Reports from the MDRS
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| Name | Speciality |
| David Rajzman | Commander |
| Md. Ashfaque-Ur-Rahman | Crew Engineer |
| Jeffrey Bridge | Chief Engineer |
| Zena Cardman | Crew Biologist |
| Derek Lee | Executive Officer/Crew Engineer |
| Theresa Tauscher | Crew Astronomer/Health & Safety Officer |
 Md. Ashfaque-Ur-Rahman |
Md. Ashfaque-Ur-Rahman is a graduate student pursuing Manufacturing Operations in the School of Engineering of Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He also works as a Graduate Assistant in a project funded by the US Department of Transportation which deals with Intelligent Transportation Systems. Before coming to the United States in August this year he worked one and half year in a telecom company in Bangladesh doing real-time UNIX systems programming as a Systems Manager.
He holds a 4 years bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering with Mechatronics option from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) in Dhaka, Bangladesh. While in college, he became national champion by participating in robot contests and went abroad to participate in international robot contests as a team leader. In 2005 he went to Beijing for the ABU Asia-Pacific Robot Contest,ROBOCON-2005 and won the Panasonic Award for Bangladesh. Later he also led the team to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for the ROBOCON-2006 representing Bangladesh. The Japan Broadcasting Corporation, NHK of Tokyo came to Bangladesh to make a documentary on his ventures on robotics using unusual materials. After graduation he mentored Junior and Senior undergraduate students of Engineering of BUET on competitive robotics. He wants to utilize his multi-disciplinary experience in MDRS from an Engineering point of view. He traveled to many countries and speaks several languages. He was born in Dhaka, Bangladesh but he believes himself as a Citizen of the world and this was a major motivation for participating in MDRS. His near short-term dream is to experience zero-gravity in a parabolic flight and to see a rocket launch from Cape Canaveral. |
 Jeffrey Bridge |
Jeffrey Bridge grew up in Austin, TX and is currently an undergraduate student in Houston, TX. He has sung in a choir, played trumpet in a jazz band, and been on the US Physics Team. Having spent several years installing and maintaining Linux systems for oil companies, universities, and web hosting companies, he is back in school pursuing electrical engineering at Rice University and business at University of St. Thomas.
He has followed recent developments in the private space race and believes that personal ambition and dedication will pave the road to lead mankind to the stars. Jeff tries to never pass up an opportunity to learn something new, and hopes to use his experience at MDRS to apply his multidisciplinary knowledge and better understand the practical aspects of manned space missions. |
 Zena Cardman |
Zena Cardman grew up in Williamsburg, VA, and is currently a sophomore Chancellor's Carolina Scholar at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she is a biology major and poetry minor. Zena has worked in laboratories at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, Cornell University, and the College of William and Mary, and is now studying the role of the kinetochore in mitosis in the lab of Dr. Ted Salmon at UNC. At UNC, she is also editor-in-chief of Tract Magazine, a publication which explores the interplay between art and science, and is a staff member of the Cellar Door, UNC's literary magazine. Last summer she traveled to Tanzania to work with FADECO (a family-run organization dedicated to sustainable agriculture and community education), and afterwards traveled across northern Tanzania to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. Zena loves Mars almost as much as she loves Tar Heel basketball. |
 Theresa Tauscher |
Theresa Tauscher is an undergraduate student in astrophysics and physics at Pennsylvania State University. She was born in 1987 in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, and is the eldest of four. Since a young age, her head has been in the stars. Driven by the need to know if there are others out there, she turned to astronomy and Mars.
Upon entering university, she joined the Astronomy Club as a member, and is now president of the club. Every other week the club runs the telescopes atop the Astronomy Department's building, giving a free glimpse of the heavens to the public. Ever since reading "Stranger in a Strange Land" by Robert A. Heinlein, she has been obsessed with Mars. She hopes to devote her research to learning about the mysterious Red Planet and paving the way for human settlements on our neighbor planet. In her free time, she likes to write and read. Currently she is trying to read Heinlein's complete works during her study breaks. She hopes to graduate in spring of 2009. |
 Derek Lee |
Derek Lee is an undergraduate student at the University of Toronto, studying Engineering Science and specializing in Nano-Engineering. He decided to study engineering, because he wants to be an astronaut and go into space.
His interests in astronomy and space exploration began when he first learned about the stars, and humanity's desire to explore beyond our own planet. He would love to go into space one day and to help others do the same. One way Derek educates, excites and inspires others about astronomy and space is through his role as Co-President of the University of Toronto Astronomy & Space Exploration Society (ASX). This organization holds regular events that showcase the wonders of the cosmos and our adventures to the stars. Here is a link to the ASX website: http://asx.sa.utoronto.ca/. Derek loves learning new things and living new experiences. Within the last year, he has picked up rock climbing, learned how to ice skate (in preparation for playing hockey), and can now play simple melodies on the trumpet. Through this expedition to Mars (on Earth), he hopes to experience what a Mars explorer would live through, learn and grow from that experience, and then pass the message on to others. To Mars, and beyond! |
 David Rajzman |
David Rajzman has always been a fan of adventure, and he has always loved anything and everything to do with space. His sense of adventure led him to learn about history at York University in Toronto, Canada. While studying at York, he became fascinated with spirituality and human potential.
After completing his bachelor's degree, David began his career in a retail store chain that specializes in photography and eventually became the manager of several of the stores. From there, he proceeded to pursue a Master's of Business Administration (MBA) degree at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. David hopes to combine his new-found knowledge and social networks along with his experience in management to start a commercial launch company. He and several others have already begun working on this venture, and they are off to an exciting start. David believes that the tools of business and entrepreneurship will open up the skies for humanity, and allow everyone the chance to become an astronaut if they so choose. His passions are learning, reading, helping others, and of course, SPACE! |
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Copyright © 2008 The Mars Society.
All rights reserved.
info@marssociety.org - +1 (303) 984-9653
11111 W. 8th Ave Unit A, Lakewood, CO 80215, USA
Copyright © 2008 The Mars Society.
All rights reserved.