[meteorite-list] Rocks from Space Picture of the Day - March 22, 2010

From: Meteorites USA <eric_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Mon, 22 Mar 2010 10:51:09 -0700
Message-ID: <4BA7AE0D.1040202_at_meteoritesusa.com>

Hi Adam, List,

You really have to take the bad with the good when talking about
anything... Most of this can all be summed up in one word. Ratings. It's
an unfortunate truth that most people don't like to be "educated".
People want to be entertained.

When you concentrate on the education you lose a large portion of the
viewing audience. For the Meteorite Men show to work they had to make
some sacrifices for the benefit of the probable success of the show. The
show, which most people I know really enjoyed, was a BIG hit in both the
meteorite world and the main stream, was a good mix of adventure and
science, but the network HAD to throw in the money thing. The ratings,
the popularity, and the next season of the show depended on it. This of
course is from a business stand point.

 From my perspective, I was a bit disappointed in the amount of
"cha-ching" moments there were versus the hard science or even the
adventure. I would have personally liked to see more science but
realistically speaking most people will tune it out. We, as meteorite
people, are interested in it because it's what we do, we love it! We
could watch a full hour on the "Science of Meteorites". Hell, I could
watch a mini-series of 6, 2 hour long shows dedicated to the science or
meteorites. But that's freaking BORING to most people!

The short of it is, the Science channel had to make a business decision.
I think the Meteorite Men is a good show "for the masses". It works,
people love it, and it's probably going to result in a second season.
Here's hoping!

I believe you can have a good balance of science, adventure, and
treasure hunting in the world of meteorites. It's all related, to
exclude one from the other would not be fair nor realistic.

Realistically speaking, how many people are going to drop what they are
doing and become meteorite hunters? They may get all pumped up after
watching the show and go buy a detector and meteorite cane, but once
they get in the field and wander the desert or farm fields for a few
days with no finds, they'll realize how hard it really is. The
difficulty will weed out those who are serious about it. As for the
scammers, they're everywhere. You can't make something that reaches
millions and promotes "$" without scammers jumping in to take advantage.
It happens, and they will also weed themselves out.

The Meteorite Men show has also grown the collector base! Lest we
forget. More collectors divided by same amount of material for
collecting, creates higher demand equals market growth. Some people
don't want to see this growth as the believe it will undermine the
science, but I believe it will be an ultimate boon to science by
interesting more people about meteorites, and the knowledge one can
learn. It's hard to say how many people will be motivated to become next
generation scientists, but the simple fact is MILLIONS of people now
have a chance to own a meteorite and they are becoming more interested
in the science.

Regardless of how you feel about the Meteorite Men show, I think this
will be a positive thing in the future. People are becoming more aware
of their world, the science, and the adventure. If people can make a
living doing it too, then I say go for it! Keep in mind there are lots
of kids and young adults that watch too, they are in school and will be
motivated to become meteoriticists, astronomers, astrobiologists, or
even astronauts. They could become the next generation engineers which
launch toward a manned asteroid discovery team which may land a human
being on an asteroid! Manned space flights to a nearby comet anyone?

I say yell it from the rooftops! Stream live video around the world. Let
everyone know about meteorites, and the wonders they bring to human kind!

Oh yeah, meteorites are cool... ;)

Regards,
Eric Wichman
Meteorites USA




On 3/22/2010 9:59 AM, Adam Hupe wrote:
> A lot of viewers are clinging to the hope they will become overnight millionaires. Most of them will not listen when you tell them their prized new "Moon rock" is a piece of quartz or their new "Pallasite" is nothing more then slag. They will become increasingly angry when you try to explain why. They know it is real because it looks just like the one they saw on TV and will not be told otherwise.
>
> I do not even respond any more as I do not like to be put in a position as the bay guy who has to break the news that their worthless rock will not make them the latest millionaire. This is what happens when the media focuses too much on the monetary aspect of meteorite collecting. It out weighs any educational benefit this type of show may have provided. The state Washington and Oregon suddenly announced their no collecting policy on federal land; the timing is uncanny. A lot of scam artists will also attach themselves if the smell of easy money is present. One just has to look at the most expensive "meteorites" on eBay to see this effect. Now, there is always a few fakes listed in the top dollar page.
>
> I would hate to see meteorite hunting/collecting go the way treasure hunting did 25 years ago when the avocation almost went extinct, mainly due to the press. Professional treasure hunters now avoid the press when values are put up. Just look at the Mel Fisher group who had to fight for a decade to keep a good portion of their major find due to the fact the press attached a billion dollar price tag to it. Everybody seemed to have a claim on it when they didn't lift a finger to find it. The press made it look easy when in fact Mel suffered many hardships including the loss of his sons life.
>
>
> Best Regards,
>
> Adam
>
>
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----
> From: "michael at rocksfromspace.org"<michael at rocksfromspace.org>
> To: "meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com"<meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com>
> Sent: Mon, March 22, 2010 6:20:26 AM
> Subject: [meteorite-list] Rocks from Space Picture of the Day - March 22, 2010
>
> http:www.rocksfromspace.org/March_22_2010.html
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Received on Mon 22 Mar 2010 01:51:09 PM PDT