Sci Fi Science: Physics of the Impossible

[Wycen]

This show on the Science channel is a 30 minutes long series hosted by Michio Kuka. He explores the possibility of various staples of science fiction eventually becoming fact, such as warp drive, teleporters and light sabers.

The most recent ep I just watched was on the teleporter, which it seemed had an interesting side effect, which really makes me think it was a cloning device, since it ended up copying the person, rather than actually moving them from one place to another.

Of course, it seems at least part of what he talks about each episode has been covered in another series (some of them by him in fact), but other info is stuff I've not heard of before, like the huge planet sized space distortion necessary for an actual warp bubble.

Anybody else watching it?

 

[Merkuri]

If I got that channel this would likely be one of the shows I'd like to watch. It's not on Hulu, is it?

The most recent ep I just watched was on the teleporter, which it seemed had an interesting side effect, which really makes me think it was a cloning device, since it ended up copying the person, rather than actually moving them from one place to another.

If you pay attention to when they explain transporter technologies in most sci fi shows (like Star Trek) you'll find out that this is what actually happens. The original is destroyed, and a copy exactly like the first is created at the other end.

I always wanted to write a sci fi story that involved a transporter as brand new technology, and people coming out the other end would be... different, somehow, in a way that's hard to pin down. The explanation would be that something that makes us human, something that's not physical, like the soul, wasn't copied with the transporter.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

I always wanted to write a sci fi story that involved a transporter as brand new technology, and people coming out the other end would be... different, somehow, in a way that's hard to pin down. The explanation would be that something that makes us human, something that's not physical, like the soul, wasn't copied with the transporter.

That's kinda the "low-hanging" fruit with transporter technology, right?

Maybe it would be more interesting if this was wrong.
The soul stays. But... It was dead for a moment when the original was destroyed. And while the brain has no memory of it, the soul has. So you change without even conciously or rationally understanding why. (Question is - how do you change? For the better, for the worse? Something neutral but notable?)

 

[Atavar]

There is a short story by Stephen King called The Jaunt that does a great job describing the effects on society of the invention of teleportation technology. For example, teamsters are against it because it allows free and instant transportation of goods over long distances.

What I found interesting was the one side effect. While non-living things went through just fine, living things would come out insane and would quickly die--unless they went through while unconscious. For a human test they put a volunteer convicted murderer through with the promise of a full pardon if he survived. When he came through the other side he said, "It's eternity in there," them promptly died.

It was theorized that the problem was that a conscious mind could not handle the nothingness of non-existence. Put a person to sleep first, and he came out just fine. Put him through consciously, and his mind perceived a nigh-infinite amount of time waiting to exist again, and the wait would drive the mind insane.

Later,

Atavar

 

[Wycen]

I looked and Hulu has 1 or 2 minutes segments, not whole episodes.

 

[Wycen]

Next Tuesday it is How to be a super hero and it looks like he's going to design a suit of power armor. Awesome.

 

[SkidAce]

There was a sci-fi short story years ago that used the "teleporting is a copy" to good effect.

People voluntered to be teleported from Earth to the Moon to do some kind of mining or work/research thing. The original was still on earth, and the copy didn't know that.

Essentually there was no way for the copy to return. Very thoughtfull.

I would try to find it if anyone is interested...but its somewhere in a box.