Haven't we all been dreaming about colonizing another planet?

All I can say is score one for Captain Kirk and the Star Trek crew. Perhaps we can ship off al Qaeda and Taliban so they'll stop being so cranky on earth.

"Sooner or later disasters such as an asteroid collision or a nuclear war could wipe us all out," said Professor Hawking, who was crippled by a muscle disease at the age of 21 and who speaks through a computerized voice synthesizer. "But once we spread out into space and establish independent colonies, our future should be safe," said Hawking.

Hawking suggested propulsion like that used by the fictional starship Enterprise "to boldly go where no man has gone before" could help solve the problem.

"However, by using "matter/antimatter annihilation", velocities just below the speed of light could be reached, making it possible to reach the next star in about six years.

Hawking: Humans must colonize other planets - CNN.com

technorati tags:star, trek, space, travel

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