[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 3 - 06:01:27 ]
RE: [Sandy/NASAChatHost] Welcome to our first live chat of Global Science & Technology Week! Our very special guest is today NASA's Kathryn Clark, chief scientist of the International Space Station! Be sure to read all about Kathryn BEFORE the chat at-- http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/women/bios/clark.html
Good morning! I am here in my office hoping to speak to all of you about my work at NASA. Let's get started.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 7 - 06:05:02 ]
RE: [Max] How many languages do you speak? How did you learn them?
I speak German, Russian, and a very little bit of French. I learned German in high school, then picked up Russian here at NASA HQs. I stsrted learning French because one of the scientists dared me.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 9 - 06:07:11 ]
RE: [Max] What is the hardest language to talk and understand?
By far and away, the most difficult language to work with is Japanese. It is because there are few word for word translations for things - the best we can do is to give the general idea for what we mean. Fortunately for me, the Japanese are for the most part fluent in English and very polite. They also have a wonderful sense of humor when I try Japanese.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 10 - 06:08:31 ]
RE: [Max] Could you do your job if you only spoke English?
Yes, one could do the job of Chief Scientist only speaking English, but that strikes me as rude. After all, it is an international space station. We should all be working together to make communication the best possible.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 14 - 06:11:23 ]
RE: [JohnsonFernandez] How will the station keep aloft in space?
The space station stays in orbit because it is traveling 17,500 miles per hour, which is the necessary speed to stay there. Remember Newton - a body in motion will remain in motion until some force acts upon it. Now, because there is still a little atmosphere 220 miles up (where the station orbits) that atmosphere acts on the ISS to slow it down and it will eventually lose its orbit. So, every 4-6 months, we have to reboost the ISS using either the space shuttle or the Russian Service module, once it getas there.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 15 - 06:13:18 ]
RE: [Willy] Do you want to be an astronaut?
Oh YES!!!! I want to be an astronaut in the biggest way. I started to apply to the astonaut corps several years ago and continue to update my application every year. I have friends who applied for up to 14 years before being successful, so I will just keep on trying.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 17 - 06:15:43 ]
RE: [Ricky] Can you tell us about the Ladybug experiments?
The ladybug experiment flew on STS-93 as part of a bigger project to put experiments from space into high school and jr high school classrooms. A group of girls from Chile designed the experiment to see if ladybugs could still eat aphids (and therefore act as a natural pesticide) while in microgravity. The answer is yes they can. But there is some indication from the experiment that aphids breed faster in space than on the ground.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 18 - 06:17:42 ]
RE: [Johnson] Newton's law states that a body in motion remains in motion unless acted by an outside force. What if a meteor or any other space object hit the station, will the station remain at its orbit?
If a meteor hits the station, it will certainly damage the vehicle but may not knock it out of orbit. It would depend partly on how large the meteor was. The bigger danger is that the meteor, even if very small, could punch a large hole in the ISS causing it to depressurize and lose all the oxygen.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 22 - 06:21:15 ]
RE: [Marion] What was the biggest mistake you ever made?
My biggest regret is that I did not make as much out of my college education as I could have. This was a mistake. I was a successful swimmer and a popular person in school, so I found those things easier and more fun than really studying hard. By the time I got to be a junior/senior, I became so interested in biology I studied hard because I wanted to know more, but I wish I had done that all the way through.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 24 - 06:22:41 ]
RE: [DK] At what age did you become interested in becoming a scientist?
My father was a physician and I worshipped him so I was interested in how things worked in the body (and then broke) from a young age.I remember clearly when I got to college that I knew I would be a biologist.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 25 - 06:24:31 ]
RE: [DK] Who first inspired you to study science in school? When did you know that you wanted to become a scientist?
My father was my first inspiration. But I also met John Glenn when I was 10 years old. That meeting was so inspirational to me that I still carry the picture of the two of us in my wallet. And it has been a LONG time since I was 10 years old.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 28 - 06:26:58 ]
RE: [Maureen] What was the most inspiring thing that happened to you or who was the most inspiring per that you met?
Maureen, I think my answers to questions 24 and 25 sum that up pretty well. But I also had some very talented and exciting teachers along the way. To me, a jr high school or high school teacher will make all the difference in a child's life. That's when we either lose them or get them.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 29 - 06:29:16 ]
RE: [Johnson] Have you tried doing experiments without the presence of gravity?
I have flown 4 experiments on the shuttle. Sadly, I have never been able to go with any of them : ) My first 3 experiments all dealt with the development of nerve and muscle systems in microgravity. Since the muscle system works against gravity and needs activity to form, we hypothesized that development might be altered if the animal developed in space.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 32 - 06:32:09 ]
RE: [DK] Who most encouraged you or inspired in school to become a professional scientist? What attracted you to the NASA program?
I actually sort of fell into my NASA experience. My post-doc mentor's husband became an astronaut while I was working in her lab. I talked to him about it and shortly thereafter started to apply to the astronaut corps. I had a reputation around the University of Michigan for wanting to go to space, so when a request for proposals came thru the office, someone suggested that I pursue it. That was my first grant and space flight experiment. Everything sort of developed from there.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 33 - 06:33:33 ]
RE: [DK] Do you get to watch the shuttle launches up close? Do you hope to fly in space someday?
I have been to 10 shuttle launches and went to the last launch, but the weather delayed the launch until May 18th. We get to stand about 3 miles from the launch pad - it is WAY cool. You actually feel the ground vibrate before you can hear the rocket.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 37 - 06:35:33 ]
RE: [Johnson] Ii it hard to become the Chief Scientist of the ISS?
I sure had to interview a lot of folks to get this job. But it was really fun. They kept asking me to travel either to Washington or to Houston and talk to all these folks who were high up at NASA, many of whom were folks whose reputations I knew. So, I just found the whole experience to be exciting. It never occured to me that they would actually GIVE me the job.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 38 - 06:38:03 ]
RE: [Alison] What were you like when you were 13? Did you always like school? What books did you read?
I was a BIG "tomboy" when I was 13. I spent most of my time swimming. I have always loved to read books though. When we could order those little books in grade school, I nearly broke my parents by ordering so many and always had read them all by the next time we got to order. So, my parents kept buying. They were highly supportive. I also asked a lot of questions - since my father was a doctor, we talked a lot about biology and medicine. There was no question he wouldn't answer.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 39 - 06:40:20 ]
RE: [John] What do you do at University of Michigan Medical School?
I am a Research Investigator at the University of Michigan, so I primarily get to do the research I described in question 29. But I also teach histology once in a while. Histology is the study of tissues. We slice them and look at the tissues thru the microscope. The hardest part is to get a 3D picture in your mind when you are looking at a 2D object under the microscope.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 43 - 06:42:06 ]
RE: [Jennifer] Where did you meet your husband? Do you have any kids?
I met my husband at the University of Michigan. He was working on a medical problem and the boss in my lab asked me to go help their lab with it. The project went ok, not great. But we started dating about a week later. He is a physician and a wonderful man. We have no children.

[ Sandy/NASAChatHost - 44 - 06:43:16 ]
EVERYONE: There are 15 minutes left in our chat with Kathy Clark today. Your questions are terrific; keep them coming :-)

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 45 - 06:44:01 ]
RE: [Johnson] If the ISS is completed will there any possiblity that you're going to work there too?
I'm sure hoping to go to the ISS and work, but it would not be from the position of the Chief Scientist. It would be as an astronaut, so I will just continue to apply. I'm not sure the ISS will ever really be completed because we will always continue to upgrade it so the hardware is the most current we have available.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 46 - 06:45:49 ]
RE: [Alana] Will there ever be a student in space? How old do you think you have to be to be able to be an astronaut?
It will be awhile before students will get to go to space. Spaceflight is still a very dangerous business and we are just not willing to risk the lives of children or young adults. Right now the average age of a person when accepted into the astronaut corps is 39. This is because NASA is looking for people who have enough experience to bring something when they enter the group.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 49 - 06:47:37 ]
RE: [DK] Are you really good at math? Was it a natural talent or did you do something to enhance your abilities?
I have always been very good at math, but I also worked hard in math class. When I was in the 6th grade I missed 6 weeks of school with pneumonia. When we realized I would be out for awhile, my parents asked the teachers to send homework so I could work on it as I felt ok. I finished the entire 6th grade year of math in the first week.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 51 - 06:49:33 ]
RE: [Alison] What do you mean when you say that your primary focus is on education? Do you work with science teachers?
Yes, the education group I come from focusses on education by working with teachers to bring space flight experiments into their classrooms. They get hardware to run their own ground based experiments while interacting with a scientist who is doing the real space flight experiment and then we downlink the data from space into their classrooms.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 53 - 06:51:43 ]
RE: [Alison] What things can I do (I'm 13) in school and outside of school to better prepare myself for a job. I love science and math and get good grades.
Keep studying! But make sure you have fun with it. You may not love every class you take, and you do need to be disciplined about sometimes doing work in a subject that isn't your favorite, but usually you can find the fun part in it. And you never know, you might change your mind. It never occured to me when I was sweating thru German class in high school that it would make it so much easier for me to speak to the head of the European Space agency in later life.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 55 - 06:53:52 ]
I've never put much time into being worried about being a woman in anything I do. Some people tell me that this is why I have my job, because they needed a woman. Other people tell me that I must have to struggle hard because I am a woman. I feel that if you do your job well and with enthusiasm and you're not obnoxious, no body really cares.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 59 - 06:54:26 ]
RE: [DK] You are an inspiration to all of us. Thanks for taking the time to interact with us.
My pleasure. This was a hoot. I may ask Sandy for permission to do this again.

[ Sandy/NASAChatHost - 60 - 06:54:50 ]
EVERYONE: There are just 5 minutes left in our chat with Kathy Clark today. She's going to answer the remaining three questions and then we have to let her get back to work!

[ Sandy/NASAChatHost - 61 - 06:56:41 ]
EVERYONE: Be sure to let us know how you liked the chat today by filling out a short survey form at-- http://quest.arc.naa.gov/qchats/qchat-surveys -- This info will help us bring you the best chats possible. Thanks :-)

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 62 - 06:57:08 ]
RE: [Kearra] What kinds of experiments did you do that help with neuromuscular development. What did you use - only bugs? What can we learn from bugs in space?
No, the neuromuscular development work was done in rats. I was interested in getting a better understanding of mammalian development because of the number of diseases (and the aging process itself) that affect this system. As for insect, they have a more simplified nervous system that helps scientists to get a clear understanding of some concepts that they then apply to mammalian and other human systems.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 64 - 06:58:59 ]
RE: [Sinead] What do you like best about yoru work? What do you like the least?
I like the people best. Everyone here is bright, creative, fun to be with, and for the most part, enjoys their job. I also get to travel all over the world and interact with scientists about the ISS. I get the most tired of being in an airplane or at an airport waing for airplanes.

[ Sandy/NASAChatHost - 65 - 07:00:40 ]
EVERYONE: BE SURE TO COME BACK TO THE WOMEN OF NASA WEB SITE TOMORROW AND THURSDAY for a chat with Lynn Cline, deputy associate administrator for international relations on the space station and to chat with Patty Moore, live from Russia!!!

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 66 - 07:00:57 ]
RE: [Sinead] Are there some countries the US won't let be a part of our space travel? Are there certain rules all countries have to follow? How come we work with Russia so much?
Yes, there are countries we do not currently work with in space. This is primarily due to politics and as the world politics change, so will our policies in dealing with these countries. We work with the Russians so much because they have the greatest understanding of long term space flight of anyone in the world. Remember, they have been working with cosmonauts in space stations for decades.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 67 - 07:03:44 ]
RE: [Johnson] Thank you for chatting with me. Thanks a lot. I got some info about the ISS.Can you suggest any other sites that talk about ISS?Cause we needto dosome research about it.
NASA's web site has a whole section on the ISS. it is at spaceflight.nasa.gov Give that a try. The web site is not easy to serf thru, but rewarding when you get there. Hopefully you will have lots of time. I find myself spending hours looking at pictures of the moon and astronauts.

[ KathrynClark/ChiefScientist - 68 - 07:05:41 ]
Thanks everyone for your interest. I hope that you will take the time to learn more about the space program. But, mostly I hope you will decide to have fun with learning in general, and, pleae, never let being a woman deter you from trying anything. Good luck to everyone.

[ Sandy/NASAChatHost - 69 - 07:06:01 ]
Ok Everyone, we are out of here until tomorrow at 11 am when we chat with Lynn Cline. Also, don't forget about our ongoing chat forum where you can drop in at any time and ask questions. Thanks for your participation today-- you asked some awesome questions!