GPS disruptions and your DNA

While it probably didn't affect you, me, or our respective GPS receivers, a solar flare/eruption back in December probably messed with somebody who was doing some surveying work that day (and they probably couldn't just call a Solar Flare Mulligan...). But what really caught my eye in the article was the seeming common sense in contrast to many other irrational exuberances of technology dependence.

"... society cannot become overly reliant on technology without an awareness and understanding of the effects of future space weather disruptions," said Anthea Coster, Ph.D., MIT Haystack Observatory.

... and golly, what will be do if global warming extends into space and starts [gasp!] affecting space weather? Will Al Gore make another movie - this time about how many times he's given a presentation about Universal Warming?

Seriously though... in related irrational exuberance, now that the human genome has been sequenced, we blaze forward into a new world swimming in biotechnology. The question becomes: will we be able to maintain privacy and not have genetic prejudice in society, the workplace, the health care system, or the courts. Often, science and technology advances faster than policy and law do. Problematic, but understandable - speculating about the potential vs. actual difficulties and then codifying in law, while uncertain of the result, is a bit dodgy.

Perhaps this is where the imagination of science fiction comes into play... I mean, what exactly DO you do about manned space exploration when the length of the trip is measured in years? Why, one solution is to train astronaut families, right? Stable family units that are a self-contained emotional support system, with deep-seated loyalty among the crew already built in? Obviously, one thing we've learned is to not have treacherous non-family member Dr. Smiths on the crew. And be careful of robots that might temporarily go evil too. And you definitely gotta be careful about accidental astronaut love triangles among the crew too. 'Cause we all know how that ends up: space diapers and pepper spray.