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Articles

Earth to Russell

Chad Trainer on the limits of Russell’s views on space exploration.

Bertrand Russell was one of the best at chronicling and lampooning history’s opponents of science. Surprisingly, though, he himself expressed opposition to the exploration of space. In this article I’ll describe and critique the four lines of argument Russell employed in attacking the space program.

Bertrand Russell regularly noted the drawbacks of living in the past, both as a danger in old age and as an obstacle to an entire culture’s progress. He wrote much about the merits of scientific exploration and the importance of realizing the planet Earth’s minute place in the cosmos.

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