About Rod D. Martin
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Politics & Economics
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Faith & Cultureby Rod D. Martin
March 29, 2007
Technological change is accelerating at an accelerating rate. It’s hard for even the greatest technologists to keep up, much less analyze the societal implications of their work.
So where are we headed? Here are four of the trends you most need to watch.
» Adult stem cells: While all media and political attention seems focused on the ethically challenged field of destructive embryonic stem cell research (“destructive” because human embryos must be created and then killed to get the cells), a scientific revolution is quietly going forward in the area of adult stem cells, which, ironically enough, offends no one.
Already, adult stem cells cure or treat more than 70 diseases and are involved in almost 1,300 human clinical trials (none for embryonic cells). Competing for funding, embryonic advocates cite all sorts of objections, but these are quickly falling away, so much so The Washington Post recently reported that “the new [sic] cells are adding credence to an emerging consensus among experts that the popular distinction between embryonic and ‘adult’ stem cells — those isolated from adult bone marrow and other organs — is artificial.”
This is the stuff of dreams. Vastly more plentiful, ethically inoffensive adult stem cells could, will, and already are getting us to a new world in medicine. We are having our cake and eating it, too.
» Hydrogen fuel cells: The surprise hit Toyota Prius spawned a whole industry of hybrid cars — 50 different models are expected by 2015 — using both gasoline and rechargeable batteries. But what if you could get rid of the gasoline?
Hydrogen fuel cells offer the way. Long the power source used by the Space Shuttle, fuel cells are actually fancy batteries. Intel is developing fuel cells for all-day laptop computers power. Other breakthroughs like the University of Rochester’s new 15-nanometer membrane are propelling the field forward.
But the real action is in autos. Virtually every major carmaker is spending serious money on the technology, with Honda planning to market its first fuel cell-based car next year. Last year, former Saudi Oil Minister Sheik Yamani said hydrogen will shortly bring about “the end of the oil era.” He’s right.
» Reintegration of American politics: Junk mail was once a revolutionary technology, thanks to pioneers like Richard Viguerie who used it to fund an entire generation of political organizations. But direct mail works best for very narrow causes. The result was a plethora of tightly focused special interests, well-funded and empowered to tear the nation apart.
By contrast, the Internet encourages broad-interest communities unbounded by geography. People gather on MySpace, MoveOn.org or TheVanguard.org based on their worldview, not single issues. Personal relationships — rapidly formed and widely dispersed — drive everything.
It’s more effective and it’s much more satisfying. Over the next decade, it will change much of what we’re accustomed to in politics.
» The Orient Express — Scramjets: Ever wonder why airplanes can’t fly into space? Most supersonic jets must slow air entering their engines to subsonic speeds to combust their fuel, which limits their top speed. The new F-22 cruises at Mach 1.7 (less than twice the speed of sound); the SR-71 is said to reach Mach 3.2. You need about Mach 26 to reach orbit.
The supersonic combustion ramjet, or scramjet, changes all of this. Utterly new — the first scramjet flew in 2002, 99 years after the Wright Brothers — it makes true hypersonic flight a reality. That makes any point on Earth as little as two hours away and makes orbit possible, too. The world will get smaller. And the real space age will begin.
America is in the lead, but nine other countries are known to have programs. Russia has already announced a scramjet-based ICBM upper stage, designed to frustrate missile defenses; the U.S. hopes to have a scramjet-based cruise missile flying in 2009.
Will you be flying to the space Hilton by then? Not without buying tickets from Richard Branson or Elon Musk. But Branson’s Virgin Galactic underlines the point: A mere 50 years elapsed between Kitty Hawk and jetliners. On these four fronts and others as well — from true broadband to nanotech — the world is about to be remade, again.
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Editor’s Note: This op-ed from Rod D. Martin originally appeared in the Examiner newspapers as part of a series on the future, which also included articles by Craigslist founder Craig Newmark and other leading figures.
Rod is one of our nation’s leading minds. He’s smart, original, and very committed—a combination that one rarely finds.
Rod Martin and [former Howard Dean campaign manager] Joe Trippi are America’s two foremost experts on online politics.
Rod Martin is a Reaganite-Thatcherite conservative…[and] a man who has spent much of his life ministering to and working for the benefit of others. I know Rod as an advocate for freedom, a leader who understands the real changes we need in Washington, and who has the drive and ability to make those changes happen.
Rod Martin is the kind of dynamic leader who has the knowledge, ability and experience to lead us successfully into the 21st Century. His vision for America is compelling.
Rod Martin literally wrote the book on excellence. Humble yet brilliant, a man of love and compassion, with penetrating clarity he illuminates the world around us, and we are both stirred and enlightened.
Rod Martin is a born leader and an outstanding political mind. Anyone who takes him on is going to have a serious fight on their hands.
Rod Martin is a man of uncommon vision and character. Ever since I first worked alongside Rod in the early days of PayPal, I’ve been struck by his powerful vision for the future. Rod understands the intersection of technology, politics and culture in a way that few others do.
Rod Martin wears with uncommon grace an uncanny ability to link his vigorous faith to the practical challenges of both the business world and the political arena. Yet the respect he shows for others carries a warmth and modesty that are both too rare among those who are strong advocates of feisty positions.
America badly needs more leaders who really get the future. We need more Rod Martins.
Rod Martin is a modern day philosopher-statesman. He is a capitalist intellectual, a conservative iconoclast, a gentle adversary and a kind prophet. He inspires us towards a fresh national vision built upon the original founding principles.
Rod Martin is not only effective and efficient, but he is also perceptive, wise and gracious. He gets things done. He is a great friend and a great ally.
Rod is one of the sharpest, most gracious men I know, and one of the most gifted political thinkers today. His ability to analyze issues and communicate thoughtful insights on them have earned him the respect of people across the political spectrum.
I am proud to have been Rod Martin’s friend for a quarter century, and I can tell you that he is one of the finest men and most outstanding leaders in our church and in our country today. He has a knack for turning everything he touches to success.
Rod Martin is a cornucopian entrepreneur and eutropic thinker whose influence radiates through an array of companies, institutions, movements and churches. A renaissance American, he is also a prolific friend of freedom and faith around the globe.
If Rod Martin represents the next generation of leaders, America has nothing to worry about.
A leader and a servant, in public life and in private, Rod Martin strides at the top of his profession, and has nowhere to go but up. He is in the truest sense of the word ‘outstanding’.
Rod Martin is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished thought leaders today. He is a wonderful mentor, a humble role model, and a deep inspiration for the next generation of scientific innovators and entrepreneurs.
Rod’s achievements pale beside his character and his brilliance. He sees what others can’t. He leads when others won’t.
Rod Martin is one of America’s finest young minds.
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