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Astronaut Scott Kelly shares life lessons By Madeleine Afonso and Claire LaLiberte STAFF WRITERS
The mysteries of space have captivated the human race for centuries, driving us to learn and explore. Since Yuri Gagarin first reached orbit in 1961, over 600 people have ventured beyond Earth’s atmosphere. One of them is Captain Scott Kelly, who the Wisconsin Union Directorate Distinguished Lecture Series (WUD-DLS) welcomed to campus on Tuesday. Kelly logged an impressive 520 days of spaceflight with NASA — the fourth-longest of any American astronaut. Three hundred and forty of those days were spent consecutively during his Year in Space, a joint endeavor between NASA and the Russian space program (Roscosmos) that sent Kelly and his “Russian brother from another mother” — cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko — to
the International Space Station together for nearly a full year. Kelly described the perspective shift that comes with being in space, saying he saw “that we’re all on this planet together without political borders — you don’t see those from space. And you understand that big problems take cooperation.” One’s worldview changing after going to space is commonly referred to as the “overview effect” and is something that many astronauts, including Kelly himself, have discussed. Scientifically, Kelly’s year in space provided a unique opportunity to study the effects of longterm space travel on the human body — he has an identical twin, Mark, also a former astronaut. This opened the door for NASA’s landmark twins study, measuring the physical and psychological changes experienced by Scott and using Mark as a sort of control.
The brothers are genetically almost identical, which allowed NASA to easily observe changes in Kelly’s genome over time. The study reported changes in gene expression and telomere length, which are the ends of chromosomes that tend to shorten as people age. NASA predicted the telomeres would shorten at a faster rate while in space, but results showed they lengthened. “My first reaction was ‘That’s really weird’,’’ Kelly told the Daily Cardinal. “We found out later it was due to radiation [exposure].” Many beneficial findings regarding human health and genetics came out of the study, and Kelly emphasized that for our future, spaceflight and its accompanying research are worth the investment. “I think we’re getting to the point where, hopefully, we’ll see some really exciting developments in genetics,” Kelly said. “But are
we going to cure cancer from spaceflight? Probably not. Will we get other things, [like] scientific discoveries? Yes.” Kelly deemed it “a privilege to be able to fly in space, especially when you’re doing it at the expense of the taxpayer.” He expressed his belief that “with that privilege comes an obligation to talk about it.” As a result of this principle, Kelly shares his experience in public speaking engagements all across the country, relating the lessons he learned in space to people’s everyday lives. The former astronaut explained how he applied to the program with NASA completely on a whim, as he was focused on a career as a Navy pilot at the time. To his surprise, Kelly was accepted in the same class as his brother, making them the first relatives to both be selected to NASA. He then began working for three years to understand the complicated and
sophisticated machinery that is a NASA spacecraft. “I had this idea that taking risks, being willing to make mistakes and at times willing to fail, is what separates people that are really successful,” Kelly said in his talk. He described difficult risks and failures in school and with the Navy that preceded his remarkable achievements with NASA. Kelly emphasized how far he had come from being “the kid that couldn’t do his homework” to “getting ready to fly in space for the first time as the first person in [my] class of 35 other people.” Kelly attributed his successes to his years of hard work and the many risks he’d taken with the understanding that he may fail, as well as people skills that he deemed crucial for living with others in space. He encouraged his audience to take on the same mindset in their own lives.
Legislature takes no action on abortion referendum proposal By Gavin Escott and Zoe Kukla STAFF WRITERS
Republicans in the Legislature swiftly shut down Gov. Tony Evers’ latest bid to overhaul Wisconsin’s 1849 abortion ban on Tuesday morning, gaveling in and out of a special session in seconds with no debate. Evers called the special session in a speech on Sept. 23. He asked the Legislature to consider a state constitutional amendment that would have allowed Wisconsinites to change state law through referendum, specifically Wisconsin’s 1849 near-total abortion ban that makes no exceptions in cases of rape and incest. At the time, Evers said this would enable Wisconsin voters to take on abortion themselves. During his announcement, he cited Sen. Ron Johnson, who previously said the legality of abortion in the state should be up to Wisconsinites, according to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. However, Republicans in both the Assembly and Senate refused to consider the Governor’s proposal Tuesday. Senate President Chris Kapenga (R-Delafield) and Assembly speaker pro tempore Tyler August (R-Lake Geneva) each opened and closed their respective sessions in seconds, even as August was met with shouts of “no” and “coward” from multiple representatives on the floor. Evers expressed his disappointment in a statement Tuesday. “The people of this state should have the right to take a stand at the ballot box. But true to form, Wisconsin Republicans have refused to act,” he said. “That’s not leadership. And that’s certainly not democracy.” Both Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) and Senate Majority Leader
Devin Lemahieu (R-Oostburg) dismissed the special session as a “political stunt” meant to distract from the governor’s failings in a joint statement on Sept. 23. “Governor Evers would rather push his agenda to have abortion available until birth than talk about his failure to address rising crime and runaway inflation caused by his liberal D.C. allies,” Vos and LeMahieu said. “Hopefully, voters see through this desperate political stunt.” Though most Republican lawmakers were absent from Tuesday’s special session, numerous Democrats showed up in protest. Rep. Francesca Hong (D-Madison), who represents most University of WisconsinMadison students living south and east of campus, told the Daily Cardinal that Republicans’ refusal to bring the vote to the floor demonstrated a disconnect with the public. “We have a dysfunctional government when the leader who has the power refuses even to debate an issue that many Wisconsinites — the majority of Wisconsinites — want us to take action on,” Hong said. “For the governing body — the body with power — to not even debate the issue is cowardly and un-Wisconsinite.” Hong and fellow Democratic Rep. Robyn Vining (D-Wauwatosa) both attended Tuesday’s session in pink attire, with Hong wearing a pink Planned Parenthood hat and Vining in hot pink pants. Hong said the attire represented their solidarity with abortion rights activists. “Abortion is healthcare. And everyone that we love, and someone that you love, is going to need an abortion someday,” Hong said. “It’s important that they know that leaders in their government also reflect
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their interests.” Following the special session, Evers joined Lt. Gov. candidate and current Rep. Sara Rodriguez (D-Brookfield) for a rally outside the Capitol. Evers, Rodriguez and other abortion rights activists gave speeches where they called attention to reproductive rights and the importance of the November election. “I believe people deserve a voice since the Republicans have failed them in this building,” Evers said. The governor also underscored further consequences for the state’s colleges
and universities if Wisconsin’s 1849 ban is allowed to stand. “If this continues, our [universities and institutions] accreditation to prepare OB/ GYNs will be taken away from our medical schools here,” Evers said. Abortion training is required for obstetrics-gynecology training, but religious and moral opt-outs are available for students who seek them, according to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Evers concluded the rally by urging Wisconsinites to take to the polls if they want to see changes in the legislation.
“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”