Good Science and Bad Science And Lack Thereof In Science Fiction Films and TV Series

[Lumens]

A very good point - and welcome to the chrons forums.

Thank you Brian. I have a feeling I will like it very much here.

 

[BAYLOR]

Thank you Brian. I have a feeling I will like it very much here.

Welcome to Chrons Lumens

 

[BAYLOR]

Lucy. That 2014 movie killed my brain with its' stupidity and scientific myths about the brain. Morgan Freeman was that movie's only saving grace!

The film made no sense whatsoever .

 

[Lumens]

Totally agree @BAYLOR - The myth about us only using a small part of our brain is slow to die.

SPOILER: ...and using 100% makes us into gods, but also kills us at the same time - is that not a bit of a contradiction...? Oh well.

 

[Danny McG]

Like the people who would spray disinfectant into a computer if they heard it had a virus.

What? Are you saying that doesn't work or something?
Confused now

 

[BAYLOR]

I think we can safely say that many of the ship designs we see in science fiction movies and tv are more fanciful then practical.

 

[BAYLOR]

While the skull of Spinosaur suggests it was probably was more interested in fish. Them not existing at the same time is a moot point since it is set in the here and now and it was up to Hammond which dinosaurs they brought back. Hell, they brought back stegosaurus, which in time is farther removed from the T-rex than we are.

About 80 million years separates both Dinosaurs . Stegosaurs was gone long before Rex arrived on the scene.

 

[psikeyhackr]

Stegosaurs was gone long before Rex arrived on the scene.

What! You mean all of those movie fights between Rex and Steggy were fantasy?

psik

 

[Venusian Broon]

What! You mean all of those movie fights between Rex and Steggy were fantasy?

psik

I believe you would have got duels between Rex and Triceps though, I'm sure that would make up for it.

 

[Mirannan]

What! You mean all of those movie fights between Rex and Steggy were fantasy?

psik

I think it's worth mentioning that allosaurs (which look quite a lot like tyrannosaurs, except smaller and longer arms) lived at the same time as Stegosaurus.

 

[hej]

I don't think there's one single thing about Space 1999 that didn't make me cringe.

I tried to watch it an episode, oh, about a year or two ago. Boy was it bad!

 

[hej]

NASA actually did studies of how long people could survive vacuum. It's not instant death, but then it's not minutes either. I'm pretty sure he'd have survived for the 15 seconds or so he was in vacuum.

Good to know.

That scene always hung in my mind. I could never decide whether it was possible -- or merely poetic license.

Thank you for giving creedence to it being plausible.

 

[hej]

What does a 400 foot monster like Godzilla eat to sustain himself? Plankton maybe?

The idea never crossed my mind. I must say that I only watch movies with Godzilla when I was a kid. Even then I was underwhelmed. Before your comment, I considered Godzilla silly. Now, I think of it as preposterous.

 

[hej]

Another thing I take issue with is the lights inside the helmet of a space suit. Almost all scifi space suits do this. It reduces visibility in a dark environment. I understand why film makers do this, to make sure we can see the faces of the actors, but it still takes me out of the illusion.

I never quite had that problem with the lights. I was mostly able to suspend my disbelief -- though I did sense something not quite right.

You hit the nail on the head. Thank you for clarifying (to me) why I felt a bit uneasy with those helms.

 

[hej]

Pointing out flaws in The Star Wars universe always seemed to be a pointless exercise. It's more a fantasy setting and has no claims to be accurate in the first place

As I studied Archaeology, mistakes or lies in movies really sting. Aliens v predator had the Aztecs build a temple 4000 years ago. Before 1100ad the aztecs didn't exist.

I agree with you on Star Wars. I see the series as more space fantasy than space scifi.

Cool that you studied archeology. Perhaps, you would be kind enough to post constructive criticism of my description of the Neolithic -- when I have my story ready.

I am eager to be sure of what did not exist -- and what did.

 

[Khuratokh]

I think it's worth mentioning that allosaurs (which look quite a lot like tyrannosaurs, except smaller and longer arms) lived at the same time as Stegosaurus.

Yes, it's fascinating to note how often in Earths natural history that "T-rex theropod" configuration pops up. Often with considerable gaps in between.

 

[Vertigo]

Both books and films are guilty of this one. Magnetic boots for walking about on the outside of spaceships. It's been discussed elsewhere on Chrons before but worth a mention here. Why would anyone build a spaceship using a ferromagnetic material like iron, nickel, cobalt etc? They are all way too heavy for spaceship construction.

 

[hej]

Both books and films are guilty of this one. Magnetic boots for walking about on the outside of spaceships. It's been discussed elsewhere on Chrons before but worth a mention here. Why would anyone build a spaceship using a ferromagnetic material like iron, nickel, cobalt etc? They are all way too heavy for spaceship construction.

At first I thought "preposterous." On second thought, I reckon a moving magnetic field could allow for something like magnetic boots. Does anyone else see it this way? Or is it just me?

 

[Vertigo]

At first I thought "preposterous." On second thought, I reckon a moving magnetic field could allow for something like magnetic boots. Does anyone else see it this way? Or is it just me?

Yes that idea was discussed previously but it seems like an horrendously overly complex and expensive solution just to allow for the occasional forays onto the outer hull. I think the gecko idea that also crops up so often in SF is much more likely and/or simple safety lines, which I think is what is used on the ISS.

 

[Brian G Turner]

Both books and films are guilty of this one. Magnetic boots for walking about on the outside of spaceships. It's been discussed elsewhere on Chrons before but worth a mention here. Why would anyone build a spaceship using a ferromagnetic material like iron, nickel, cobalt etc? They are all way too heavy for spaceship construction.

Curious - I envisage use of powerful electromagnetic fields acting as a form of shield - not least to protect against radiation in space - so a significant part of the ship would need to be ferromagnetic. However, I would also imagine that would need a protective layer around it - perhaps a composite foam, which may or may not need to be conductive. I also wouldn't imagine us trying to lift materials directly from the planet's surface, but instead mining in space - hence any shipyards as more likely to be in safe proximity to the asteroid belt, rather than in Earth orbit.