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[ Music ]

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>> I'm CJ Bixby, I am the Chief
of the Systems Engineering

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and Integration Branch,

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at NASA's Armstrong
Flight Research Center.

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I think there's a good chance

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that Armstrong will still
be here in 60 years.

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I think we have a few
things going for us.

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We have access to restricted
air space and the lake beds,

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and about 345 days of
great flying weather.

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That gives us a lot of
flexibility to do the kind

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of missions that we do.

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We have world class capabilities
in flight research integration.

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Our mission here is to advance
knowledge through flight.

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So, basically what
we do is we look

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up to get knowledge
about the universe.

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We look down and sniff
around to get knowledge

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about the Earth and
the atmosphere.

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And we look at the
thing that we're flying

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to advance knowledge
about aeronautics.

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I don't think that
all the mysteries

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of those three things will
be solved in 60 years.

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I think we're actually kind of
adding to mystery at this point.

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So, I think there's a really
good chance that the kind

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of thing that we do here will
still be really relevant.

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And that we'll still
need to fly machines

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in relevant environments
to get that kind of data.

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So, I think we'll still be here,
and I think we'll be vibrant,

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robust contributors
to the knowledge base.

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So, I don't know what exactly
we'll be working on in 60 years,

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but I think there's
a good chance

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that we'll still be integrating,
simulating, modeling,

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and bringing new technologies to
flight in order to learn stuff

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about the universe, and the
planet, and the things that fly.

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We're in a really
interesting time right now

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where technologies are kind of
coming together and it looks

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like markets might open up to
increase accessibility, speed,

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and efficiency of air transport.

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And we don't know which of
those technologies is going

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to kind of win.

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You know, what -- which of
those technologies is going

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to pan out.

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Something will.

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And so, I think that you know,

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our workforce will
still be doing

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that really interesting work of
bringing technologies together,

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and working out how to make
complex systems work together

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to open those markets
and refine the vehicles

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that will operate
in those markets.

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A visionary from 60 years
ago would be both amazed

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and a little bit disappointed.

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I think the compute
power that we have

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and the way we use
it would probably,

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even if they had been able
to anticipate some of that,

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just the fact of it would
probably be amazing.

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The way that we use computers
and airplanes, and the amount

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of calculations they do,
you know, in real time,

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I think that would
be pretty amazing

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to somebody from 60 years ago.

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The fidelity of our models

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and our simulations I think
would be pretty mind-blowing

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to somebody from 60 years ago.

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And you know, we all carry

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around in our pocket
this computer,

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and it's an encyclopedia,
and a phone, and a camera.

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And you know, I think -- and
the fidelity of that screen,

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just the way the color and
the resolution of that screen

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in that little, tiny package,
and the way we use it.

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Like, we -- I navigate
to the grocery store

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with a computer in
my pocket, right?

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If you try to explain
to somebody in 1958

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that I was doing that, and
they're thinking in 1958 terms

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about what a phone,
and a computer,

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and an encyclopedia look like,

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they would probably think
we were nuts, right?

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So, I think that part
would be amazing.

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I think the thing that would be
a little bit disappointing is

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that we don't have flying cars,
and we don't -- and there's --

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and alot of our technology maybe
hasn't accomplished what you

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might have hoped it
would accomplish.

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I think it's human to think
that technology is going

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to solve a lot of
human problems.

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And we still have a lot of
stuff that we're dealing

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with that our technology
hasn't solved.

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And sometimes our technology
exacerbates problems before it

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solves them, right?

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So, I think that would be
a little bit disappointing.

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We still do a lot of our work,

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we do it a little bit
by rote sometimes.

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We have rote process,
we have bureaucracy.

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Our technology didn't
solve out that for us.

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And I think that would
probably be disappointing.

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But, I think what would be
super satisfying for somebody

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from 60 years ago is
to see our workforce,

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and the way our workforce
works with the kind of courage,

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and integrity, and persistence
that they worked with.

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And I think that would
be extremely satisfying

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to somebody from 60 years ago.

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I think Armstrong's workforce

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in the next 60 years will
look a lot like they do today.

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They'll be generalists,
they'll be innovators,

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they'll be integrators.

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I hope they're more diverse.

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I hope they look more like
the general population

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than we do today.

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We're not bad, but
we could be better.

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And I hope for that diversity,
because that's strength, right?

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I mean, my team fills
in my blind spots.

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So, the better, more
diverse my team is,

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the fewer blind spots
I'm going to end up with.

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I also am interested
in that diversity,

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because one of the easiest paths
to inspiration is to be able

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to see somebody that
you recognize as being

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like you doing something
really challenging.

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So, if we have a really
diverse workforce,

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we have the opportunity
to inspire a diverse group

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of people to come work with us

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and solve these really
challenging problems

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that are going to need a
really wide perspective

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in order to solve.

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I think that our future
workforce will be really

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comfortable with a lot of tools
that we can just dream of today.

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I think there will probably be
some language translation tools

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that are kind of seamless.

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There'll be some really
seamless collaboration tools.

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They'll just be -- and maybe
even some digital coworkers,

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right?

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And they'll be able to
interface with these machines,

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and these algorithms in a
way that we can't do today.

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We don't do a good
job of parsing

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up human/machine tasks right
now, in 60 years I hope

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that we make some
progress there.

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So, that their digital coworkers
will actually be pretty

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productive in that relationship,

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so called relationship would
pretty productive as well.

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But, I think if we
do our job right

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that we'll recognize
Team Armstrong 2078.

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Because the youngest
among us here

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in Team Armstrong 2018 will have
taught the oldest among Team

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Armstrong 2078 about the
persistence, the courage,

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and the innovation that
is needed to challenge --

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to tackle these really
challenging problems.

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Sometimes the facilities I
think, they'll look a lot

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like they do now on the outside,
but they'll be more powerful

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on the inside, I hope.

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I think -- I hope that
we'll have some --

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the ability to sort of,

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reconfigure our office
space really easily,

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so that it will accommodate
teamwork and individual work,

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maybe some kind of
lab work as well.

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I hope that we have really
seamless collaboration tools.

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I imagine that a lot of us
will continue to show up here,

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but our work has always
been about partnerships,

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and we'll need really seamless
tools to collaborate widely.

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I think that there's some really
interesting things happening

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right now We're kind
of on the cusp

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of some really interesting
data storage and retrieval.

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And I hope that that enables
us to get rid of paper.

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So, I hope that in 2078, some

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of our younger coworkers
have not seen a piece

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of paper in the workplace.

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I also hope that
we've figured out how

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to configure personal devices

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and professional
devices really easily,

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so that we can protect
our personal information

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and the government's
information.

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And I hope that, you know,

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we continue to expand
our capability to care

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for each other when we're here.

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So, that we have, you know,

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sort of world class medical
facilities, and gyms,

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and opportunities to
rest and recreate,

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and healthy eating options
for our world class workforce.

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That's up to us.

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A lot of people from my
generation wanted to work

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at NASA because we saw
moon landings on TV.

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We saw people really pushing
the envelope in every sense

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to do something really
difficult.

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And if we approach our
challenges the way the Apollo

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generation approached theirs,
if we choose to explore boldly

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as one, then people now and
in the future will be inspired