NASA — For encouraging the developers and enable them to build the applications for space explorations rapidly, International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) has decided to provide Bluemix platform for the three-day international code-a-thon NASA Space Apps Challenge.
It is an international event where the developers, students, educators, scientists, and entrepreneurs come together to build different kinds of applications, hardware, software and develop platform solutions and data visualization. Augmenting the space exploration efforts, thereby solving global challenges by contributing to improving the life on the earth is the main aim behind the organization of this event.
The year 2015 will witness more than 10,000 developers participating across 136 cities in the virtual challenge event through the online medium. The developers are expected to use the available data for designing various solutions to combat the 35 different types of challenges that span across four categories including humans, robotics, earth and outer space. IBM will be helping the participants by leveraging the available data for them.
How important are Space Explorations?
Many people are of the opinion that space exploration is a waste of time as well as money and understandingly so because around 16 billion tax dollars are spent by NASA on space exploration-related projects. But you must understand that the money invested in such projects never goes waste.
Surprisingly, many gadgets that we commonly use in our daily life for making our working easier were earlier developed as a part of the space exploration program. Such gadgets include calculator, digital wristwatches, cell phones, Teflon, Velcro, ultrasound, satellite TV, personal computers, laser surgery, infrared cameras, water purification system, Pacemaker batteries, GPS finders and more.
All this proves one fact that space explorations have contributed immensely in improving the quality of life we live today and have made life much easier. What’s more, since the age of Christopher Columbus, new discoveries and inventions have always allured man, and it has nevertheless contributed in the progress of humanity.