We're going to perform a little thought experiment, and we need your help to do it. Imagine for now that this phrase is completely true: Science is the greatest of human achievements and humanity's best hope for curing its social, cultural, and economic ills; in other words, science can lead us to utopia. Again, you don't have to believe it in your heart of hearts. Just imagine.
Red Mars agrees that science, pure science, is the bee's knees of human endeavors, but there is one thing that keeps holding science back: humanity itself. While we can do all sorts of wonderful things through science, we can also do some nasty, unalterable things as well. In other words, even if science is the greatest tool in humanity's box, can we trust ourselves to use it properly? If the statement we imagined above is true, can we get out of our own way long enough to see it through? Maybe… but maybe not.
Questions About Science
- There are a bunch of fantastic scientific inventions in Red Mars. But do you think these inventions really help humanity? Do they harm humanity? Or do they have absolutely no effect on what makes us human at the core?
- Compare and contrast Ann's and Sax's philosophies on science. Do you think one understands the purpose of science more than the other? Does each one get part of the picture but not all of it? Are both just wildly off base? Don't forget to explain your reasoning.
- Pick one scientific invention from the novel. What is its purpose in the novel? Does it link to others? If so, what and why? If not, then why—like the cheese—does science stand alone here?