CDfM Episode #1 An Introduction to Reproduction on Mars
Welcome to Civilisation Design for Mars.
This time we’re looking at reproduction on Mars.
As I design a legal and ethical framework for a civilisation on our alternate planet as we become multi-planetary, this channel documents controversial and notable topics encountered along the way. All policies discussed are intended for Mars, not earth.
Today: An introduction to reproduction on Mars.
Reproduction and immigration are the only two methods of populating land masses available to us. Currently our only method of reproduction is growing new people inside existing humans. Do we want to take this method of reproduction to Mars? Would it work? How important is immigration for populating Mars? How will earthlings treat martian humans? We look at these and other issues in this introduction to reproduction on Mars.
Single-generation versus multi-generation society.
A single-generation Mars mission could seek for humans to arrive and exist for just one lifetime - or slightly less because the first years of those lives would necessarily be spent on earth. If we want the Mars project to continue beyond the length of one human life, we need a mechanism to achieve this.
Population options.
Our current options for populating an alternate planet are a) immigration from earth, b) human reproduction or c) a combination of the two. These are the same options that earth countries currently face, a) inviting people from other countries to populate your nation or b) creating more people inside the bodies of existing citizens and non-citizens. On earth, we use a combination of both practices to populate our territories.
Adults and children.
When we first arrive on Mars, we don’t need just any people to populate it. We need adults with certain skills. They include infrastructure builders, engineers, astronauts, specialist scientists attempting to solve problems of biology, chemistry and physics in a highly hostile environment.
In the first phases of the Mars mission, only those entities authorised for work activities will be permitted on Mars, android and human. This has similarities with work and research stations in hostile or dangerous environments on earth like oil rigs at sea, construction sites, submarines and polar research stations. That means, Mars will first be populated via immigration from earth of working adults with employment contracts based on earth and space law. They will have been socialised and learnt their relevant skill set on earth. This will be the case for the first few phases of work on Mars. Much as children are not allowed to live on construction sites on earth, children do not have a role to play in the early phases of development on Mars.
The question of reproduction.
Once infrastructure on Mars has reached a phase where its atmosphere, structures and systems are stable enough to support working experts, we can consider inviting non-expert adult immigrants from Earth to trial living there. These humans will settle on Mars the way we live in our homes on Earth. These immigrants will not be required to be space science and engineering experts. Once adult non-expert immigrants from earth prove able to live meaningfully on Mars, only then will the notion of bringing children from earth or allowing reproduction on Mars even come into question. Actually, a practice relating to reproduction will arise sooner but in a negative sense. Similar to the rules of construction sites on earth, human reproduction will be explicitly “not permitted” on Mars until this point of societal stability is deemed to have been reached.
Can we reproduce on Mars?
Up to this point in human history, we have only grown people inside human bodies on earth, within earth gravity. Mars has low gravity relative to earth. If earth gravity is required to fertilise ova with sperm and grow humans successfully, insemination and gestation may need to occur within a relatively high gravity environment. Creating this environment may be possible within a rotating structure just off the surface which creates enough centrifugal force to simulate earth gravity. If we choose the practice of using women’s bodies to grow new humans to populate Mars, this could mean continuously sending women to a higher gravity tube for at least 9 months. We have time available to consider other methods.
Mars, not earth.
Everything discussed here is a policy recommendation for Mars, not earth. Earth has complex and deep running social conventions and systems for reproduction which have their pros and cons. However, they are relatively stable, if ethically questionable, and unlikely to change radically based on policy recommendation alone. The following ideas are intended for an alternate planet. The introduction of these ideas on earth could be counterproductive to a harmonious society, potentially causing harm to a number of people. Mars, however, will be a civilisation based on a new balance between humans and technology at its core. Once established on Mars and if functioning, there is a likelihood that the demonstration of the practice of these ideas may eventually influence earth. However, these ideas are not intended for earth first.
External, artificial wombs.
The science of creating life within an external womb is challenging however it is achievable. It is believed to be possible but is not legal nor currently considered ethical on earth to create humans this way. With further work, the question will not be “can we create humans on Mars in this way?”, but rather “should we create humans on Mars?” or “at what point in the Mars project should we create humans on Mars?” It is perfectly possible that reproduction is not deemed to be an appropriate means of populating Mars at any point. However, this depends on the aims of the Mars project as a whole. E.g. if the Mars project seeks to make Mars a branch of humanity that is entirely self-sufficient, then this would only be deemed successful once reliable human reproduction is achieved.
The more complex questions around this technology on Mars relate to whether we want to create and grow new humans on Mars at all, whether we can provide a stable society which enables these humans to thrive physically, psychologically and socially. I.e. how we relate to them and they to us, and how we want to live together as a society there. The core questions of ethics.
Nuclear and communal living.
The infrastructure we build on Mars will encourage particular family formations, for example. If we build individual homes and assume sexual reproduction between heterosexual monogomous couples, we would recreate Earth's modern nuclear family. If we use external wombs to grow children, we might find we can live differently: the challenges and opportunities of life on Mars could see us living more communally, as a village of people who live and work together, with breeders - providing genetic material to grow new people - but with villages caring more collectively for the young - and old actually. For us as a species we need to look at what this change would mean for us as children, people, carers and guardians on an ethical, legal and societal level.
Breeders and non-breeders.
Using wombs external to our bodies could also bring a shift in personal identity, moving away from the male and female identities so normalised on earth. The difference between male and female may become defunct and a differentiation between breeders and non-breeders may be more important on Mars. For example, breeders could be anyone giving their genetic material to create and raise a child.
However, if reproduction in external wombs provides us with a predictable and reliable supply of the next generation, we may not place as much importance on whether someone is a breeder or not. The more complex task of raising, educating and enabling new generations to be socialised and develop meaningful lives on Mars may well be seen as the more complex art. In this light, if growing new humans remains an important part of society on Mars, it is likely that all adults in a given settlement or village will have some duty of care towards others there, young and old.
Martians and earthlings.
Attempting to understand and foresee the psychological impact of being the first humans born on Mars will be an important consideration. We have time now to consider what it will mean - or whether it means anything - to these humans to be the first ever humans not to have a physical connection with earth and not to be socialised on earth. It may be that they can handle it just fine. However, the earthlings on Mars, and on earth, may well see the human martians as different and treat them as such perhaps even simply by constantly asking whether they feel different and interrupting them in the midst of living life as they would.
An important consideration at all times on Mars will be how the people there, systems and behaviours support all Mars citizens to act socially, psychologically and physically responsibly towards others - in this case especially the first born human martians - so that they have the best possible chance to thrive and flourish there in the short, medium and long term.
Next time we look at the question: “should we go to Mars?” That’s all for this episode. Please subscribe, share your thoughts in the comments and thanks for listening to civilisation design for Mars.
Copyright 2022 S J A Giblin