The Space Race

Thirty years ago, the most readily identifiable icon of the space race was Neil Armstrong, a reserved and dignified man who observed a brief communion service with Buzz Aldrin while they were on the moon.

Today, the most readily identifiable icon of the space race is Elon Musk, who named his child “X AE A-XII” and got high on the Joe Rogan Experience.

The comparison reveals quite a bit about “science.” Not real science, I suppose, but the sort of thing which passes for science in the news cycle, White House press briefings, NPR’s Science Friday, TED talks, Bill Nye’s Instagram account, and the sort of classrooms where “Science is fun!”