NASA’s Mars Curiosity rover detected changing methane gas levels on the much-talked-about planet, spurring reports this week of the possibility of life. According to Sushil Atreya, a member of the rover team, “This temporary increase in methane–sharply up and then back down–tells us there must be some relatively localized source…biological or non-biological, such as interaction of water and rock.” This is great news for the many hopeful applicants to Mars One, the human colony project slated for 2024.

Click here to read Mankind is Mars-Bound: All the Facts on Mars One.

NASA is very clear about one thing: the discovery of fluctuating Methane levels does not mean that there absolutely life on Mars, but rather that life is one possibility among many that could account for this activity. According to John Grotzinger of the rover team,

That we detect methane in the atmosphere on Mars is not an argument that we have found evidence of life on Mars, but it’s one of the few hypotheses that we can propose that we must consider. Large organic molecules present in ancient rocks on Mars is also not an argument that there was once life on ancient Mars, but it is the kind of material you’d look for if life had ever originated on Mars.

This is not the first time that scientists have made a discovery like this one. Smaller methane fluctuations have been detected several times over the last several years, and the team was able to tap into the “hydrogen isotopes from water molecules that had been locked inside a rock sample for billions of years,” the analysis of which added to knowledge of martian water on Mars.

This illustration portrays possible ways that methane might be added to Mars’ atmosphere (sources) and removed from the atmosphere (sinks). NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover has detected fluctuations in methane concentration in the atmosphere, implying both types of activity occur in the modern environment of Mars. Courtesy of NASA/JPL -Caltech/SAM-GSFC/Univ. of Michigan.

Law Street writer Madeleine Stern wrote an in-depth explain about the Mars One program that I highly suggest you read in light of this new information coming out of NASA. Mars One, the brain child of Bas Lansdorp and Arno Wielders, is a nonprofit organization based in the Netherlands that is working toward colonizing Mars. The colony, slated to be established in 2024, will be filled with selected individuals who will make the one-way trip after a three-round selection process to weed out the competition. The first round of Mars One applicants are going to be trained for their life on Mars beginning in 2015, with aspects including physiotherapy, psychology, and exobiology–the study of alien life.

So while we wait for more answers to the questions of what the latest Mars methane discovery means and where it is coming from, you can still throw your hat into the ring to become one of the planet’s first inhabitants. Or hey, at least you can buy a $50 sweatshirt to offset the projects $6 billion price tag.

Chelsey D. Goff

Chelsey D. Goff was formerly Chief People Officer at Law Street. She is a Granite State Native who holds a Master of Public Policy in Urban Policy from the George Washington University. She’s passionate about social justice issues, politics — especially those in First in the Nation New Hampshire — and all things Bravo. Contact Chelsey at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Thanks to New Discovery Your Seat on Mars One is Looking Good appeared first on Law Street.

Imagine this: you’re in a car accident and as a result, break your arm. (Ouch.) You sue the individual who was driving the other car. The next month, you’re at a Jets game rooting for your team and post some pictures on Facebook, making one of them your new profile picture. A month later, your attorney calls you up, questioning if you posted pictures from the Jets game. As it turns out, the defendant’s demanding full access to your Facebook account to disprove your injuries. The big question is, are they entitled to access your Facebook account?

Discovery is an absolutely essential part of litigation. In basic terms, discovery fuels the arguments that each side of the lawsuit makes, by providing relevant information about the opponent. In the past, discovery typically consisted of documents, but as time and technology has progressed, electronic discovery has become more prevalent. This has raised some very interesting questions in Personal Injury Law, like the above situation.

Courts have a tough issue to handle. On the one hand, social media could be extremely relevant to a Personal Injury action. It could disprove a plaintiff’s injuries, or at the very least, make those injuries questionable. On the other hand, that is a plaintiff’s personal Facebook page. Why should the defendant have access to that personal account information?

The Balancing Act and Current Law: New York

New York courts have grappled with this issue and come up with a fairly reasonable standard in order to balance these competing interests. They have established a two-prong test for determining whether social media accounts are discoverable. First, courts must determine whether the content in the account is material and necessary. Second, courts must balance whether the production of the content would result in a violation of the account holder’s privacy rights.

For a defendant to successfully maintain access to discovery under this two-prong test, he must “establish a factual predicate for their request by identifying relevant information in plaintiff’s [social media] account-that is, information that contradicts or conflicts with plaintiff’s alleged restrictions, disabilities, and losses, and other claims.” In other words, the defendant must show that there is content on the plaintiff’s social media account that is not only relevant to the personal injury action, but also contradicts or conflicts with the plaintiff’s claims. If the defendant can establish that, then discovery of social media accounts should be permitted.

The courts have been fairly strict with applying this standard, however. The court will not allow a defendant to simply demand disclosure of social media accounts on the basis that access may reveal information that contradicts or conflicts with a plaintiff’s claim of disability. The court has labeled such a request as a “fishing expedition” and will not allow it.

The Car Accident Revisted

So, is the defendant entitled to access your Facebook account? The answer lies within the specific facts. In the original car accident example, the content of the photograph is key. If the defendant is simply asking for access to the Facebook account because it might reveal activities that contradict with the your claim, that probably will not be sufficient for the court to demand disclosure of your account information. If your profile picture portrays you fist pumping your broken arm in the air, however, it is more likely that the court will grant access to your Facebook account, since the pictures contradict the complaint regarding your broken arm.

The interesting part about Social Media discovery is that it is an evolving area of law. As social media websites continue to develop, so too must the law. It seems that New York courts have fairly balanced these competing interests thus far, but it will certainly be interesting to see what issues arise in the future.

Melissa Klafter

Melissa Klafter has a JD from St. John’s University School of Law and plans to pursue a career in Personal Injury Law. You can find her binge-watching her favorite TV shows, rooting for the Wisconsin Badgers, and playing with her kitty, Phoebe. Contact Melissa at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

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