A permanent base on Mars would have a number of advantages beyond being a bonanza for planetary science and geology. If as some evidence suggests exotic micro-organisms have arisen independently of terrestrial life studying them could revolutionise biology medicine and biotechnology.

I want American Dream growth - lots of new businesses well-paying jobs and American leadership in new industries like clean energy and biotechnology.

I see a bright future for the biotechnology industry when it follows the path of the computer industry the path that von Neumann failed to foresee becoming small and domesticated rather than big and centralized.