# What has NASA ever done for me? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 13, 2012, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339 "2012-08-13T02:38:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/1 "2012-08-13T02:38:54Z")
[A page that lists off things NASA has developed that have had a direct impact on life on Earth](http://wtfnasa.com/): > [@](#): > > Rockwell International employed NASTRAN to identify high stress areas in valve products and the mechanical configurations necessary to accommodate them. Also used in seismic and vibration analysis of valves to establish design adequacy under severe conditions, such as those that might occur in an earthquake. Program offers significant savings in analysis effort compared with other analytical approaches. > [@](#): > > Software employing NASA-invented tools to help commercial airlines fly shorter routes and help save millions of gallons of fuel each year, reducing costs to airlines while benefiting the environment. > [@](#): > > NASA’s satellite series called GOES makes weather forcasting websites (ie [weather.com](http://weather.com) and accu-weather) possible > > …For instance, GOES-East and GOES-West provide coverage of much of the Western Hemisphere, from the western coast of Africa to the West Pacific, and the Arctic to the Antarctic. The European Space Agency’s Meteosat satellite provides coverage of Europe and Africa… And so on. It’s a fairly long list of things. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/2 "2012-08-13T03:05:14Z")
All right, but apart from the satellite imaging, weather forecasting, fuel conservation, sanitation, medicine, education, wine, public order, irrigation, roads, the fresh water system and public health… ---
**Author:** ![Max\_the\_Immortal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Max\_the\_Immortal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_the_Immortal)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/3 "2012-08-13T03:43:47Z")
That reminds me of [this Neil deGrasse Tyson clip](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFO2usVjfQc). ---
**Author:** ![sisu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@sisu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sisu)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/4 "2012-08-13T04:02:29Z")
I love my Velcro shoes… ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/5 "2012-08-13T04:05:40Z")
I still want my personal jet pack and a decent ray gun. ---
**Author:** ![Docta\_G](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/2bfe46/32.png) [@Docta\_G](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Docta_G)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/6 "2012-08-13T04:17:07Z")
I fucking hate Tang. The drink, that is. ---
**Author:** ![sisu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@sisu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sisu)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/7 "2012-08-13T05:04:38Z")
> [@Docta\_G](#): > > I fucking hate Tang. The drink, that is. We used to have this as kids and dad would always tell us this is what astronauts drank, I used to think bugger that I want some Coke! ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/8 "2012-08-13T08:19:46Z")
> [@sisu](#): > > We used to have this as kids and dad would always tell us this is what astronauts drank, I used to think bugger that I want some Coke! Newton’s Third Law does present a slight [difficulty](http://www.myconfinedspace.com/wp-content/uploads/tdomf/88987/Bloom%20County.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 9:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/9 "2012-08-13T09:05:42Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Newton’s Third Law does present a slight [difficulty](http://www.myconfinedspace.com/wp-content/uploads/tdomf/88987/Bloom%20County.jpg). 😃 ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/10 "2012-08-13T14:46:09Z")
> [@Max\_the\_Immortal](#): > > That reminds me of [this Neil deGrasse Tyson clip](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFO2usVjfQc). That man is my new biggest personal hero. I could listen to him talk all day. He’s a Carl Sagan for the 21st century. He’s so passionate about what he does, and about getting other people excited about astronomy, space exploration, and science in general. Neil deGrasse Tyson for president 2016! ---
**Author:** ![stpauler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@stpauler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stpauler)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/11 "2012-08-13T14:52:09Z")
> [@sisu](#): > > I love my Velcro shoes… [Yes, but…](http://spinoff.nasa.gov/spinfaq.htm#spinfaq12) > [@](#): > > Are Tang, Teflon, and Velcro NASA spinoffs? > > Tang, Teflon, and Velcro, are not spinoffs of the Space Program. General Foods developed Tang in 1957, and it has been on supermarket shelves since 1959. In 1962, when astronaut John Glenn performed eating experiments in orbit, Tang was selected for the menu, launching the powdered drink’s heightened public awareness. NASA also raised the celebrity status of Teflon, a material invented for DuPont in 1938, when the Agency applied it to heat shields, space suits, and cargo hold liners. Velcro was used during the Apollo missions to anchor equipment for astronauts’ convenience in zero gravity situations. Although it is a Swiss invention from the 1940s, it has since been associated with the Space Program. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/12 "2012-08-13T15:06:43Z")
Great societies tend to do things that don’t have a direct impact on the masses, but are inexorably part of such societies. To not want a space program because it costs a $hit load of money and doesn’t directly impact you is unfortunate, because such great things are what come with such incredibly diverse and progressive societies. ---
**Author:** ![Kenm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bc79bd/32.png) [@Kenm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kenm)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/13 "2012-08-13T15:18:14Z")
> [@](#): > > Velcro was used during the Apollo missions to anchor equipment for astronauts’ convenience in zero gravity situations. Although it is a Swiss invention from the 1940s, it has since been associated with the Space Program. Nonsense. It was sold by a Vulcan to a seedy Terran businessman to cover the cost of some kid’s college education in Pennsylvania in the '50s, when four Vulcans found themselves trapped on Earth after their spaceship failed to proceed, as detailed in Enterprise. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/14 "2012-08-13T15:37:23Z")
Among other things, NASA as the embodiment of our space program may have helped stop a cold war from becoming a hot one. I’m very happy we had a way to compete with the Soviet Union in some way other than arming ourselves to the hilt. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2012, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-nasa-ever-done-for-me/631339/15 "2012-08-13T15:40:37Z")
> [@Kenm](#): > > Nonsense. It was sold by a Vulcan to a seedy Terran businessman to cover the cost of some kid’s college education in Pennsylvania in the '50s, when four Vulcans found themselves trapped on Earth after their spaceship failed to proceed, as detailed in Enterprise. Anyone who takes Enterprise as canon has either never seen “[A Night in Sickbay](http://sfdebris.com/videos/startrek/e130.asp)” or has refused to accept it for the mind-crushing piece of festering idiocy that it is. The only canon Enterprise should be accepted into is the one that shoots it into an orbit around Neptune that decays over that planet’s least attractive region.