US concerned NASA will be overtaken by China’s space program::undefined

  • orrk@lemmy.world
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    9 months ago

    well, I think he meant: Per aspera ad astra

    just remember that almost all older languages had fewer nouns and verbs, so “thorns” here is referring to difficulty and obstruction

    so more meaningfully translated, this old Latin saying is closer to “through great treachery is the path to the stars”

    • intensely_human@lemm.ee
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      9 months ago

      I mean it’s not that hard to recognize “thorns” meaning difficulty and obstruction.

      But as I’m saying this, I remember that younger generations didn’t spend time outside as kids. So they may never have pushed through a thicket of thorns.

      Eventually, we’ll have people who’ve lived their entire lives in zero-G, and they won’t have an intuitive understanding of the feelings implied by the phrase “stand up for oneself”. They won’t understand the state of motivation versus fatigue implied by “holding one’s chin up”, that the posture of one’s body was a function of the interplay between gravity and dopamine.

    • FordBeeblebrox@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      Ok so the Starfleet quote is “Ad Astra per Aspera”. Should it be Per Aspera ad Astra? Asking for Latin grammar lessons