So prominent are many of the Congress participants within the aerospace industry that they play a role akin to the one often ascribed to movie star Kevin Bacon, namesake of a popular college party game in which other actors are connected to him by virtue of movies or TV programs they appeared in. As such, these Congress-goers were tapped for the International Academy of Astronautics project to identify the positive impacts of space on society, as seen by leading figures from around the worldtargeting especially prominent people from outside the aerospace industry.

But how can a party game help set the strategy for an international space study? The answer comes from understanding that the best way to make contact with a prominent person may not be directly, but through intermediaries. If we can establish connections between people through a chain of introductions, we needn't attempt to introduce ourselves to a complete stranger.

The idea is summarized in terms of the "degree of separation" between two people, a concept that has been applied by Malcolm Gladwell in his book The Tipping Point. A couple of examples will help clarify the notion.

Imagine we wanted to get an introduction to Kevin Bacon through an actor he knows by virtue of having been in the same movie. For example, how many movies would it take to connect Bacon and the actor who played the chief engineer of the starship Enterprise in 1960s television series Star Trek? James Doohan, the actor who played Scotty on that show, also appeared in the 1994 movie New York Skyride alongside Bacon. Because they can be linked by a single movie, Doohan is separated from Bacon by one degree of separation, giving him a "Bacon Number" of 1.

Other members of the original Star Trek series have larger Bacon Numbers. For example, the Enterprises Captain Kirk, actor William Shatner, has a Bacon Number of 2. Shatner appeared in the movie Loaded Weapon 1 with Erik Estrada, and Estrada in turn appeared with Bacon in the movie We Married Margo, meaning two movies (and two actors -- Estrada and Shatner) are needed to make the connection between Bacon and Shatner. Though some of the movies that appear in the Kevin Bacon Game may be obscure, they serve the purpose of making links between actors who in some cases have never had direct contact.

The same strategy was used in Bremen last week by members of a group led by Americans Pete Swan and Cathy Swan. This team, dedicated to exploring the impact of space on society, gathered to identify colleagues who could link them to prominent leaders in areas outside of the aerospace industry. Though Kevin Bacon might be at the center of the Hollywood universe, this group is seeking the insights from a much larger universe of dignitaries.

Given that the participants at the Congress are not themselves politicians or celebrities, how can they provide connections to the Kevin Bacons of other realms? The key lies in the range of people known by many influential leaders, regardless of their area of expertise. Just as Kevin Bacon appeared in a wide variety of movies, so too do leading participants at the International Astronautical Congress move in many circles. And unlike the Kevin Bacon Game, where actors are connected only by virtue of the movies they have appeared in, at the International Astronautical Congress, the boundaries can be brokenacross fields as diverse as space law and biomedicine, or history and aeronautical engineering. Shostak provides insight into why the International Astronautical Congress is such an apt place to promote this project. As he summarizes the major activity that occurs at the meeting, "its mostly sharing of information," perhaps the most critical commodity in making connections with prominent leaders in other fields.

Not all of the contributors to the website and book are as widely known as Annan, but they are nevertheless prominent in their respective universeswhether defined by their profession or their country. For example, in Hungary, István Vágó is widely recognized as a television personality, and his participation in the societal impact group was fostered by Hungarian astronomer Ivan Almar, who has long led the International Academy of Astronautics efforts to establish a multilingual dictionary of astronautics in sixteen languages. Given the ambitious scope of this dictionary and his astronomical research ranging over a half century, Almar has prominent contacts from around the world. Upon joining the project on the Impact of Space Activities on Society, Almar also turned his attentions to his home country, where he was able to make use of his single degree of separation from Vágó. (To use the language of our analogy, its as if Vágó had an "Almar Number" of 1.)

The fact that this ambitious project is being undertaken now is no coincidence. According to Pete Swan, leader of the societal impact study group, space will become increasingly important in the coming decades, as shown by recent events. As he noted during the Bremen meeting, "Many nations have recognized that the new century offers tremendous opportunities in and around space. Chinas expectation of becoming the third nation to sponsor human space flight will be accomplished this year. ESAs (the European Space Agencys) first robotic mission to the Moon launched this week. Brazils stumble last month will not deter their efforts to reach space. Meanwhile, the X-Prize competition is in the final stretch, with testing being conducted across the globe."

Cathy Swan, another of the projects leaders, notes that space also has practical benefits that are often overlooked: "People say that space doesnt do anything for them. However, they use computers and telephones that are products of space technology." Similarly, applications of satellites range from widespread news broadcasts to improved weather forecasting. In her view, often the greatest limitation is not one of hardware or software, but a lack of inspiring goals: "if we can imagine it, someone can build it."