How plans for a trip to Mars bring home our dependence on Earth’s environment

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – At a recent workshop at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to discuss health risks associated with a potential manned mission to Mars, it became clear just how vitally we humans depend on our Earth’s environment.

“Those discussions forced us to think about how our physiology depends on the attributes of our home planet. The question about what to include in the Mars transport vehicle is a wake-up call for those insensitive to the elimination of biodiversity and poorly conceived urbanization globally,” said Ted Smith, Ph.D., deputy director of the Christina Lee Brown Envirome Institute at the University of Louisville. Smith also is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board for NASA’s Translation Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH) and organized the workshop.

At the next Beer with a Scientist, Smith will discuss what planning for long-range space travel reveals about the need to preserve our home planet’s health for our own survival.

Smith’s talk will begin at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, June 12, at Holsopple Brewing, 8023 Catherine Lane. A 30-minute presentation will be followed by an informal Q&A session.

Admission is free. Purchase of beer or other items is not required but is encouraged. Organizers encourage Beer with a Scientist patrons to drink responsibly.

UofL cancer researcher Levi Beverly, Ph.D., created the Beer with a Scientist program in 2014 as a way to bring science to the public in an informal setting. At these events, the public is invited to enjoy exactly what the title promises:  beer and science.

Upcoming Beer with a Scientist events:

July 17:  Jason Chesney, M.D., Ph.D., will discuss recent advances in using our own immune cells to cure cancer.

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