I posed this question to my middle school students today for a warm-up activity: which would you rather accomplish and be known for: walking on the surface of the moon or winning an Olympic gold medal?
So far, all of my classes have been evenly split. Their explanations have been quite interesting.
Your choice and explanation?
Walking on the Moon.
1. huge jumps on the moon's surface would be awesome
2. I always wanted to be an astronaut and I'm still a NASA/Space geek
3. I would join a very select list of 12 (only 12!) people who have ever walked on the moon.
4. Even just a trip in microgravity would be amazing. An entire trip to THE MOON!?!?! Wow.
5. Can you just imagine the wonderment, the bewildering sensations, the magnitude of just trying to comprehend the fact that YOU'RE STANDING ON THE F-ING MOON!!!!!!!!!!!!
Walk on moon -- just so I can be on live TV, and then rip off my helmet and allow my head to explode on live TV.
I would definitely, my friend, select walking on the moon. While up there strolling on the moon I would definitely do a woman from behind. I would just bend her over, smack her ass a few times, then drive my love rod home. OOH YEAH, she and I both would be lovin it!!!
As much as I would love to walk on the moon, I'd take the gold medal.
Why? To walk on the moon one would have to be an astronaut, which is something that someone has to direct their whole life toward for a very long time. I'm just not interested in living that particular life (not casting any aspersions on people who do, it's just not my bag). If I didn't get to it through hard work and dedication, it would just be a neat thing that I had done and wouldn't be that meaningful (at least not as much as winning a gold medal).
Wise Guy wrote:
As much as I would love to walk on the moon, I'd take the gold medal.
Why? To walk on the moon one would have to be an astronaut, which is something that someone has to direct their whole life toward for a very long time. I'm just not interested in living that particular life (not casting any aspersions on people who do, it's just not my bag). If I didn't get to it through hard work and dedication, it would just be a neat thing that I had done and wouldn't be that meaningful (at least not as much as winning a gold medal).
Exactly how the hell do you think people win Olympic gold medals? By sitting on their asses and doing nothing?
You don't have to "direct your whole life towards running for a very long time to win a gold medal"?
Wise Guy wrote:
As much as I would love to walk on the moon, I'd take the gold medal.
Why? To walk on the moon one would have to be an astronaut, which is something that someone has to direct their whole life toward for a very long time. I'm just not interested in living that particular life (not casting any aspersions on people who do, it's just not my bag). If I didn't get to it through hard work and dedication, it would just be a neat thing that I had done and wouldn't be that meaningful (at least not as much as winning a gold medal).
Yeah. I just noticed your handle.
Aghast wrote:
You don't have to "direct your whole life towards running for a very long time to win a gold medal"?
Wise Guy wrote:As much as I would love to walk on the moon, I'd take the gold medal.
Why? To walk on the moon one would have to be an astronaut, which is something that someone has to direct their whole life toward for a very long time. I'm just not interested in living that particular life (not casting any aspersions on people who do, it's just not my bag). If I didn't get to it through hard work and dedication, it would just be a neat thing that I had done and wouldn't be that meaningful (at least not as much as winning a gold medal).
Sorry for the confusion. I didn't mean that one does not have to dedicate one's life to a large extent to running to win an Olympic gold medal. I meant that that would be something I would be interested in doing, as opposed to the astronaut thing. I mean, I have already spent a huge amount of time running - it would be sweet to have a gold medal to show for it!
All sarcasm aside, for me the ONLY value a gold medal has is inherent to the process of getting there. Whereas the moon would be sweet whether I got there by a couple decades in NASA or flew there overnight on the back of a magic unicorn.
a fat kid wrote:
All sarcasm aside, for me the ONLY value a gold medal has is inherent to the process of getting there. Whereas the moon would be sweet whether I got there by a couple decades in NASA or flew there overnight on the back of a magic unicorn.
Okay, if I could fly to the moon on the back of a magic unicorn I might have to change my answer.
Entered teenhood with Sputnik exited youg adulthood when Cernan and Schmitt left the moon. So Moon.
Math of the I did that club members ---
12 men walked on the moon
over 4500 folks were awarded an OGGold
Win a gold medal of course because it would be real and have witnesses, not just staged somewhere in Hollywood like the moon landings...
All kidding aside, being born months after "One small step ... one giant leap..." I'd have to say walk on the moon. The magic pony and knowing you'd get home safe would be giant pluses.
I'd pick walking on the moon. Assuming I could go right now, it would be satisfying to know that I was the first person to do it.