Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Connection to "Star Trek".

• Author: Chandler, David L.
• Position: LIFE IN AMERICA

AEROSPACE engineer Aprille Joy Ericsson, a mission manager at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center and an alumna of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, recalled at an MIT celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life and work how a conversation with the civil rights leader affected a Hollywood actress' career decision--and in turn helped to inspire Ericsson and many others of her generation to enter the world of aerospace engineering.

Nichelle Nichols, the actress who played Lt. Uhura in the original "Star Trek" series, was not under contract, Ericsson explains: "King shared with her that 'Star Trek' was one of the few TV shows he would let his children watch, primarily because of her role as chief technical officer on the Starship Enterprise," which was so different than most portrayals of African-American women on television. After her conversation with King, Nichols reconsidered her plans to leave the show. She went on to provide a role model that Ericsson said helped propel her and many others into a career in the space program.

"Space travel has become a routine part of our daily lives," though it remains a dangerous occupation, Ericsson says. Recalling the daring commitment that Pres. John F. Kennedy made, launching the U.S. toward landing on the moon, she notes, "I believe that challenge is before us again."

Ericsson graduated from MIT just four months after the first space shuttle disaster, the Challenger accident in 1986. She earned her doctorate at Howard University and soon after went to work for NASA. "I followed my dream to explore space," but that road was not without its obstacles. "Discrimination affects us all," and yet the "inclusion of women and minorities" in working teams of all kinds, "is imperative. When I work with science and engineering teams, I know that each one on that team is important.

"We scientists are agents of change," she adds. "Let's embrace ['Star Trek' creator] Gene Roddenberry's vision of diversity in space. We must work together across the differences of skin color, gender, and religion.... We are making this journey together, in a drive to make this world a better place."

Ericsson suggests that people should think of their lives as if they were governed by an imaginary bank, which each day credits us with 86,400 seconds--but wipes out the balance at the end of the day. Make use of that time, and remember that it is fleeting. "I say, invest it. Please...