[extropy-chat] Re: Are dwarfs better for long duration spaceflight?

[Mike Lorrey]

--- Eugen Leitl <eugen at leitl.org> wrote:

> On Mon, Aug 29, 2005 at 10:20:59PM +0100, ben wrote:
> > As far as i'm aware, dwarfism is a medical condition, not just a 
> > variation of height. I think there are at least potential cardiac 
> > problems, possibly other things too. Dwarfs tend to live shorter
> lives 
> > than most people. I think it would be inadvisable to send dwarfs
> (isn't 
> > it 'dwarves', or is that just in fantasy stories?) into space.
> Would 
> > they be able to hack the training?. I have a feeling that it might
> not 
> > be a good idea to subject a dwarf to 6g or whatever they do in
> those 
> > centrifuges.
> 
> Lucia Zarate was the smallest woman ever recorded. At her birth in
> 1864, she weighed only eight ounces and was seven inches long. By
> adulthood she was less than twenty inches tall and weighed less than
> five pounds. She was described as bright and animated. She first came
> to the US at twelve years old and was one of the highest-paid dwarves
> of all time. Lucia died of exposure when the train she was on became
> stalled in the Rocky Mountains during a heavy snowstorm. 
> 
>
http://www.google.com/search?hs=kAK&hl=en&lr=&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&q=lucia+zarate&btnG=Search
> 
> http://www.primordialdwarfism.com/fulltext-1.pdf
> 
> It would be truly remarkable if she had a normal IQ in such
> a small package, though.

True, but such really isn't necessary for modern spacecraft.
Particularly wrt russian designs, spacecraft treat crew primarily as
passengers with a large degree of automation.

Mike Lorrey
Vice-Chair, 2nd District, Libertarian Party of NH
Founder, Constitution Park Foundation:
http://constitutionpark.blogspot.com
Personal/political blog: http://intlib.blogspot.com

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