Dr. Robotnik. . . err, I mean NASA, to blow up moon

[RyaNtheSlayA]

Reminds me a lot of...

http://io9.com/352391/strip-mining-shatters-the-moon

We're all doomed!

That part of the movie is amazing! I used to love that movie as a kid just for that part. Crazy scary at the same time though.

[lordofduct]

Well NASA's place in fostering technology is relatively obvious and easy to research. List any of the several projects they are working on. Fostering is just giving direction or advancement to something (like a parent gives direction or advances a youth, hence the use of the word).

As for regulating, I am unclear. I don't think they regulate technology at all in a direct sense. It's not like they have control on deciding what can and can't be done. Though I bet they have indirect influence of regulation. You'd have to search for it, but I bet NASA has played a role in supplying scientific data that resulted in the decission to regulate some technology. On the flip side NASA has shut down several personal studies against their will due to this same thing. For instance their studies were included in the decission making process for "no nuclear fission detinations in space" back in the 80's. Where an international decission was made to never detinate an atomic explosion in space. This shut down several studies for different types of space craft that would possibly use it, including long range space ships.

Other indirect methods may exist in the fact that they are who inevitably put satellites into orbit which are then used for technologies. There ability to get a satellite up can either stunt or advance a technology. But as for actual regulating it, I don't think they decide WHO gets to use any services available by said satellites. But again probably play a role in supplying data that helps make the decission. Like I bet they're who is asked how much bandwidth is available across some array of satellites.

Lastly they foster and indirectly regulate through their funding. They are who can actually afford to perform certain studies that otherwise would be funded unless a huge commercial interest was placed behind it... of which a large number of technologies would be ignored due to a lack of commercial interest (for instance genetic manipulation didn't get a huge commercial launch until the ability to patent organic materials was legalized in the 80's... was that a good thing though? Well that's not for a discussion here.) In this they can sway the advancement of technologies (foster), and then can also stunt technologies. Stunting them could be completely innadvertent as well... for instance say they blow a whole bunch of cash on a study, but do a poor job at it (which they're known to do at times, google for it), and from this other people don't bother investigating the technology because they deem it not reasonably cost effective or even possible because NASA failed after sinking tons of cash into it. This again is kind of a indirect form of regulation... like a rule that isn't set in stone, but is just considered such as public understanding. This kind of regulation appears rather frequently in other areas of law as well, but again I'm not going to comment on those other things because well... it'd probably lay one hell of a straw across some people's backs...

[lisalover1]

Obviously this is a preemptive measure against the Anti-Spirals under the guise of science.

GIGA DRILL BREAAAKKKEEERRR!

[Limewater]

Other indirect methods may exist in the fact that they are who inevitably put satellites into orbit which are then used for technologies. There ability to get a satellite up can either stunt or advance a technology. But as for actual regulating it, I don't think they decide WHO gets to use any services available by said satellites. But again probably play a role in supplying data that helps make the decission. Like I bet they're who is asked how much bandwidth is available across some array of satellites.

LoD overall made a pretty good post. I would like to clarify something here, though.

The FCC handles pretty much all regulation on frequencies and bandwidth of wireless communication. They do allow certain entities a little bit of leeway when it comes to experimental stuff that is not going to be transmitting all the time, but even NASA has to answer to them if they're going to be transmitting stuff either to or from a satellite at a particular frequency and bandwidth.