[KillerGremlin]

....we really should try colonizing Mars because it will prove that long distance space travel is possible (as in possibly sending astronauts who don't come back) as well as surviving on a planet with no magnetic field to bombard unwanted radiation.

People are really shortsighted. You need to make your boat float before you can sail across the sea. Mars is a step on a long journey that will mark huge progress for humanity.

Prof S has made some good points in this thread, most of which I agree with.

I will say that at some point we are going to have to try making babies in space. It will be interesting to see how a human develops in a weightless environment.