Welcome home, Discovery

As I listen to NASA audio of the shuttle landing, I can't help but think that manned space flight is one of the most important things that we as a species could possibly be doing. From a technological standpoint, and in taking a long view of our potential future, we owe it to our children's children to be working on better ways to get off this rock and come back safely. From a philosphical standpoint, we are seekers. For better or worse, we want to move and to find and to learn. Our ultimate origins are out there, in the furnaces of stars. We need to continue with our baby steps, expanding our boundaries bit by bit.