Chapter 262 - 256: The Bet_1

"These robots are quite something, how do they perform in space?"

"So-so, their efficiency definitely can’t match quadrupedal robots, but the upside is their lifespan should be pretty long, up to 10 years under intense activity. Humanoid robots do have their advantages."

At B-level Base, the Big Shot ran his hands over the prototype of the Warrior II, occasionally tugging at its joints to test their movement.

After the Number One of the Warrior I made its debut at the air show, the space agency involved with the Explorer series robots realized that New Yuan’s robot technology had made significant advancements.

Given the fluency of Warrior One, it definitely had AI assistance and pre-calculations. Simple one-to-one signal synchronization couldn’t account for such flexibility.

So, when Lin Ju returned to New Yuan to personally oversee the H2M coming off the line, a few people from the Aerospace Development Committee also hopped on a private flight to visit B-level Base.

The technology of the Warrior II Robot wasn’t particularly different from that of the Warrior I, except that it had been custom fabricated to be a validation machine for working in lunar conditions.

One common issue faced by machinery working on the Moon is the annoying electrically-charged lunar dust, and since moving joints can’t be completely sealed, they’re prone to gradual degradation over time, increasing the risk of malfunction.

The Explorer Series Robots faced similar risks, and the solutions were the traditional ones. After all, the explorers were intended to be cheap expendables, like little mining spiders. Making it through 400 workdays was considered a victory.

Although humanoid robots from the Warrior series were criticized for not being as efficient or flexible as the alien robots, their major advantage was that they could wear space suits.

The range of joint movement in human body structures is far less than that of alien robots like the Explorers, so slipping on a simple space suit could solve the problem of moon dust and significantly extend their operational life.

Increasing reliability somewhat accidentally, Lin Ju only heard about it from the engineers later on.

After Warrior II would come Warrior III and IV, multiple series of ground engineering prototypes would be tested before the official version is sent to the Moon.

The Big Shot’s gaze shifted to the Warrior I nearby. The robot, having absorbed a vast array of human motion samples, was attempting to walk in a chaotic manner like a child with polio, only to trip over itself and fall to the ground.

This thing, actually, the military was even more interested than the space agency.

Modern warfare had seen countless iterations, with classic army tactics like trench warfare, armored charges, and artillery barrages gradually being suppressed by various high-tech weapons, leaving only one fortress remaining: urban combat.

For example, on overseas peacekeeping missions to rescue refugees, locations are often within slums as confusing as mazes, with armed militants mixed in and impossible to identify, and carelessness could lead to suicide vests and boy scout attacks.

Commonly used drones and cruise missiles are limited in use to avoid collateral damage, and tanks and armored vehicles lack flexibility. Infantry still mainly lead the advance.

Technology is constantly advancing, but flesh is still flesh; a body that could have been killed by a stone axe a million years ago still can’t withstand modern threats.

No matter how well-trained the army, once entangled in urban combat, the exchange rate becomes incredibly heavy.

The robots currently in use are mostly track-based or micro-drones; they’re somewhat effective, but tactically flawed. Their flexibility still falls short, unable to keep up with the mobility of infantry, and they come with significant limitations.

Humanoid robots, however, are different. They can effectively act as indestructible comrades clearing mines for you, posing as real people to draw fire, and they can conveniently resupply arms and ammunition.

He explained the potential military use of the Warrior series to Lin Ju, who thought for a moment and then shook his head:

"The Warrior series is controlled autonomously by AI. If they lose connection in the front lines, it means entrusting the taking of life entirely to AI. Whether it’s a blessing or a curse, and how much impact it’d have, is hard to say;

actually, mechanical exoskeletons are best, but there are too many issues using them on Earth."

The Big Shot: "Your company is researching this too?"

"Of course." Lin Ju pulled out a tablet from within the base, searched for a moment, and brought up several rough sketches of "Exoskeleton Space Suits."

"Let’s talk about the Moon; with one-sixth of Earth’s gravity, it greatly reduces power consumption while allowing for quite heavy batteries to be loaded, yet the overall pressure is lighter than on Earth. In the next two to three years, it could be made practical.

On Earth, energy remains a huge issue, and ensuring 24 hours of basic activity is not feasible."

"Batteries, huh..."

The Big Shot thought that this was indeed a major problem, and space use comes with much higher costs than on the ground; even tens of millions would be considered cheap. Supplying the military with such costly hardware was not feasible. Ten robots or exoskeletons might even match the expenditure of an entire brigade.

But what did this have to do with sending people to the heavens? He wasn’t the one sending people to the great beyond, after all.

Speaking of sending people to the heavens, the Big Shot recalled how America had made quite the stir just the other day.

That John, seemingly wishing to emulate Kennedy, had actually referenced the Melody Sect’s "we choose to go to the moon" during a televised debate, spinning it into "we choose to go to Mars."

That was quite the spectacle. The competition between the Artemis and Dawn projects was quite different from the previous space race. The sense of honor wasn’t as emphasized as before, with both sides being more pragmatic. After all, the race for first had long been lost.

Landing on the Moon aims at its resources. After all, according to the scientific research progression of countries around the world, controlled nuclear fusion is guaranteed to be successful within this century, and it’s almost certain that it will happen before 2050. Thus, striving to secure helium-3 and rare earth elements on the Moon makes sense.

Mars is different. For one, there are no significantly attractive mineral resources currently known, and even if there were, unless they could grant immortality or miraculous ascension, they wouldn’t be worth the cost of transportation back to Earth.

Colonization is even more unnecessary. Sending 1,000 people to Mars to establish a permanent settlement is an effort that could easily accommodate 1 million more people on Earth. Earth’s population pressure hasn’t reached that point yet.

Clearly, John wanted to steer the situation back to that of the last century—a path where the rivalry was intense, with honor taking precedence over practicality in the Mars race.

But would he?

Thinking of this, the Big Shot mentioned it casually to Lin Ju, treating it as a mere curiosity.

Lin Ju: ...

For the kind of thing these rednecks were doing, he could only say it was expected, and his speech on landing on Mars had been met with the same attitude by people from all walks of life.

Besides, including John himself, no one believed he could win the election.

Even Lin Ju couldn’t be sure. The timeline had been disrupted for two years, and it was completely unpredictable whether John or Diana would end up in office; conventional wisdom still heavily favored Diana.

But... if he actually did win, he might really initiate a manned Mars competition.

The Big Shot wasn’t concerned, thinking that John was just there to pad the numbers, with no real chance of being elected. Diana, in charge of America, and China both followed a pragmatic approach.

But if John really pushed forward with the "God of War Ares" project to colonize Mars, would anyone support it?

The American public opinion was unclear, but the vast military-industrial complex, already whetted by the Artemis project, would certainly do so!

In the previous Moon race, after the Apollo program was terminated, a large number of small companies that had depended on it went bankrupt, and countless people lost their jobs. The military-industrial complex could never again feast on the immense funds, equivalent to an aircraft carrier battle group per launch, of the Saturn V.

In pursuit of profits, they promoted the even more costly Star Wars program and built the Space Shuttle, which cost a total of 200 billion US dollars. Back then, a monthly salary of two to three hundred US dollars could support a family of five, equivalent to several trillion today.

Afterward, the Union collapsed, but they still got the "Constellation" program approved to return to the Moon, with the Ares-1 rocket raking in 3 billion US dollars. Then came the economic crisis, and it was decisively axed by Xiaohei.

The Artemis project, launched under the space race, perfectly filled the military-industrial complex’s appetite, with nearly a hundred billion US dollars in funds just this year, enough for everyone to get a slice of the pie.

But the Artemis project had only six missions; what about after that?

What to do with the industries revived for the Artemis project, the employees, and most importantly, what would the complex do when they ran out of work?

The boss at that time would have to find a solution. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be at ease; the military-industrial complex would make a choice that suited their interests.

Colonizing Mars with a thousand people? Setting aside feasibility, it would definitely require a lot of money.

The expenses of the Artemis project might not even come close to the "tip" of the "God of War Ares" project. How enticing is that prospect?

To them, landing on Mars was a good thing!

So what if the Federal Reserve has to overwork its printing press, enriching the military-industrial complex’s wallet? It’s the common folk who bear the inflation resulting from printing money, but it’s a real increase in wealth for them.

And if the God of War Ares project did indeed take off, would NASA have to follow suit?

Lin Ju tentatively asked the Big Shot this question, to which the latter responded with an indifferent smile and a decisive gesture:

"Impossible, absolutely impossible. The American public may be impulsive, but the elites are rational; it’s bound to be Diana as the boss, how could it possibly be John?

Lin, you’re showing your youth here. This election, John is just a filler candidate, which is why he can speak freely without facing the consequences. It’s November 4th today, right? The election starts tomorrow, and results are out on the 8th; we’ll see the outcome soon enough."

"And, if America really does send humans to Mars..."

"Well," said the Big Shot, noticing Lin Ju wanted to ask more and stroking his chin thoughtfully:

"2024? That means sending humans to Mars within his eight-year term? Hmm... Even if the Artemis project lands on the Moon for the first time in 2019, a Mars probe must be launched in 2018, then unmanned spacecraft in 2020 to deliver supplies and the return vehicle, followed by the launch of the spacecraft in 2022. Only then could Mars be reached by 2024.

This would essentially mean conducting Moon and Mars missions simultaneously... such pressure... It’s not possible unless the subsequent missions of Artemis are postponed."

Lin Ju: "..."

Forget it, by then the March spacecraft will definitely be ready, able to serve as the Mars ship; I won’t be left behind, at the very least.

Besides, whether that beloved golden-haired boss will appear is not even certain yet.

"Big Shot, how about we make a bet? I bet John will win. Just a bet of one Explorer Two Robot scheduled for the December launch.

For you, if you lose, give me that special grade tea that you got from your superior, the one behind your bookshelf..."

Big Shot raised an eyebrow: "Smart kid, I’ll take that bet. If that blond guy becomes boss, I’ll brew it myself for you and throw in an extra liang!"

Lin Ju: Thank you for the tea, Big Shot!