Worst Movies for Science

[Kharakov]

It's the first time I'd ever seen that particular symbol. I, like Emily Lake, had no idea what it meant. I would have assumed that "colon and end parenthesis" would be the standard way to make a smiley. : ) =

I've been online since before we had smileys. In the days of pure text we had things like <G>, <LOL> etc.

Good way to cover up, mason. We all know it's the compass and the square around the G for sacred geometry (or Grand Architect). Google is never wrong!!! (Google <G> symbol)

 

[steve_bnk]

I thought Lost In Space was a good escapist scifi movie. Same with Deep Impact and CORE.

Dean Anderson said in an interview that the Star Gate was one of the best props ever.


FTL in Star Trek and the star gate provided for a lot of plot and situation variation.

Anyone have a problem with the huge rotating orbiting station in Babylon 5?

 

[Emily Lake]

I gather this is humor... what is <G>?

The old fashioned version of

In the quick editor we don't have the smilie list available and I didn't recall how to make it off the top of my head. Thus I used what we did in the old days before we had the graphics.

And before texting apparently. I fear you have just dated yourself by typing <G> instead of ": )". On the other hand, you've made me feel young at 40 so there's that!

 

[Emily Lake]

On a more topical note...

I liked Enterprise (in the Star Trek series). The technology was scientifically iffy at best, but at least the entire universe wasn't *always* good guys versus bad guys, and I liked it despite it's many flaws.

 

[Loren Pechtel]

I've been online since before we had smileys.

Doesn't mean you can't get updated.

I normally use the smilies when I'm using the full editor but I didn't realize there was a need to figure out the new version, I figured everyone would know <G>.

 

[Loren Pechtel]

The old fashioned version of

In the quick editor we don't have the smilie list available and I didn't recall how to make it off the top of my head. Thus I used what we did in the old days before we had the graphics.

And before texting apparently. I fear you have just dated yourself by typing <G> instead of ": )". On the other hand, you've made me feel young at 40 so there's that!

I don't even have a decade on you.

On the other hand, I've probably sent half a dozen texts in my life. If I don't have access to e-mail it's very unlikely I have my phone, either. I'm not on the road much. I haven't developed texting habits.

 

[steve_bnk]

Any one know who was most responsible for bringing ST to TV?

Show

Lucille Ball, , the Lu in Desilu Productions.

 

[Emily Lake]

Any one know who was most responsible for bringing ST to TV?

Show

Lucille Ball, , the Lu in Desilu Productions.

Really? I would never have guessed. How did that come about?

 

[steve_bnk]

Any one know who was most responsible for bringing ST to TV?

Show

Lucille Ball, , the Lu in Desilu Productions.

Really? I would never have guessed. How did that come about?

Most probably do not know, she became a powerful Hollywood mogul. Very smart and capable and far from her ditzy I Love Lucy character.

She took a gamble on a risky show in the times. No one really wanted it. An interracial and multi-ethnic crew. The original pilot had a strong female character as the first officer.

The premise for the show was pretty far out in the 60s as a TV show.

When it was cancelled I don't think the network understood the impact of the show. The first ST movie came about due to fan demand.

 

[credoconsolans]

What angers me more than it should is what I consider to be - by far - the dumbest line in all history of sci-fi:

Shields up!

Star Trek (all iterations) has it, Stargate (all three series) has it, obviously Star Wars has it - and virtually all movies or series or novels that involve FTL.
Assuming we'll ever have that kind of protective ”shielding” - and I won't even touch FTL or space enemies roaming around - shields will be up by default (or at the very least automated) long before we'll even attempt something remotely near FTL...

I disagree. Shields obviously use a lot of power, not to mention wear on the equipment. They are no more going to keep them up 24/7 than a warship keeps it's weapons systems hot 24/7.

Agree. In the Star Trek movie reboot, someone wondered why there were such things as mechanical locks on a docked starship in the 23rd century. I replied with the same answer. Why would they have a constant tractor beam on a ship in dock going nowhere, that's using umpteen gigawatts of power, when they can just have a physical locking device?

 

[Musing Man]

I disagree. Shields obviously use a lot of power, not to mention wear on the equipment. They are no more going to keep them up 24/7 than a warship keeps it's weapons systems hot 24/7.

You can disagree all you want, but shields are a necessity for protecting the crew from virtually everything - be it radiation, micrometeorites and many other natural threats. If one ain't properly shielded (or otherwise protected/resistant against the harsh environment), one has no business being ”out there”.

 

[bilby]

I disagree. Shields obviously use a lot of power, not to mention wear on the equipment. They are no more going to keep them up 24/7 than a warship keeps it's weapons systems hot 24/7.

You can disagree all you want, but shields are a necessity for protecting the crew from virtually everything - be it radiation, micrometeorites and many other natural threats. If one ain't properly shielded (or otherwise protected/resistant against the harsh environment), one has no business being ”out there”.

Certainly not in your shirtsleeves. A crew who are not wearing pressure suits is incredibly vulnerable to even a small breach in the hull. Personally, I won't venture aboard an unshielded starship without a pressure suit. I also insist that seatbelts be provided for use in combat conditions; and I refuse point-blank to wear a red uniform.

 

[Musing Man]

Certainly not in your shirtsleeves. A crew who are not wearing pressure suits is incredibly vulnerable to even a small breach in the hull. Personally, I won't venture aboard an unshielded starship without a pressure suit. I also insist that seatbelts be provided for use in combat conditions; and I refuse point-blank to wear a red uniform.

Tell that to captain Picard, please.
Who, by the way, unavoidably cracked me up each and every time he was using ”Number One”.


Oh, and as a supplement to the initial idea: once „out there”, shields are even more important than weapons and propulsion. I'll expand if necessary.

 

[steve_bnk]

Assuming you haw e a magical energy source( like Zero Point Modules) and a propulsion system, in scifi and with those who insist interstellar travel will be and is possible ignore several things.

The reaction forces in the structure would be tremendous. As the engines push the structure will want to bend and twist. F = MA. Same with those high speed turns.

When Enterprise makes a quick stop from high speed, all that kinetic energy has to show up somewhere. That would be heat in the structure. Just like car brakes getting hot.

ST had structural integrity fields that kept the ship together, but that is boot strapping. The field generator would be tied to the structure and mechanical forces would appear at that point. Same with shields and deflector beams.

Navigation is never really discussed. Captain Picard commands 'All stop!'. Within a few moments someone responds 'All forward motion stopped'. Relative to what?

Shields would be a requirement. Space is not empty.

But the thing is the original writers and producers created a 'fictional' reality not conceivable with conventional science as a backdrop for telling stories. That is the fiction in 'science fiction'. Fleshed out in STNG and DS9.

It is not supposed to be reality based.

If a movie adheres to known science,then it is fiction, not science fiction.

 

[Loren Pechtel]

I disagree. Shields obviously use a lot of power, not to mention wear on the equipment. They are no more going to keep them up 24/7 than a warship keeps it's weapons systems hot 24/7.

You can disagree all you want, but shields are a necessity for protecting the crew from virtually everything - be it radiation, micrometeorites and many other natural threats. If one ain't properly shielded (or otherwise protected/resistant against the harsh environment), one has no business being ”out there”.

I think we would see two types of system.

There would be a low-energy shielding system to protect the ship & crew from the natural hazards of space. This would always be up. There would also be a much higher energy system to protect the ship in combat and against extreme natural hazards. This would only be used when in combat or the like.

 

[Loren Pechtel]

Assuming you haw e a magical energy source( like Zero Point Modules) and a propulsion system, in scifi and with those who insist interstellar travel will be and is possible ignore several things.

The reaction forces in the structure would be tremendous. As the engines push the structure will want to bend and twist. F = MA. Same with those high speed turns.

I disagree.

1) Warp drives do not actually move you at those high speeds and thus do not produce g forces in the ship.

2) Impulse drives are another matter but a drive which produces gravity might leave the crew in freefall even when under high acceleration.

When Enterprise makes a quick stop from high speed, all that kinetic energy has to show up somewhere. That would be heat in the structure. Just like car brakes getting hot.

Extreme heat shows up when you dissipate the energy of motion as friction. That's not an option in space, though--there are no brakes until you have atmosphere. You turn and stop the ship the same way you started it--with your engines. Since their energy obviously doesn't show up in the ship accelerating you it doesn't stopping you, either.

ST had structural integrity fields that kept the ship together, but that is boot strapping. The field generator would be tied to the structure and mechanical forces would appear at that point. Same with shields and deflector beams.

I disagree on the structural integrity field generator. It makes the material stronger, no force shows up at the generator.

You're definitely right on the deflectors and probably right on the shields.

Navigation is never really discussed. Captain Picard commands 'All stop!'. Within a few moments someone responds 'All forward motion stopped'. Relative to what?

I would assume the biggest mass in the neighborhood.

 

[barbos]

"Alll stop" means in relation to anything nearby - planet, star, ship, etc.
And objects like stars/planets within galaxy have natural and pretty low speed limit anyway, so they are practically at rest compared to your typical starship.

Lack of automation in the not so distant future is noticeable but understandable because automation would kill 90% of script.
Lack of seat belts is possible to get rid of but I think they want to keep resemblance to original Star Trek.
Even so, "ST Enterprise" was easy on killing people due to lack of seat belts.

 

[WAB]

I've been online since before we had smileys. In the days of pure text we had things like <G>, <LOL> etc.

Good way to cover up, mason. We all know it's the compass and the square around the G for sacred geometry (or Grand Architect). Google is never wrong!!! (Google <G> symbol)

Are you sure you're on the level? ; )

 

[barbos]

"Shields up" is easily explained, it means protection is turned on continuously on all surfaces.
Shields are against weapon fire, specifically against fast things like plasma or even laser beams.
You can't have automated system against that, so you turn your shields ON.

 

[steve_bnk]

I disagree.

1) Warp drives do not actually move you at those high speeds and thus do not produce g forces in the ship.

2) Impulse drives are another matter but a drive which produces gravity might leave the crew in freefall even when under high acceleration.

When Enterprise makes a quick stop from high speed, all that kinetic energy has to show up somewhere. That would be heat in the structure. Just like car brakes getting hot.

Extreme heat shows up when you dissipate the energy of motion as friction. That's not an option in space, though--there are no brakes until you have atmosphere. You turn and stop the ship the same way you started it--with your engines. Since their energy obviously doesn't show up in the ship accelerating you it doesn't stopping you, either.

ST had structural integrity fields that kept the ship together, but that is boot strapping. The field generator would be tied to the structure and mechanical forces would appear at that point. Same with shields and deflector beams.

I disagree on the structural integrity field generator. It makes the material stronger, no force shows up at the generator.

You're definitely right on the deflectors and probably right on the shields.

Navigation is never really discussed. Captain Picard commands 'All stop!'. Within a few moments someone responds 'All forward motion stopped'. Relative to what?

I would assume the biggest mass in the neighborhood.

Oh the irony. now it is you abusing science by invoking magical proprieties of a magical warp drive. What a laugh. The existing warp drive theory requires an energy source with a negative sign.

In some episodes Enterprise faces destruction due to runaway warp speed. STNG invoked 'inertial dampers' that kept people from flying around during those warp speed turns.

The kinetic energy due to a slowing will show up as heat in the structure due to friction and deformations due to mechanical stress.


Even with 99.999% efficiency the waste heat from those tera watt generators would cook the crew inside a ship in a vacuum.

All the power generated by the ship minus thermal radiation and whatever mass exhaust there is will show up as heat in the ship. Toaster oven. unless you wish to ignore Thermo 101.

The space shuttle with its low electrical heat load could not stay up if the bay doors could not be opened exposing the radiators. You can look at radiator area required for the ISS.