How Is Sex in Space Possible

As space agencies consider sending crews on long missions to the Moon or Mars, they have to face up to the social aspects of such trips. Some aspects, such as personal hygiene or social rituals, can be adapted pretty easily. One of those aspects is almost certainly going to be sex. Whether people are procreating or not, its generally accepted that somebody, somewhere, is going to have sex in space. In fact, the most questions fielded by astronauts focus on the more personal aspects of space exploration. Usually, they arent asked outright about sex, although they do get the how do you go to the bathroom in space? question a lot. But, people want to know: has anybody hooked up in low-gravity conditions? Lots of speculation exists about whether or not two people have had sex in space, but so  far as anyone knows, no one has gotten away with it. Yet (or, if they have, nobodys talking.) Its certainly not part of their astronaut training (or if it is, its a well-kept secret). However, as humans venture out on those months- and years-long missions, sex in space is going to happen. Humans are human after all, even out there. Is Sex in Space Possible? From a physics standpoint, sex in space looks as though it might be difficult to achieve. The microgravity environment that astronauts experience  on the International Space Station, for example, causes all kinds of problems for  living and working in space.  Eating, sleeping, and exercising are all more complicated acts in space than they are on Earth, and sex would be no different. For example, look at the regulation of blood flow, important for both sexes, but particularly for men. Low gravity means that blood doesnt flow throughout the body the same way it does as on Earth. It will be much more difficult (and perhaps even impossible) for a male to achieve an erection. Without that, sexual intercourse is going to be difficult—but of course, many other forms of sexual activity are still possible. The second problem is sweat. When astronauts exercise in space, their sweat tends to build up in layers around their bodies, making them sticky and wet all over. This would give the word steamy a whole new meaning and may make intimate moments slippery and uncomfortable. Since blood doesnt flow the same way in microgravity as it does on Earth, it is not a reach to assume that the flow of other vital fluids would be inhibited as well. However,  this may only be important if the goal is to make a baby. The third and most interesting problem relates to the motions involved in sexual activity. In a microgravity environment, even a small push or pull motion sends an object hurtling across the craft. This makes any physical interaction quite difficult, not just intimate ones.   But there is a fix for these difficulties—the same fix used to overcome the difficulty of exercise in space. When they exercise, astronauts strap themselves into harnesses and fasten themselves to the spacecraft walls. This would presumably allow couples to engage in sexual activity as long as everything else is working smoothly (see discussion of blood flow regulation above.)   Astronaut Sunita Williams exercising aboard the International Space Station. NASA Has Sex in Space Happened? For many years, rumors claimed  NASA sanctioned sexual experiments in space. These stories have been categorically denied by the space agency and the astronauts. If other space agencies have done this, theyve been keeping that information a closely guarded secret.  One things for sure: even if two (or more) people managed to have intercourse in space, someone  would know.  Unless they unhooked all their heart monitors and found a truly private place, people at mission control would see an uptick in heart rates and respiration. Plus, space travel takes place in close quarters and is anything but private. And astronauts work  on very tight schedules and have few free moments to squeeze in unauthorized activities. Will Sex in Space Ever Happen? Of course, it will. People living and working in space for long periods of time will certainly hook up. Space sex is an inevitable outcome of longer-term exploratory missions. Its a staple of science fiction writers, and they have often looked at human activity in space as part of their stories. No one expects crew members on a long-term voyage to abstain from all sexual activity, so it would be wise for mission planners to come up with sensible guidelines.   A related issue is the possibility of pregnancy in space, which is much more complicated. As humans pursue longer trips to the Moon and planets, future generations will also wrestle with issues related to pregnancy and childbirth.  Its a difficult thing to test out in advance, since experimentation on human beings isnt considered ethical. But, someday, a child will be born on orbit, or on the Moon, or in a habitat on Mars. Its health and growth will be of immense interest to people back on Earth. Edited by Carolyn Collins Petersen.

The Progressive Case Against Assisted Suicide - 1413 Words

Brittany Maynard was given six months to live after being diagnosed with the deadliest form of brain cancer; she had recently just turned 29. To make matters worse, doctors had told her she would suffer from the tumor in a slow and painful manner before succumbing to death. Maynard decided she would die on November 1, a few days after her husband’s birthday under physician-assisted suicide. Unfortunately, she had to relocate from California, where her friends and family lived, to Oregon in order to fall under the â€Å"Die With Dignity† act. According to euthanasia.procon.org, only four states in the whole country have legalized assisted suicide. Unfortunately, there are many like Maynard, who have to relocate and leave their home or go through a long and strenuous court battle to receive this treatment plant. This is due to the disapproval of physician-assisted suicide. Ana Acton, the Executive Director at FREED Center for Independent Living, is one of the many oppone nts against this practice. In â€Å"The Progressive Case Against Assisted Suicide,† published in Huffingtonpost.com, Acton argues against the practice of physician-assisted suicide. She begins her argument by declaring, â€Å"Physician assisted suicide disproportionately affects the poor.† With this in mind, she believes the underprivileged would take advantage of this practice because of their inability to pay for treatment. Also, in order to further argue her opposition towards physician-assisted suicide, she argues,Show MoreRelatedPhysician Assisted Suicide Should Be Legalized943 Words   |  4 Pagesto commit suicide, but his mom resuscitated him both times. Therefore, Danny decided to starve himself to end his suffering once and for all (Grimminck). People such as Danny, cancer, and ALS patients, who are battling terminal illnesses, deserve the right to choose when enough is enough. Physician assisted suicide should be legalized because it’s the compassion ate thing to do, people deserve autonomy and because it is a better alternative. People may argue that physician assisted suicide is wrongRead MoreThe Debate Of Assisted Suicide1747 Words   |  7 Pages The topic of assisted suicide is very controversial and is heavily debated upon all around the world. While physician assisted suicide is only legal in the Netherlands, Switzerland, and a few states in the U.S., it is illegally practiced widely by physicians and nurses, such as Dr. Jack Kevorkian. I first heard of physician assisted suicide when the death of Dr. Kevorkian, an assisted suicide advocate and a suicide aid, was on the news in 2011. Kevorkian assisted in the suicide of many patientsRead MoreMoral Question of Hastening the Death of a Terminally Ill Patient1220 Words   |  5 Pagesregarding how to properly treat a individual who want to end there own life. Controversial views have always been made against those who suggest that terminally ill or incurably suffering people should be allowed to ask for and receive help to die if they so wish. The same set of arguments in opposition toward euthanasia is, that life is sacred and by legalizing physician assisted suicide would lead to abuses by the medical field. A fundamental question concerning hastening the death of a terminally illRead MoreAssisted Death And Voluntary Euthanasia1586 Words   |  7 Pages SHOULD THE LAW BE REFORMED TO ALLOW ‘ASSISTED DYING’ FOR THE TERMINALLY ILL? To begin with, assisted dying remains highly topical and debated, both in the public and medical arena. Assisted death, incorporates both physician assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia. It gives the freedom to a terminally ill person or a mentally competent adult, to choose on their own free will and after meeting strict legal safeguards, takes prescribed medication which will end their life in dying. There are twoRead MoreLife Is Precious1350 Words   |  6 Pagesshould be made legal for patients to have doctor-assisted suicide, or mercy-killing, which is the term used to describe ending life through the voluntary self-administration of lethal medication, expressly prescribed by a physician for that purpose (DHS-Internet). By approximately a two-to-one ratio, most adults in the US agree that it should be this way. When read a brief description of the Oregon proposition, allowing physician-assisted suicide for patients who are thought to have less than sixRead MoreEuthanasi Eut hanasia And Euthanasia1483 Words   |  6 Pagesexplained through this quote, Euthanasia and medically assisted suicide to present a real danger. Although society refuses to see these dangers, euthanasia creates countless problems that shake society. Euthanasia remains a conditional based issue; therefore, the laws created rely on weak ideas that allow for easy manipulation, as can be seen through the mistakes and laws of the Netherlands and Belgium who legalized Euthanasia. Medically assisted suicide and Euthanasia use unethical ideology, and legalizationRead MoreAssisted Suicide : A Controversial Subject1224 Words   |  5 PagesRichard Cantos Professor: Clerc Intro to Government 11/20/2014 Assisted suicide is a controversial subject that welcomes death over life and presents many ethical dilemmas. We are frequently confronted with situations that raise ethical and moral questioning in our lifetimes. Traumatic events, as witnessed in the cases of Terri Schiavo, Brittany Maynard and Dax Cowart, often leave an impression on one s mortality and fate. Decisions may leave us questioning our moral, ethical, and spiritual beliefsRead MorePhysician Assisted Suicide1249 Words   |  5 Pagescourse with no interference from humans? For years, physicsians have not been allowed to help patients with suicide. Dr. Jack Kevorkian brought it to the forefront when he was arrested and senteced to over 60 years in prison even though the families of his patients showed their gratitude towards him. Recent laws in Montana, Oregon, and Washington have started the trend of Physican assisted suicide, but the U.S Attorney General’s office, are determined to prevent such laws from passing. In the followingRead MoreEuthanasia Is Painless Killing Of A Patient1435 Words   |  6 Pagesand painful disease or in an irreversible coma, also means to take a deliberate action with the express intention of ending a life to relieve intractable suffering. Some interpret as the practice of ending life in a mercy killing, assisted suicide, and soft slow suicide. There are two main classifications of euthanasia. There is Voluntary euthanasia which is conducted with consent. Where the patient decides for themselves to take the medication. Involuntary euthanasia is conducted without consentRead MoreMedical, Social And Ethical Reasons Essay1537 Words   |  7 PagesSince the development of medicine, people have requested doctors to end suffering through physician assisted suicide (PAS) (Boudreau 1). PAS refers to the practice in which physicians knowingly provide an individual with the means and/or knowledge to commit suicide, which includes counselling about medication and prescribing or supplying such drugs (Pereira 1). In my opinion, terminally ill patients should be allowed to end their lives through PAS because it affords the patients the choice of whether

Is the Claim of White Skin Privilege a Myth Free Essays

Is the Claim of White Skin Privilege a myth? As a whole, minorities from all religions, races, and sexualities have reached numerous high points in life. These high points have resulted in the establishment and entitlement to minorities having the same rights as whites. However, the right of blacks as in being equal is always up for debate. We will write a custom essay sample on Is the Claim of White Skin Privilege a Myth or any similar topic only for you Order Now Statistics show and prove that for every dollar a white household brings in, a black household only brings in 61 cents. Some people like to say that the white household is more skilled or has a higher education, however, this is not the case in most situations. These facts can be accurately traced back to the issue of discrimination against blacks. Most people agree that this type of discrimination is seen frequently but never spoken of. Why are there different meanings of this word for different races, if the foundation of our country established as everyone is equal? What do these rights actually mean, and if most people pay these rights absolutely no attention at all, why are these rights even in place? Focusing on the topics of white benefits, white denial, and a personal opinion, in this essay will I will explain to the reader the question, â€Å"Is the claim of white skin privilege a myth? Referring to the author from the first passage, Paul Kivel, â€Å" The reality of privilege is so embedded within the dominant group that to recognize and admit its reality is alien to most whites. † As a whole, white people in the United States do not recognize the fact that they have different right to this day. They just realize the effec ts that most benefit themselves. The benefits that white people receive are coveted by numerous people all over the globe. Many people around the world sacrifice their customs, beliefs, and languages, just so they can have these benefits. It has been proven that whites have thrived in many parts of life just for exploiting and manipulating people of color. Why would someone risk their own culture in order to obtain these privileges, is a question a lot of people ask? The only answer that makes any sense at all is for the people to be economically successful. Many people of color face difficult challenges and disadvantages over whites, simply because the person is white. With people of color having disadvantages, there comes, insults, discrimination, violence, harassment and economic and cultural exploitation. The majority of people of color have experienced at least one of these disadvantages in their lives, but most have grown to expect these disadvantages. Just because of these discriminations, a lot of colored people avoid a lot of situations at work and at school, and they are more likely to have fingers pointed at them for robberies, or have their car searched for some bogus reason. When a topic of race is brought up however, whites are quick to speak on it. Many dramatic emotions and feelings flow through the minds of white people as they are forced to talk about the existence of racism in today’s society. Black people are consistently accused of using or pulling the â€Å"race card†, but is something expected to be an outcome of it? According to Tom Wise, the black person’s reward is actually non-existent. Actually it is normally the white person who pulls a race card and gets a positive outcome from it. According to whites, the race card, â€Å"is something people of color play so as to distract the rest of us, or to gain sympathy. † However, studies show that people of color are actually normally scared to use the card in fear that they may be attacked, or simply ignored altogether. Wise accurately addresses the problem that people of color deal with. â€Å"Simply put: whites in every generation have thought there was no real problem with racism, irrespective of the evidence, and in every generation we have been wrong. † Over the course of many years, whites have actually become immune to the claims of racial inequality; they say that they have found cures for people of color and their problems. These cures are Drapetomania and Victim Syndrome. Drapetomania originated as a so-called â€Å"cure† to explain why slaves escaped from their loving masters. Masters were told that keeping a slave in a child state of mind, that he or she would in turn be loyal to there master. However whites also found a way to ignore the state of mind that the slaves were in, they stamp them with an illness and took it ay to far. This stamp is revealed over a century later in Washington State in a school district. People of color were falsely accused of having disorders, and also accused of being extremely paranoid. The actual name created for their â€Å"illness† is called the â€Å"victimization syndrome. Whites are quick to accuse blacks of victim mentality, due to the fact that they were being inspired by the Civil Rights Movement, and for the simple fact that they â€Å"want† to be considered targets for harassment. Whites to this day still refuse to discuss the situation and persistently deny the fact that it still exists even to this day. This could just be because whites themselves have never been through such an experience in thei r lives, and continue to cover it up with their own excuses and ignorance. I am white, however I do not agree with some of the racial situations that still exist in our society today. I as a white American am faced with a lot of the same challenges as a black individual, however I do strongly believe that everyone in this country from birth has equal opportunity. This is only because public education is free to everyone in America. Do I think that people of color experience difficulties in finding jobs, or moving up the cultural, corporate, or economical ladder? No, in this case I do not. Why you might ask? Well let me tell you this, every single one of my bosses at work are black, and how did they get there? They worked their way up the ladder. However, two of the managers I work for graduated from FAMU. So I do not agree with the statements that all blacks are faced with discrimination. However I do admit that some do experience discrimination, but I must say in those situations the person of color needs to keep their head high and prove that person wrong. Many people go far in life with self-motivation, without self-motivation not much can be accomplished, but use times when you are criticized or discriminated against to push you further. Tell yourself that no that is not how it is and aim to prove that person wrong and do not stop until you get there. I do believe that this country still needs to change I would love to see everyone in this country do well and everyone should strive to succeed. There are many opinions of this situation out there, and I do not believe that in my lifetime that this situation will be resolved but we cannot focus on the past we must move forward and strive for excellence. How to cite Is the Claim of White Skin Privilege a Myth, Papers