipment on the space station.

    Bruce

  • I just watched "Space Cowboys" recently - and it was damn funny watching them on the graviton (or whatever the centerfuge thingy is called)... can you image watching normal people on it?

    It would actually be pretty scary to see what it would do to the female form though... ;)
  • Mir is now owned by a corporation [mircorp.com], not by the Russian government. Here's [slashdot.org] the slashdot story from April.

    --

  • Last march, Canadian astronaut Judith Lapierre [space.gc.ca] almost walked out of a long-term space station simulation experiment when a drunken russian astronaut started making passes at her [canoe.ca].
    Is this the kind of crap we can expect from Destination MIR ?
    ---
  • ... about as well as "Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire."
  • I've heard that a significant motivation is a threatened script writers' strike. Reality = no writers to worry about in execs' eyes.
  • Recent story on Discovery chanel. The Real story of the russian space program. They blew up more spacecraft than the US ever produced. it took them 4 TRYS to get their heavy launch vehicle (I forget the name.. big thingie.. 30 or so engines) off the pad. not testing, real launches. Blew them all to hell. We never knew due to cold war blackout and iron fist on the media. Don't know what their human deth tole is, but I bet the % is far worse than us.

  • Last one to Mir is a rotten egg! (Score:4)

    by ackthpt ( 218170 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @10:35AM (#784840) Homepage Journal
    This should actually be exceedingly dull, unless you're Jason Fox or his buddy Marcus of the Foxtrot strip.

    For $40M NBC could have done 'Survivor' with more entertainment value, such as:

    Championship Quarterbounce

    John Madden vs. Dennis Miller, Who Can Ramble On Longest Without Accidentally Commenting on the Game

    /. Effect: Contestants must keep servers from crashing

    South-Of-The-Border Water Drinking Contest, be the last to get Moctezuma's Revenge

    Silicon Valley Survivor: Snow Wall Street and keep your dotcom alive the longest without a viable product! :o)

    Java Survivor: Write the most lines of code before finding API is documented wrong

    TV Survivor: Watch TV the longest without raiding the fridge. (Time deducted for comatose periods)

    Vote [dragonswest.com] Naked 2000

  • Right, but I thought the original comment was about manned launch failures.

    Anyway, this has strayed far beyond the original topic which was if one would be willing to risk their life for a TV show given the rate of failure of Russian manned launches, someone pointed out there were US failures as well. Aside from the Challenger, which was the mother of all manned launch failures, I can't find any others. I concede the point that the US space program's record on failure is not spotless, but I think the point that Russia's record would make the trip more risky is overblown - they haven't killed anybody since before challenger.

    The horse is now oficially dead :-)

  • Re:man (Score:2)

    by byee ( 221083 )
    I can't wait for the centrifuge episode! Bet that one will be a winner.

  • just something to ponder (Score:4)

    by GW Hayduke ( 19878 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @09:56AM (#784849)
    Are one of them going to insist on "zero-G" training in the nude on their birthdays????
  • Anything in low-earth orbit is in a decaying orbit. Operating lifetime as decided by whom? The engineers who built the thing designed for five years. That is, it was guaranteed to work for five, much like your car has a three-year warranty. Would you be afraid to get in a 40-year-old car that originally came with a five-year warranty?
  • I'd like to think that no other nation on the face of the planet would WANT to be involved with something like this. Please don't ruin it for me.
  • Well, how was it not reliable, and how does that compare to Mir? Don't count the fact that its orbit decayed, that was because they underestimated the drag of vestigal atmosphere in low orbit, left it tumbling instead of in an "aerodynamic" configuration, and nobody drove up to give it a push. People thought space was a more pure vacumm until skylab and "shuttle glow".

    Thanks

    Bruce

  • "Destination Mir?"

    That's so hokey!

    I guess now we'll get to see all those space ads for Pizza Hut and Taco Bell... ;>

  • Why don't they just put all the contestants in a Russian Sub instead?
  • Why don't they pick 15 "Well Hated" people and send them all up, see who lasts the longest.

    Hmm. Who would they send up? Here's my (mostly random) picks:

    1. Bobby Knight
    2. John Rocker
    3. Shawn Walsh
    4. Rae Carruth
    5. Carl Everett
    6. Dennis Rodman
    7. Monica Lewinski
    8. O.J.
    9. Bill Gates
    10. Any Random MPAA or RIAA executive
    11. Any member of a so-called "Boy Band"
    12. Dr Evil
    13. Madonna (deserves to die for her rendition of American Pie)
    14. That annoying little girl from the Pepsi commercials
    15. (Insert your least favorite /. editor here)

    Hmm, almost like a slashdot poll.

    -
  • Ooo! "Iron Chef" and "South Park." Network prime time? What's that?

    Does anyone else think the food network needs more Iron Chef and less Martha Stewart? I mean, Martha's scarey. You gotta wonder if she doesn't have psychotic episodes immediately after the show ends. No one can be THAT domestic!

    In fact, I wouldn't mind an "All Iron Chef all the Time" network. Ok, maybe I don't get out enough...

  • Exactly, the most important information is missing in the Slashdot article and the link it references. Where is the sign-up sheet ? I always wanted to travel in space and since I can't afford even a tourist class ticket from Mircorp (over $15 million) this seems like a good opportunity.

    I guess I have to go back to buying lotto tickets ;-)
  • Hey, I'd want to go, too, but I'm too tall to fit in a Soyuz. Seriously, a Soyuz can't take anyone taller than 5'10" or thereabouts; I forget the exact height, but I know that, at 6'3", I'd never fit.

    And don't even suggest that I go lop off my feet or something like that; I'd still like to have a decent life back on Earth after the trip :-).

    I wonder if the producers of this show know about the height restrictions...I'd hate to see someone become the winning contestant and then get told, "Oh, sorry, you won't fit into the capsule. Tough luck."

    Eric
    --

  • they're going to launch them with two russians at the same time.

    --
  • Ok, let's see, this will be more fun if...

    A fat, balding astronaut releases ruffled potato chips on the transport...

    The experimental ants get loose, prompting Peter Jennings to welcome our "New Ant Overlords..."

    And the day is saved by... an inanimate carbon rod.

    Should I be pleased or scared when real life imitates The Simpsons?

    A little from column A and a little from column B?

  • So what will the winner do when he/she is launched into orbit? I doubt that all of the contestants will have a heavy scientific background...

    I'd like to know just what sort of criteria the producers will have for contestants. Will it be completely physical?

    Pope Felix the Scurrilous.

  • Didn't they have TV like this in science-fiction stories starting a long time ago, and even recently being filmed? (e.g. EdTV, The Truman Show) Can't TV people even make up their own crappy ideas anymore? Do they have to steal from literature (like The Running Man and Killerbowl (or whatever the heck that Gary Wolf book was called))?

  • Voyeurism fad (Score:4)

    by Rurik ( 113882 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @10:01AM (#784896)
    What is it with this new fad? The Real World was interesting, at least the first two seasons. After that, everyone became used to it, and the novelty wore off, no matter how many extreme stereotypes they put into one room. Big Brother was the exact same. You stick extreme people from every side of the track into a house, and watch them.
    What's this supposed to prove, that your family isn't the only dysfunctional household on the street?
    Survivor was interesting. It was a novel approach, where people weren't tested on their ability to handle Suzie talking for 6 hours straight on the phone. They were tested for physical and mental endurance, and the cash prizes didn't hurt.
    And now, Destination Mir, along the same lines of Survivor. I pray that this will be the LAST of this new fad. This show will only have two good episodes, guaranteed: the first, to get to know who all is there, and the last, to know who wins. The rest is just filler. And the fact that the space staff votes contestants off takes out the human factor of friendships/enemies.

    IMO, it'll be hardly interesting. If you want to see what goes on when various people are put through training to get into physical shape, then join the Army. I really can't see a difference.

  • So what if it *IS* true? (Score:3)

    by SvnLyrBrto ( 62138 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @02:34PM (#784900)
    >He doesn't mention a $2M government contract.
    >Are you sure that's real?

    So what if it *IS* true?

    Fisher Space Pens sell for $7.99 per at the gift shop (last time I went to see a shuttle launch @ Kennedy Space Center... about two years ago).

    I used to live in Florida. I lived there for more a decade. I know the habits of touisitis annoyingians quite well. I have no doubt in my mind at all that they've sold enough $7.99 Fisher Space pens to recoup a $2mil investment, and more.

    It boggles the mind what a tourist will drop money on just to have an "official souvineer". SOMEBODY is *surely* making a healthy profit off those things; two-million dollar development cost or no...

    "look maw!!! it's one of them thar ass-trough-nut pens!!! less get one for juinor sweetums nana pappy and the rest of the clan!!!"

    And let's not even THINK of the mounds of Disney crap that the suckers^H^H^H^H^H^H^Htourists will blow money on.

    john
    Resistance is NOT futile!!!

    Haiku:
    I am not a drone.
    Remove the collective if

  • Re:Why not send the LOSER to Mir? (Score:3)

    by MoNickels ( 1700 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @11:22AM (#784902) Homepage
    Here's the play-at-home version:

    The Darwinism Home Game [monickels.com]

  • I think it'd be so much more entertaining if they had to take all the training in Russian, and had alarms on the station go off randomly. =P

    (Actually, the idea reminds me of a lot of the Japanese game shows I've seen. "Alright, time for a game of no-hands bowling ball catch!" "WHAAAT?!")
  • This contest reminds me of the the Heinlein book
    "Have spacesuit, will travel". The book does
    have special twist however.

  • Aw, you've caught me. Yes, I really am the 15 highest-moderated posters on Slashdot. I have a login for each of my personalities. Not :-)

  • Re:What's happened to television? (Score:4)

    by AbbyNormal ( 216235 ) on Tuesday September 12, 2000 @10:39AM (#784912) Homepage
    I don't know...It's a matter what you prefer. There are plenty of good shows on TV IMHO, just gotta flip around. Think: Law&Order, Family Guy, Simpsons, The West Wing, X-files (up to a point). There are also some decent new comedies appearing this fall. I agree, there is a lot of "crap", but eventually those types of shows will lose interest and it will fade to black (hehe...Metallica(C)(R)corp(inc)(Republic))

    Hehe...If you want reliable news, stay with Slashdot!

  • I'm just talking sheer launch vehicle failures (manned missions being a small subset)...the numbers don't show high reliability.

    It's not fair to lump the two categories together -- manrated boosters are a small subset of boosters, and they're much more reliable than the run-of-the-mill cargo launcher. Matter of fact, I can recall only one fatal manrated launcher failure: Challenger.

    ---

  • and they'll say..

    "You went up in THAT thing - you're braver than I thought!"


    Sean

  • Comment removed based on user account deletion
  • Comment removed based on user account deletion
  • Apollo 1 burned on its launchpad together with 3 astronauts.

    The Apollo spacecraft is very much distinct from the booster which launched it (matter of fact, there were several different boosters which launched Apollo capsules). The Soviet manned space program had a couple of fatal spacecraft failures, too... but those weren't launcher failures either.

    ---

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