FTL is not possible, but Dr. Jones proceeded to offer great insight with the words, “You would feel good about it.” There is a deep and profound reason why this film was made. It was made because I said to myself, “Hey, here we are in the year 2000. What can I do with this story?” To tell you the truth, the story of “Fire In The Sky” is very basic, to the point, and I always thought I would take the story in a different direction. To tell you the truth, I thought it would be fun to try and have the characters go to Earth and see what happens.” – Dr. Jones What would you do if you could travel to other worlds? Would you? Would you travel to places like Mars? What would it be like there? There is a good chance that we will be there before the end of the next century. As for the year of 2060, there is a good chance that I will be there by then, living in one of those little green houses up there. That would be great. That would be amazing. – Dr. Jones How might you help solve the energy crisis on Mars, if you had the chance? First thing we do when we get there, we put in a very thick, thick, thick roof, which would completely shield us from the sun. I would make a very thick sunshield to do that. And in our solar system, in terms of making a habitable place, there are too many variables. The moon’s orbit will put too much strain on the landings. We would have to build artificial bases. That would be the most ideal place for a human base, that I can tell you. Now, there are other places that are much better, you can’t do that. But for a base to stay up there for a long period of time, that would be a place to build a base, as an ideal site. – Dr. Jones Do you think that a team of astronauts could travel to Mars within the next 10 years? I think if we could do a fly-by of Mars, I think we should be able to land there. The trick is getting a person out of a spacecraft and bringing them into a place where they can survive. That’s the biggest problem. I am not a survival expert, but I am sure there is somebody who can give me that information. I hope we can get there before the year 2000. – Dr. Jones Thanks to Dr. Jones and the History Channel for the opportunity to get to know him. This post comes to you from the great state of Alaska, where there is a lot of cold, ice, fire, and adventure waiting for you. It’s the winter holidays, and that means that we’re also gearing up for a great start to 2011! In terms of content, I’m looking forward to the debut of some new video series, in the form of my video interview series. Starting off with something for my fellow Texans: The show will feature the interviewee(s) discussing the most popular TV show in the country (as reported by the folks at TV.com). If you have an idea for a subject you want me to discuss, leave a comment below, or let me know on Twitter! And of course, I’ll be posting on my other blog, SpaceCowboy.org, where I’ll be talking about science, space, technology, politics, and whatever else comes to mind. In fact, when I say “whatever comes to mind”, I really mean it. It will be up to the readers to make this the best year for The Daily Buzz since…well, since it first began. As for where my schedule will be in 2011, I have no idea. For the last six years, I’ve had a pretty busy schedule – some weeks I’ve worked three days a week, some weeks I’ve worked four days a week. It’s very hard for me to say how much I will be working in the coming year, but I’ll have to be writing at least three articles a week and having at least two or three videos to go with them. So look for great articles, videos, and photos from Alaska and beyond! And now I’m off to watch my wife’s homecoming game. We’ve got the Aggies going up against the University of Alaska-Fairbanks – another first for me! Go, Fighting Polar Bears! This post comes to you from the great state of Texas, which I will always think of as the best state to live in, unless you want to live on the moon or Mars or some other place that’s cold and full of fire and ice. At least I can watch the Astros while I’m wearing shorts and a tank top. But I digress. It’s almost time for the start of the new year, so I thought I’d do a quick little “state-of-the-nation” post. One of the great things about the Houston Astros is that, like me, they are Texas Rangers fans, but I don’t mean that like I’m from Texas, I’m a huge Astros fan. I love the Astros, love the game of baseball, and love that I live in the area that’s home to the Astros. The Houston Astros are an excellent ballclub, and I have the utmost respect for GM Ed Wade and the other people that make up that team. So here are ten things I’m most looking forward to in 2011, all of which are connected to the Astros: • The 2011 Houston Astros. It will be a new season for the Astros. They made a major addition in the off-season, signing catcher Matt Treanor to a three-year deal, and it seems like this will be a good team to watch. The Astros had the second-lowest payroll in baseball last season, and even with the new addition of Treanor, I expect that this team will still be one of the best in the National League. • The 2011 Astros schedule. As we all know, the Astros have a 162-game schedule. This year, the Astros will be playing all 29 teams in baseball (including two interleague games), with games starting on Opening Day (March 31). That’s a busy schedule, but I don’t think it’s a problem for a ballclub that’s already playing four times a week, and with the schedule set up so far, there will be plenty of day games. For the newbies that don’t know how baseball works, day games are more important than night games. A ballgame on day night doesn’t mean that the game is any less important than a night game – the day-night doubleheader means two ballgames in one day. • The 2011 Astros in the wild card race. The Astros were supposed to play in the wild card spot last season, but ended up winning the division. This year, there’s no question about which team has the best chance of winning the Wild Card, it’s the Astros. They are the team that has the best rotation in baseball, one that will give them a chance every day. Their bullpen also should be very solid. If they can build on that, they should be contenders to reach the playoffs. • The 2011 Astros in the playoffs. The Astros were in the playoffs in each of the past four years, winning their division in the Wild Card race each of the past three years, and reaching the ALCS last season. This year, it’s a little bit of a different story. However, if they can build on their strong rotation, they should have a good chance of reaching the playoffs and making some noise in the postseason. • The 2011 Astros in the new AL West. With the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim moving to Anaheim, and the Seattle Mariners moving to Safeco Field, the Astros will become the new number-one team in the AL West. They’re an excellent ballclub, and should be a very good team in 2011. • The Astros in 2010. The Astros started the 2010 season in the National League, and were expected to be a competitive team, but it’s always fun to see how the team plays when they move to their home field. They were the highest-scoring team in the NL, hitting .290, and the lowest-scoring team in the NL. A team that scored at that clip should have a strong season, but it seems like the Astros were somewhat overlooked last season. • The Astros in the new stadium. Although the Astros didn’t move to their new stadium until last year, it’s one of the best stadiums in baseball. The new Astros’ ballpark has great seats, great food, and great atmosphere. It’s a great place to watch a ballgame. The new ballpark was built in a location where fans can leave the downtown Houston traffic, and watch games on TV. Fans can go there with their families, and spend an evening in the ballpark. • The 2011 Houston Astros. I’m looking forward to another season with the Astros. They seem to have a strong core of players who should be very solid in 2011. They need to stay healthy, but this should be a good ballclub to watch in 2011. And as always, I hope that you will join me next month for more posts, videos, and photos from my new blog – SpaceCowboy.org. Thanks to the great state of Alaska for giving me a chance to spend the holidays in the frozen north. The Astros will be starting their 2010 season in the National League, which is their first season in the NL since the team moved to Houston in 1962. That first game of the year will be held in St. Louis, the home of the Cardinals. It’s fitting that the Astros will be opening in St. Louis, because the Cardinals share that field with the Astros. They’ll be making their first appearance at the new Busch Stadium. The Cardinals are playing in a new home, the downtown St. Louis Arch. It seems strange to go from a Cardinals field to a Cardinal field, and then have the ballclub go through a tunnel under the Arch to go to the new stadium. However, it’s a cool experience and I’m looking forward to seeing how the new ballclub does. The Astros will be playing the Cardinals for the first time in a Major League Baseball season since the Astros moved to Houston in 1962. The last time the Astros played the Cardinals was in the ALDS that year, when the Astros won their first pennant, beating the Cardinals on their home turf. So it’s cool to be going to St. Louis in 2010, and even cooler to be going to that first game of the season. Let’s hope that the Cardinals and Astros can renew the rivalry and do something special. Thanks to the great state of Alaska for giving me a chance to spend the holidays in the frozen north. On Saturday morning, I woke up, and after a great night of sleep, I got ready to start the adventure of a lifetime. I was traveling to the city of Haines, in the beautiful state of Alaska, to spend the holidays at one of my favorite places. My flight left from the Houston Astrodome around 1:00 a.m. on Friday, so I got a good nights sleep. I flew Delta for the most part, and was surprised to find out that the flight was going to the Alaska airport in Anchorage. Once I got on the plane, I was surprised to find out that I had one of the last first-class seats in the whole plane. That meant that I was going to be sitting next to one of the coolest guys I’ve ever met – John Wayne. The flight to Anchorage was uneventful, and I arrived in Anchorage around 9:00 a.m. I had to rent a car in Anchorage, and I ended up renting a Ford Focus for $35. If you’re planning on going to the Fairbanks area, I highly recommend renting a vehicle there. It’s a little more expensive than Anchorage, but you’ll end up driving on some of the most scenic roads on earth. After a four-hour drive from Anchorage to Haines, I arrived at my hotel around 1:00 p.m. I checked in, and then went out to eat at a pizza place called Domino’s. I had a really good meal at Domino’s – the best pizza that I’ve ever had in my life. After I had a bite to eat, I unpacked my luggage, and then went to the room to shower and get ready for a trip to Haines. I went out to the Haines Airport to pick up my rental car, and was surprised to see that I only had to pay for the car. I also bought a GPS system for the car, and then checked out of my hotel. I was feeling pretty good about myself, and I was going to see one of the most beautiful places on earth. The only thing I didn’t know was that the Fairbanks airport was in the Fairbanks airport, which means that I would be driving through downtown Fairbanks. I wasn’t really worried about it – I figured that I’d just be on a holiday to Alaska, and I didn’t know that there were a lot of hills in Alaska. The drive to Haines from the Fairbanks airport was about an hour and a half. I was on a road that seemed to be everywhere, and I was going from downtown Fairbanks to the Haines airport. It was the most amazing drive that I’ve ever seen, and I felt like I was in Alaska for the next few days. I got to the airport around 2:30 p.m., and picked up my rental car. It was a beautiful winter day, and I could see Mount McKinley on the horizon, which is probably the most popular sight in Alaska. The drive to Haines from the Fairbanks airport was about an hour and a half. I was on a road that seemed to be everywhere, and I was going from downtown Fairbanks to the Haines airport. It was the most amazing drive that I’ve ever seen, and I felt like I was in Alaska for the next few days. I didn’t know what to expect when I arrived in Haines, but I have to admit that it was a little tough to be driving through downtown Fairbanks in a Ford Focus, in the middle of winter. I’ve seen Fairbanks from the air, and it’s a beautiful place. I arrived at the Fairbanks airport around 3:00 p.m., and paid the $20 to rent a baggage cart. I had the cart for a few hours, and when the baggage car arrived, I went to the Haines Airport to pick up my rental car. When I picked up my car, I found out that it was actually an Infiniti. I couldn’t really tell when I was driving around Fairbanks, but there was snow on the ground, and a lot of ice. However, the city looked amazing in the winter, and it was going to be a great trip. When I checked into the Fairbanks airport, I was greeted by one of the funniest people that I’ve ever met. His name is Mike, and he’s a pilot who’s been flying the same airplane around the world for the past 30 years. I was kind of a little surprised to meet a pilot that could remember a lot of information about airplanes, and he was very knowledgeable. He knew all the airports that we were going to visit, and gave us a little history of each. After I went through Customs, I got a map of the cities that we were going to visit, and we checked in at the hotel around 6:00 p.m. I didn’t really feel like going to the grocery store to buy food, so I just bought some chocolate chips from a little grocery store near our hotel. It was a bit of a boring night, but we’d go on a long journey to Haines, and I was excited to get started. I’d gotten into the Fairbanks airport around 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, and checked in with the rental car, but there was no guarantee that they would give me a car that had seat belts. I figured that I’d have to rent a car that didn’t have seat belts, and that didn’t bother me. Mike had driven us from the airport, and we were going to stay in a cabin in Haines for a few days. It was going to be cold, but I knew that I was going to love it. I checked out of the hotel around 11:00 p.m., and went out to eat at a pizza place called The Fairbanks Pizza Co. The pizza wasn’t as good as Domino’s, but it was still pretty good. I got home around 1:00 a.m., and I could see all the stars in the night sky. It was a cold night, and I really enjoyed being in Fairbanks. I didn’t feel like going to the grocery store to buy food, so I just bought some chocolate chips from a little grocery store near our hotel. It was a bit of a boring night, but we’d go on a long journey to Haines, and I was excited to get started. The weather was going to be beautiful, but it was also going to be cold. There was a big blizzard that was going on, and the airport was closed due to the weather conditions. I wasn’t going to take that chance, so I went out to eat at a pizza place called The Fairbanks Pizza Co. The pizza wasn’t as good as Domino’s, but it was still pretty good. I got home around 1:00 a.m., and I could see all the stars in the night sky. It was a cold night, and I really enjoyed being in Fairbanks. My flight from Fairbanks to Anchorage was only going to be about an hour and a half, so I decided to get up and go back to the Fairbanks airport to check out my car. I went back to the Fairbanks airport around 7:00 a.m., and it was snowing pretty bad. When I got to the Fairbanks airport, I couldn’