Crossroads in space: Humanization: Man or machine?

By all indications, the human race has reached a critical threshold in space. Man´s first quarter century in space has been characterized by the establishment of unmanned probes and ephemeral manned outposts primarily by two pioneer nations, the United States and the Soviet Union. Now, many of the world´s nations, private entrepreneurs, and the military establishments of the two superpowers are active in space. And in its silver anniversary year, the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration is about to ask for a permanently manned space station. So mankind has reached a series of crossroads in space in many different arenas, and the paths chosen during these next several years will determine where we are when NASA turns 50 in the year 2008. Among the critical questions are these, broached in separate articles in this section: