There's been a fair amount written in the past year or so on NASA in some of the Engineering trade journals -- Machine Design, Design News, etc. -- that NASA has really taken a giant ride to the crapper. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif Some of it by ex-NASA Engineers. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif
Mostly about how NASA is focused more on being a collection of all ethnicities, EOE, that kind of thing, rather than a collection of the best and brightest Engineers and Technicians.
A lot of it came after they crashed one probe into Mars because they forgot to convert kilometers into miles, or whatever it was, /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif and some of the other more noteable failures of probes and things.
I'm all for equal opportunity, but if I was an Astronut /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif, I'd want my vehicle designed by the best and brightest, and I don't think I'd care if it were the mandatory 10% women, or a collection of all nationalities.
Sorry, don't have any links to any stories or anything, just a comment.
Pete.