American Exploration - Bryant McGill

# American Exploration **Domain:** Exploration / Courage / Difficult Undertakings **Series:** [[american/American Ethos - Simple Reminders on Real American Pride|Simple Reminders on Real American Pride]] ## Definition American exploration is the choice to organize courage around a difficult undertaking. The frontier may be geographic, scientific, technological, or institutional; in every form it demands study before movement, practical work after vision, and stewardship for those who will continue the journey. Difficulty is not worshiped for its own sake. It is chosen when the work is worthy and when the attempt enlarges the field of possibility for others. The American explorer carries hope forward by making the impossible increasingly specific. ## Place in the American System This node belongs to [[collections/American|the American Collection]] and interprets [[american/American Ethos - The Next 250|The Next 250]] and [[american/American Character - Value 09 - Courage|Courage]]. Its quotations remain sourced and editorially explained in [[american/American Ethos - Simple Reminders on Real American Pride|Simple Reminders on Real American Pride]]; their permanent poster objects appear below. ## Simple Reminders, Quotations, and Thoughts > “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.” > **— John F. Kennedy**, *Simple Reminders on Real American Pride* [[reminders/Exploration/We Choose the Moon Because It Is Hard by John F. Kennedy|We Choose the Moon Because It Is Hard by John F. Kennedy]] > “The future doesn’t belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the brave.” > **— Ronald Reagan**, *Simple Reminders on Real American Pride* [[reminders/Exploration/The Future Belongs to the Brave by Ronald Reagan|The Future Belongs to the Brave by Ronald Reagan]] > “Nothing ends here; our hopes and our journeys continue.” > **— Ronald Reagan**, *Simple Reminders on Real American Pride* [[reminders/Exploration/Hope and the Journey Continue by Ronald Reagan|Hope and the Journey Continue by Ronald Reagan]] > “That’s one small step for (a) man; one giant leap for mankind.” > **— Neil Armstrong**, *Simple Reminders on Real American Pride* [[reminders/Exploration/That's One Small Step for a Man One Giant Leap for Mankind by Neil Armstrong|That's One Small Step for a Man One Giant Leap for Mankind by Neil Armstrong]] > “Don’t worry about what all those other people might do, this is the century in which almost any clear vision can be made!” > **— Alan Kay**, *Simple Reminders on Real American Pride* [[reminders/Exploration/A Century for Clear Vision by Alan Kay|A Century for Clear Vision by Alan Kay]] > “I just have my own attitude. I’m out here to get the job done, and I knew I had the ability to do it, and that’s where my focus was.” > **— Annie Easley**, *Simple Reminders on Real American Pride* [[reminders/Exploration/The Ability to Get the Job Done by Annie Easley|The Ability to Get the Job Done by Annie Easley]] > “There is now no question of success.” > **— Wilbur Wright**, *Simple Reminders on Real American Pride* [[reminders/Exploration/The Question of Success by Wilbur Wright|The Question of Success by Wilbur Wright]] > “I am about to begin a systematic study of the subject in preparation for practical work to which I expect to devote what time I can spare from my regular business.” > **— Wilbur Wright**, *Simple Reminders on Real American Pride* [[reminders/Exploration/Systematic Study Before Practical Work by Wilbur Wright|Systematic Study Before Practical Work by Wilbur Wright]] > “I wish to avail myself of all that is already known and then if possible add my mite to help on the future workers who will attain final success.” > **— Wilbur Wright**, *Simple Reminders on Real American Pride* [[reminders/Exploration/Adding One’s Mite to Future Work by Wilbur Wright|Adding One’s Mite to Future Work by Wilbur Wright]] > “The best way to predict the future is to invent it.” > **— Alan Kay**, *Simple Reminders on Real American Pride* [[reminders/Innovation/The Best Way to Predict the Future Is to Invent It by Alan Kay|The Best Way to Predict the Future Is to Invent It by Alan Kay]] > “[Since NASA opened for business on October 1, 1958,] NASA explores the unknown in air and space, innovates for the benefit of humanity, and inspires the world through discovery.” > > **— NASA**, *About NASA* [[reminders/Exploration/Exploring the Unknown for the Benefit of Humanity by NASA|Exploring the Unknown for the Benefit of Humanity by NASA]] > As NASA's only federally funded research and development center and a leader in robotic space exploration, JPL describes its reach and purpose: “From Earth to the solar system to the limits of our universe, we drive to the forefront of scientific discovery; we benefit humanity through our missions, innovations, and research, inviting people everywhere to imagine what is possible.” > > **— NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory**, *Who We Are* [[reminders/Exploration/Inviting People Everywhere to Imagine What Is Possible by NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory|Inviting People Everywhere to Imagine What Is Possible by NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory]] > JPL records the national consequence of its first spacecraft: “The success of JPL's first spacecraft, the Explorer I satellite, in 1958 helped lift America into the Space Age.” > > **— NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory**, *Who We Are* [[reminders/Exploration/Lifting America into the Space Age by NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory|Lifting America into the Space Age by NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory]]  ## American System Connections [[wiki/Headquarters-to-Field Continuity|Headquarters-to-Field Continuity]] joins vision to practical movement, while [[wiki/Operational Literacy|Operational Literacy]] converts ambition into preparation and follow-through. Exploration becomes national capability when discoveries are carried into systems others can use.