One Way trip to mars?

[stormlord]

Ok so I finally read a small section of what's referred to here in the OP's post and I think it's great, but maybe premature. It has merit. Sending the older generation(s) is ok in my mind because you don't want to ruin your reproductive potential as a species by exposing it to suboptimal conditions. I've read that having a baby in space would not be wise because of the radiation levels and the vast unknowns. It makes sense to have our babies where we know things will work out for them: here on earth. Evolution teaches us that we evolved in this earth environment and changing that radically by having a baby in space is very irresponsible. So I think that whatever happens it'll probably be strictly controlled by a governing space agency. This proposal also reminds me of the early explorers that came to north america. It's an invigorating idea. Exploring was often a dangerous affair. This is no less risky sending the best of our older generation on a journey that will kill them. The key difference I see between then and now are the expenses. I don't think we're quite at the stage where space travel is affordable enough to send exploration parties unless you limit it to the scale of space probes. We can and have sent space probes and, at least for now, they're the explorers. I fully expect that when prices come down we will begin to launch manned missions both to the moon and to other planets in this solar system.

One of the potential propulsion systems is linked here:
Travel to Mars in 39 Days?
Another:
VASIMR, Uranium Hydride Reactor, Direct Conversion of Heat or Radiation to Electricity