1) how many non-white non-male people not wearing a collared white shirt and black tie ?
2) don't understand the link between the saturn 1b and project gemini ?
3) failure is always an option, and sometimes the better option.
4) the "eulogizing" is a bit heavy. People were able to solve problems without data because they had a better understanding of (feel for) the processes they were dealing with (and they were lucky). Never underestimate the value of luck.
"Hoffen wir mal, dass alles gut geht !"
General Paulus, Nov 1942, outside Stalingrad after the launch of Operation Uranus.
Never forget that up to the 1970s [aerospace crash] many experienced engineers, techs, mechanics, drafters, etc... had WWII, Korean and VN war experience experience that emphasized speed and agility in problem solving... and limited technology options helped narrow the analysis and decision making. And they were hype focused on on the moon-race with Russia.
Regards, Wil Taylor
o Trust - But Verify!
o For those who believe, no proof is required; for those who cannot believe, no proof is possible. [variation, Stuart Chase]
o Unfortunately, in science what You 'believe' is irrelevant. ["Orion", HBA forum]
o Only fools and charlatans know everything and understand everything." -Anton Chekhov