International Space Elevator Consortium
June 2018 Newsletter
In this Issue:
Editor’s Note
Conference
President’s Corner
Visions and Organizations
ISEC Needs You
Upcoming Events
Editor’s Note
Dear Fellow Space Elevator enthusiast,
Please allow me to introduce myself--my name is Sandee Schaeffer and I am the new Editor of the ISEC Newsletter. I would like to thank Mark Dodrill for his hard work in publishing the newsletter and teaching me how to take over.
In this edition, there is much emphasis on the upcoming conference. Deadlines are looming for submissions!
As always, you will find notices of several open volunteer positions (a great way to help this project, even if you’re not a scientist or engineer) and a reminder that all ISEC reports are available FOR FREE in electronic (pdf) format at ISEC.org. There is plenty of work to be done!
If you want to help us make a space elevator happen, JOIN ISEC and get involved! A space elevator would truly revolutionize life on earth and open up the solar system and beyond to all of us.
Please don’t forget to LIKE US on Facebook, FOLLOW US on Twitter, and enjoy the photos and videos that we’ve posted on Flickr and YouTube, all under our Social Identity of ISECdotORG.
Thank you for reading and lending your support in the development of Space Elevators!
Sandee Schaeffer
ISEC
Conference
The International Space Elevator Consortium presents the 2018 Space Elevator Conference to be held August 17th through August 19th, 2018 at the Museum of Flight, Seattle, Washington with the Family Science Fest on Saturday, August 18th.
This year will be a dual-themed conference featuring the technical description of the “Multi-Stage Space Elevator” and the preliminary “Technology Readiness Assessment of the Space Elevator Transportation System." The three-day technical conference will engage an international audience of scientists, engineers, educators, managers, entrepreneurs, enthusiasts, and students in discussions of space elevator development including Technology, Business and Operations, Outreach, and Legal topics. More details of this year’s technical conference program will be posted on the conference website (http://isec.org/sec) with registration opened June 2018.
The Family Science Fest portion of the conference will be held Saturday, August 18th. This event is in tandem with the technical conference and is included in the Museum of Flight admission price. The Family Science Fest includes a youth robotics competition, public Space Elevator 101 and 201 presentations, exhibits from universities, science organizations, and science clubs, and much more. This is a great event for the whole family while you explore the Museum of Flight.
Many thanks to our annual “GEO” level sponsor, the Museum of Flight, for their ongoing support for this conference.
David Horn
ISEC Conference Chair
Call for Papers!
The International Space Elevator Consortium (ISEC) invites you to join us in Seattle, Washington, USA and contribute to the latest research, knowledge, stimulating discussions, and exchange of ideas on space elevators at the 2018 ISEC Space Elevator Conference - August 17-19, 2018. The themes of this year's conference are the technical description of the “Multi-Stage Space Elevator” and the preliminary “Technology Readiness Assessment of the Space Elevator Transportation System." Carbon nanotube and strong materials research is also a very important topic that we continue to emphasize, and we encourage participation by materials science researchers on this exciting subject. Authors are invited to submit titles and abstracts of proposed papers for the conference before June 24, 2018.
Topics
Topics for papers should fall into these categories.
· Multi-Stage Space Elevators
· Technology Readiness Assessment of the Space Elevator Transportation System
· Carbon nanotube tensile strength research progress and other strong materials research relating to space elevators
· Science, engineering, and technology topics relating to space elevators
· Operations, maintenance, ROI, and other business and financial topics relating to space elevators
· Space elevator impact on the future and public outreach to societal institutions; government, media, unions, the educational system, etc.
· Treaties, laws, insurability, and other legal issues and topics relating to space elevators
Submit your abstracts and papers to the Conference Management Tool (CMT) at https://cmt3.research.microsoft.com/ISEC2018.
Abstracts
Authors are invited to submit titles and abstracts by 24-Jun-2018. Abstracts must be in English, no more than 5000 words, should state the purpose, result, and conclusion of the proposed paper with supporting figures where appropriate. Authors will be notified of acceptance to submit a corresponding paper no later than 17-Jun-2018. For all submittals, please include the title, authors and affiliations, mail address, e-mail, and phone number of the corresponding author.
Papers
Please use the ISEC Conference Papers Template for your paper. Papers must be in English with the first full draft for review due by 15-Jul-2018. This is an informal checkpoint to make sure you are on track to have the paper ready for the conference. Final papers and presentations are due 10-Aug-2018 so that we can make them ready for conference attendees. PowerPoint or PDF formats are preferred for presentations.
Proceedings
We will collect all papers and presentations made and include them in the conference proceedings, to be offered free to the public on the ISEC web site after the conference. By submitting a paper and presentation to the conference, the author(s) explicitly give(s) ISEC and the Space Elevator Conference organizing committee the right to include his or her paper and presentation in the conference proceedings.
Important Dates
Conference: August 17–19, 2018
Submission of Abstracts by June 24, 2018
Notification of Abstract Acceptance by June 30, 2018
Draft Papers Due: July 15, 2018
Final Papers and Presentations Due: August 10, 2018
Questions
Send your abstract, paper, and technical program inquiries to:
Conference Chair: David Horn (david.horn@isec.org)
President’s Corner
Coffee Driven?
I have been intrigued with the idea that coffeehouses changed our history by bringing people together with caffeine stimulated discussions. As such, show up and help us prove Steven Johnson’s theory that the Age of Reason is still alive, and in Seattle. (as Peter Diamandis wrote in his email)
“In the 18th century, coffeehouses had an enormous impact on Enlightenment culture. As Steven Johnson says in his book Where Good Ideas Come From, “It’s no accident that the Age of Reason accompanies the rise of caffeinated beverages.” The coffeehouse became the hub for information sharing. Suddenly commoners could interact with the royals, meet, mingle and share ideas. In his book London Coffee Houses, Bryant Lillywhite explains it this way:
‘The London coffee-houses provided a gathering place where, for a penny admission charge, any man who was reasonably dressed could smoke his long, clay pipe, sip a dish of coffee, read the newsletters of the day, or enter into conversation with other patrons. At the period when journalism was in its infancy and the postal system was unorganized and irregular, the coffeehouse provided a centre of communication for news and information. Naturally, this dissemination of news led to the dissemination of ideas, and the coffee-house served as a forum for their discussion.’”
As such, our conference serves coffee and tea to stimulate the discussions. You will find that the people who attend a space elevator conference start with a keen interest and actively stimulate discussions and questions. ISEC has encouraged this quest for knowledge with its many diverse activities, all focused upon bringing the development of the Space Elevator closer. We are indeed Closer than you think!
Keep Climbing my Friends
Pete Swan
Visions and Organizations:
National Space Society:
VISION: People living and working in thriving communities beyond the Earth, and the use of the vast resources of space for the dramatic betterment of humanity.
The British Interplanetary Society:
Mission: To promote the exploration and use of space for the benefit of humanity, by connecting people to create, educate and inspire, and advance knowledge in all aspects of astronautics.
After reading those from leading advocates of space exploration, I just wanted to put the perspective out there about our vision and mission. We have lived by the following for the last seven years and continue to push forward.
International Space Elevator Consortium Vision:
A world with inexpensive, safe, routine, and efficient access to space for the benefit of all mankind.
International Space Elevator Consortium Mission:
Promotes the development, construction and operation of a Space Elevator (SE) infrastructure as a revolutionary and efficient way to space for all humanity. ISEC is made up of individuals and organizations from all around the world who share a vision of mankind in space.
Please join us while we move forward towards a new world.
ISEC Needs You!
In our modern world, the web and social media are the most common ways that people get their news and information about, well, everything! ISEC wants to take fuller advantage of this trend to reach new audiences that we haven't been able to before, and spread the word about space elevators.
If you are excited about space elevators (as we know you are!) and are savvy in how to use web and social media tools, we want to talk with you! We have the following volunteer positions open at ISEC:
ISEC Webmaster -- We are looking for someone who can work with the ISEC Board and ISEC Members to publish news, study reports, and information on space elevator related topics. We have all the basics in place, we just need someone to incorporate inputs and post them to the web.
ISEC Social Media Guru -- We are looking for someone to help us drive further engagement with current and new space elevator enthusiasts in the social media arenas of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram. We would love to have someone come on board to help us maximize the use of these technologies.
ISEC Board Member for Web and Social Media efforts -- We are looking for a liaison between the ISEC Board of Directors and the Webmaster, Newsletter, and Social Media Guru. This person could also help out with any special efforts along these lines as they want. Being on the ISEC Board means that you can influence what topics we study and how we go about educating the larger public about all the benefits of space elevators.
If any of these sound interesting, please send email to mark.dodrill@isec.org, with your interest!
Thanks.
Mark Dodrill
Upcoming Space Elevator Related Events:
International Space Elevator Consortium
Space Elevator Conference 2018
Seattle Museum of Flight, Seattle, WA, USA
August 17-19, 2018
https://isec.org/sec/