Finally it is done Deal!!!

I think this will start new era in space age.. powered by American ingenuity and Capitalism!! I hope it will kick start another round of innovation in space age which will have obvious benefits to US and the world in general...

Amazing win for all the Earthlings!!!

At the same time it also reminds me of movie "Avatar" where private entities go to another extreme to extract natural resources from our other parts of solar system. I hope I won't be alive to see that and next generation will be intelligent to not let it happen!!

This is great news in terms of win for entire humanity!! At the same time it also reminds me of abject poverty issues in majority of world's population.. I wish private sector would have benefited by some program where they could benefit out of some kind of system if they are able to get rid of poverty as well.. I am sure, spread of knowledge and power of internet will continue to evolve and sooner or later remove extreme poverty from planet earth!!

Cheers!!!!

A HISTORIC MOMENT FOR COMMERCIAL SPACEFLIGHT

NASA HAS COMPANY

Musk’s SpaceX becomes the first private firm to conduct a supply mission in orbit, marking a new era where business heads to stars

By Marcia Dunn

Associated Press

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The private company SpaceX made history Friday with the docking of its Dragon capsule to the International Space Station, the most impressive feat yet in turning routine spaceflight over to the commercial sector.

It marked the first time a business enterprise delivered a supply ship to the space station.

“There’s so much that could have gone wrong, and it went right,” said an elated Elon Musk, the billionaire behind SpaceX and the CEO of Tesla.

“This really is, I think, going to be recognized as a significantly historical step forward in space travel — and hopefully the first of many to come.”

SpaceX still has to get its Dragon back next week with a load of science gear; the retro bellshaped capsule is designed to splash down into the ocean, in the style of the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo programs. But Friday was the crucial step, Musk noted, and NASA agreed the next SpaceX mission could come as early as September. After a three-day flight from Cape Canaveral, the Dragon closed in on the space station as two control centers — NASA in Houston and SpaceX in Hawthorne — worked in tandem. A problem with the capsule laser-tracking system prompted SpaceX controllers to order a temporary retreat, but the problem quickly was resolved.

NASA astronaut Donald Pettit used the space station’s 58-foot robot arm to snare the gleaming white Dragon as the two craft soared 250 miles above Australia, a day after a practice flyby.

“Looks like we’ve got us a dragon by the tail,” Pettit announced once he locked onto Dragon’s  docking mechanism.  

1HOLDING STEADY

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2SNATCHED FROM SPACE

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3DOCKING SUCCESS!

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NASA PHOTOS VIA REUTERS 

The SpaceX Dragon commercial cargo craft is seen with part of the International Space Station in the foreground, marking a first for a private business.

NASA’s controllers applauded. In contrast, their SpaceX counterparts — including Musk — lifted their arms in triumph and jumped out of their seats to exchange high-fives. 

The company’s youthfullooking employees — the average age is 30 — were still in a frenzy when Musk took part in a televised news conference a couple hours later. They screamed with excitement as if it were a pep rally and chanted, “E-lon, E-lon, E-lon,” as the 40-year-old Musk, wearing a black athletic jacket with the SpaceX logo, described the day’s events. Alcohol was banned from the premises during the crucial flight operation, Musk noted, “but now that things are good, I think we’ll probably have a bit of champagne and have some fun.” The crowd roared in approval. 

Although cargo hauls have become routine, Friday’s linkup was significant in that an individual company pulled it off. That chore was previously reserved for a small, elite group of government agencies.

Not only that, the reusable SpaceX Dragon is designed to safely return items, a huge benefit that disappeared with NASA’s space shuttles. It is the first U.S. craft to visit the station since the final shuttle flight last summer. 

“I think you know it, but you made history today,” NASA Administrator Charles Bolden told the space station astronauts and everyone else involved in Friday’s docking. “It was an effort that will revolutionize the way we carry out space exploration.” 

NASA provided seed money for SpaceX — $381 million going into Tuesday’s launch, a small portion of the more than $1 billion that the company has invested in the effort. 

Two hours after the capture, the crew attached the Dragon to the space station as the congratulations poured in. 

“Everyone who is working to push forward the space frontier recognizes that such a mission is a massive challenge, and I join the world in lauding this important accomplishment,” said Richard Branson of Virgin Galactic, a space tourism company that is holding a seat for Musk aboard its Space-ShipTwo. 

“Nearly 43 years after we first walked on the moon, we have taken another step in demonstrating continued American leadership in space,” said Apollo 11’s Buzz Aldrin, the second man to step onto the moon. 

The capsule — 19 feet tall and 12 feet across — is carrying 1,000 pounds of supplies on this unprecedented test flight. The crew starts unpacking Saturday and will have just under a week to unload the food, clothes and other contents. 

After this test flight, SpaceX — officially known as Space Exploration Technologies Corp. — has a contract to make a dozen delivery runs. It is one of several companies vying for NASA’s cargo business and a chance to launch Americans from U.S. soil. 

Rival Orbital Sciences Corp. is shooting for its own supply run by year’s end. 




NASA VIA REUTERS 

Officials clap in NASA’s International Space Station control room as the Dragon docks successfully. 

Market Economy at Work

This front page news in our local SJ Mercury News is one of the best example of how Market Economy works best under most of the circumstances. Which is one of the best thing about this country. We all agree, no single system is perfect. However, overall, there is no comparison of true market forces at work.

It is possible that these claims below might be exaggerated but it still shows that Public or Government mostly breeds in-efficiency which ultimately results in higher costs to the public which owns them. Whatever can be privatized should be..

Off-course, this is kind of skewed but reality is, that once huge gap in Public and Private universities cost is shrinking. This gap was earlier due to huge funding from State to and free capital to bootstrap these public universities. Due to budgetary constraints, this free money is going away and is resulting in reality hitting these universities. Instead of cleaning their mess, public universities are mostly resorting to fees increase.. thereby, decreasing gap between them and private universities.

In my view, these public universities should be forced to operate as "for profit" and whatever aid they are suppose to get should be given at the end to students directly. In that case, their fees wil shoot up further and they will be forced to weed out their inefficiencies..

Here is complete coverage..


Fees ‘pricing out’ middle class?

Rising public school costs putting the squeeze on many of state’s students

By Matt Krupnick

mkrupnick@bayareanewsgroup.com 

The impossible has happened: Harvard is now thousands of dollars cheaper than Cal State East Bay for middle-income California students.

So is Princeton. And Williams . And Yale.

Top private schools, with their generous aid, have been among the most affordable options for poor students for a few years, but rising tuition has only recently sent California State University and University of California prices shooting past the Harvards and Yales for middle-class students.

The revelation comes as thousands of college and university students on Monday march to protest budget cuts in Sacramento that have forced up tuition and shaken campuses.

It’s almost unthinkable in a state that once prac­tically gave away college educations. 

“We are coming close to pricing out many of our middle-class students,” said Rhonda Johnson, Cal State East Bay’s financial-aid director. “Now we’re seeing a disadvantaged middle class.” College-cost calculators illuminate the dramatic shifts. Consider a family of four — married parents, a highschool senior and a 14-yearold child — making $130,000 a year. 

With typical aid, the family should expect to pay nearly $24,000 for a Cal State freshman’s tuition, on-campus room and board, supplies and other expenses. At Harvard? Just $17,000, even though its stated annual tuition is $36,305. 

The same family would pay about $33,000 for a freshman year at UC Santa Cruz. UC Berkeley, which recently followed the lead of private colleges by boosting aid for middle-class families, would cost $19,500. 

“It does sort of put you in an awkward spot,” said Dean Kulju, financial-aid director of the 400,000-student Cal State system, which has more than doubled tuition since 2007. 

It is more than awkward, one student said. 

“That’s ridiculous,” said Fresno State senior Chucho Mendoza, who said he has spent seven years in college because he also works to support his parents and siblings. “Students think they’re getting a pretty good deal here,” he said. “I think they’re in denial.” 

Add to the equation that students at smaller private colleges often can graduate sooner, saving thousands of dollars over California’s public universities, where cuts have made it difficult to get all required classes in four years. 

Families and students considering Cal State “do have to think of it as a fiveyear proposition, at least,” said Vicki O’Day, a Menlo Park college admissions consultant. 

Public university leaders say they are frustrated that budget cuts have sent tuition soaring. And so are state and federal lawmakers. 

President Barack Obama announced in January a plan to force colleges to slow tuition increases or risk losing student aid. And California Assembly Speaker John Perez recently proposed scholarships for students whose families make up to $150,000. 

The 10-campus UC system has tried to help lowand middle-income students, covering tuition — but not room and board — for those whose families make less than $80,000. 

UC President Mark Yudof said the university is still a better deal than all but the wealthiest private colleges. 

“If you move away from the Harvards and Stanfords of the world, I’m not sure it’s as affordable at other private schools,” he said. “I hate to lose any students, but how many students can go to Stanford?” 

Aid at UC Berkeley 

UC Berkeley, where Chancellor Robert Birgeneau has repeatedly voiced worry about middle-class students, this year will offer scholarships for students whose families make up to $140,000. 

At UC, “we hear from students who say, ‘I was accepted at Cal, but such-andsuch private university offered this aid. Can Cal match that?’” said Anne De Luca, UC Berkeley’s acting admissions director. 

College applicants are often surprised to discover that the state’s public universities no longer are the most affordable options. 

“That’s what we’ve been told our entire lives, since we were kids.” said Greg Washington, a Cal State Fullerton student and president of the California State Student Association. 

Stanford is spending twice as much on financial aid this year as it did in 2009, due in part to a 2008 decision to defray tuition costs for families making up to $200,000. A family making $130,000 would pay $25,900 while wealthier families pay nearly $57,000 a year. 

Few schools have done more than Princeton to discount prices for middle-class students. In 2001, it boosted scholarships and removed parents’ home equity from the financial-aid equation. 

Fewer than a quarter of Princeton students graduate with debt, according to U.S. News & World Report, the lowest number in the country. That compares with 40 percent at Cal State East Bay, 45 percent at San Jose State and 41 percent at UC Berkeley, says the Oakland-based Project on Student Debt. 

“When you look at the state schools, they most likely do not have the private resources that we do,” said Robin Moscato, Princeton’s financial-aid director. Its $17.1billion endowment far outweighs UC Berkeley’s $3.1 billion. 

UC and Cal State campuses still compare favorably with less-selective private schools, where endowments are smaller and relatively meager aid usually is targeted for low-income students. 

At Saint Mary’s in Moraga, for example, a family making $130,000 will pay about $36,000 for a freshman year. 

Shocking turnaround 

At UC, for the first time ever, students are paying more for their education than California is, a shocking turnaround for the state that essentially invented the modern public university. 

Now students like Amir Salehzadeh, who applied to transfer from Las Positas in Livermore to one of several UC campuses, are struggling to make it work. 

For some, private colleges are more of a bargain

$19,500

Full price $32,634

UC Berkeley

For California’s middle class, tuition costs at the state’s once inexpensive public universities have soared past those at some of the country’s top private colleges. Here is a comparison of some universities’ approximate costs, after financial aid, of tuition, on-campus room and board, books and other expenses for a freshman whose parents’ gross income is $1-30,000. The estimates are from each school’s online price calculator.

Stanford

$25,900

Full price

$56,750

Harvard

$17,000

Full price

$56,750

WHAT A DEAL

Private colleges

Princeton

$19,830

Full price

$55,880

Cal State East Bay

$23,691

Full price $23,691

NO LONGER A BARGAIN

Public colleges

San Jose State

$23,557

Full price $23,557

DAVE JOHNSON/BAY AREA NEWS GROUP

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