The Tesla Roadster has been in space for over five years. While it looks like the most out of this World PR stunt ever, where Elon Musk synergized both Tesla and Space X in one big flex, there are several subtle messages that allude to a much bigger vision of things to come.
The setting in the Roadster is a study by itself. Space Oddity by David Bowie is set in a loop at full volume on the sound system. A full size human mannequin was clothed in a Space X pressure spacesuit with his left arm jauntily placed on the window sill of car and the right hand on the steering wheel. A Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams in the glove box of the car along with a towel ( an essential for every space traveler ) and a 5D optical disc of Issac Asimov’s Foundation Series. The infotainment screen of the car says ‘ Don’t Panic‘.
Space Oddity is an oddity in every sense and has a forgotten back story. Released on July 11th 1969 just five days before the Apollo 11 launch by a young and relatively unknown David Bowie.
The single was aimed to capitalize on the frenzy surrounding the manned Moon launch and the lyrics speak of the emotions that Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin & Micheal Collins are going through. In fact they were considered so sensitive and controversial that BBC actually banned the single until the mission was successfully completed. The rest is history. The mannequin is named after another David Bowie single ‘ Starman ‘….
A Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams is prophetic in many ways, and the Roadster has tried to capture the essence of it. The story follows Arthur Dent an Englishman and the only survivor of Earth, destroyed to make way for a Hyperspace Bypass and his researcher Alien friend Ford Prefect’s many adventures as they go through the Galaxy. The Don’t Panic refers to mainly two things, one related to their ongoing adventures with surprises at every turn, two the handling of the Guide …a futuristic laptop …from 1979! In this book Earth is a Giant Super Computer ( remember Cray Super Computers !). Surprise today 44 years on we are definitely heading in that direction with the guide a combination of Laptop / Tablet / Encyclopedia / Google and of course ChatGPT! ( Remember Elon has always had reservations about AI? )
The towel in the Hitch hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is considered an essential item for multiple reasons…the most important being a possible Moral Compass.
The Hotwheels Roadster is just a whimsy!
Issac Asimov is considered a visionary, and even today his ideas from 80 years ago sound either current current or futuristic. The Foundation series speaks of The Galactic Empire ( sound familiar? ) and mathematician Hari Seldon looking to develop a theory of psychohistory. One that combines history, sociology and mathematical statistics.
It is only today through Big Data and Machine Learning that mankind is able to combine the three and have actionable points from it….Data Science!
Overall ‘ Starman’ ploughing his lone furrow around the Sun, Earth & Mars is a harbinger of things to come in the not so distant future…the Superheavy looking to liftoff any day now points there.
