FAWRE - revisited!!!

For those who don't know, FAWRE was a post I posted a while back about our fire-based technology (it can be found here). In concluding it, I promised to explore other types or paths that technology could go. However, I never did get around to writing the followup... Until now...

"Da-da-da-DA-du da-da-da-DA-du da-da-da-DA-DA! du-du-du-DUN..."

Of course, there are many avenues that the development of technology can take. In theory, they should take different paths but lead to the same final epiphany in which the species is able to harvest all the energy in the universe and create another one...

Ya know, maybe I should say, "In my theory..." But enough of that.

Below is the list of possible technology bases that we will be exploring. If by some divine chance do I miss one that you deem unmissable, please let me know by commenting on the post.

Here they are:

1. Earth - "You can't explore other worlds if you don't know your own." I want to go into a bit more detail than I did in FAWRE especially on what fire was originally good for and look at what else could pop up in a civilization that is land-based.

-Fire: I'll go into some more detail about what fire really gave humanity.

-Some other chemical reactions: PLEASE HELP, I NEED SUGGESTIONS!

2. Water - I don't mean technology based on water, but rather what technologies might appear in a civilization that lives primarily underwater.

- Hydrolysis: The separation of water into oxygen and hydrogen by applying a current. THe current could be made through some evolved part of the creature's body.

- Cavitation: Apparently infinite energy is contained in cavitation bubbles. These tiny pockets of vacuum form when a solid object moves through water quickly. Over time, they can eat away at metal and frequently cause damage to submarines. They can also be made through sound waves in water.

3. Gas - Think water but on a gas planet. What would develop there? I am currently toying with the idea of plasma, or ionized gas.

- Telekinesis: I dunno, maybe a super-evolved creature could manipulate gas molecules together to form chemical reactions... If you don't believe in the power of the mind, perhaps they use magnetism.

- Plasma: Plasma is ionized gas, very hot and very magnetic. On a gas giant, gas and electrical storms might produce some sustainable version of it. The only problem for our floating caveman? How to contain it of course...

This is a picture I did in Ai CS4... if you like it A LOT, you could buy a print here.

Ok, thanks for that. For all those who were waiting, there you go. And for all those who had their interest piqued, enjoy. Suggestions and unfriendly advice is welcome.
-torwch

Bush-Whacking

This is for you clay, and that anon. guy... C:

1. There was never any indication that Iraq was involved in the hijacking in airplanes on September 11th. Its government never harbored terrorists, never had weapons of mass destruction, had never attacked the United States, and had never threatened the United States. So why did they invade?

2. Oil?

3. Weapons contracts?

4. The heck of it?

5. 'Cause the Saudi's wanted them to?

6. In his first 8 months in office, George W. Bush spent about 40% of his time on vacation in Texas; according to the Washington post. Don't believe me? Click here.

7. When the first plane hit the tower, W was in a Florida classroom, watching some kids read. Now thats pretty nice, I mean a president should do that sort of thing, get out and listen to his people. However, when he was informed that a second plane had hit, he spent another 7 minutes in the classroom before he decided to leave and DO SOMETHING. You don't wait 7 minutes, yo go immediately. The kids will understand, because their nation is under attack.

8. After 9/11, all aircraft were grounded. EXCEPT several planes carrying Osama Bin Laden's relatives out of the country. WTF?!! Usually you interview the family members of a murderer, not LET THEM GO. To be fair though, the Saudi's and indeed the Bin Laden's have "contributed" over $1.4 billion to the Bush's coffers over the years. That kind of money will buy a lot of love.

9. During the invasion of Afghanistan, only 11,000 troops were stationed in Iraq. There are more POLICE stationed in NEW YORK than were put into Afghanistan. Sure, other countries sent in their troops, but still... If you know that the man who masterminded the largest attack on American Soil was being hidden in a country, you would send EVERYONE in. Get the sucker out!

10. One last thing: It may not sound relevant, but dig deeper and it it: Saudi Arabia has invested over $860 billion in the US economy. Thats 6-7 % of America's economy. Again, that will buy a lot of love.

"Happy, happy, happy. Put it in your heart, where tomorrow shines..."

Look, I don't hate the guy, but he wasn't the perfect prez so many people rave about.
-torwch

List of the Week (Jumping the Shark)

I wanted to post something relevant, but I couldn't think of anything. Here we go.

Darkest Days of History:

7. Cannae, Battle of. 80,000 Romans enter, 5000 leave.

6. Inquisition, Spanish. Start of a 400 year long reign of savage interrogation and execution.

5. Rome, fall of. The end of real civilization for 600 years.

4. August 2, 1934. Hitler takes complete power of Germany.

3. Baghdad, Battle of. Mongol forces kill over 1 million civilians as they sack the Islamic Capital.

2. 9/11. Terrorists (not Bush) destroy the World Trade Center. Begins the War on Terror.

1. Sept. 5. Any year. School starts for millions in the western world. 'Nuff said.

Angst, Angst, Angst...

Truths of Life:

Yes, there is someone with a P90 right outside that window.
No, they don't respect you.
Yes, it does require a monthly fee.
No, you can't sharpen your pencil/get a drink/use your calculator.
Yes, it is a scam.
No, the answer wasn't supposed to be rounded.
Yes, they are spamming elite skirmishers.
No, he wasn't screen-peeking. Really.
Yes, your shoes/iPod/operating system are outdated.
No, you don't know enough.
Yes, Obama does own GM.
No, this post doesn't have anything relevant to say

Update!

Yes, this crap was clearly explained earlier.
No, that's just the tax.
Yes, your Wii Sports age is spot on.
No, your jokes aren't funny.
Yes, Dumbledore is gay.
No, it's not enough to be smart and/or funny.
Yes, there's no difference between Coke Zero and Diet Coke.

Staging a Coup

In many science fiction books you read, society has taken strange turns and strange ways of governance. very few of these books go into any detail as to HOW these changes came about. Revolution? Conquest? A politi.cal party?

What I am trying to ask is this: If and when we realize that our society's system is flawed, how can we change it?

An example would be prudent: A Brave New World - written in 1932 by Aldous Huxley, tells of a world were people are manufactured to fit certain niches in society. There are the lowly epsilons, who preform most of the manual labor and are half brain-dead. Then we have the Alpha's, or even the Alpha double-plus's. They oversee and "govern" the world while partying and, shall we say, making effective use of contraceptives... I put govern in "quotations" because there is really no Big-Brother like figure who starts the whole thing. The system has become self-sustaining, without the need for a dictator to run it.

Could a change in how our society is run like this ever happen? It would not take place overnight, but perhaps over a number of years could we bring about such a large change?

A problem with coups is that they don't last. As soon as the dictator dies, in an assassination or through old age, god forbid; the revolution is OVER! Even if they appoint their own son or daughter, their values are different and society's change is gone. Evidently, a leaderless revolution is needed...

But where can we find one? What world-wide organization continues to gain new converts everyday all the while having no visible or provable leader? Doh, religion of course. So I propose that the only way our society could drastically change is through a revolution PIGGYBACKING on religion...

Through a jihad it would spread through the world and BAM, a whole new planet, ready to serve. So to all the revolutionaries out there: if you want your thing to succeed, get God on your side. He's invincible.

Anarchy WIN- -torwch

List of the Week (Pilot Episode)

Hello you three. (sob...) I thought that the site was taking an intellectual upturn, so I've decided to instate a weekly list of stuff. What stuff you ask? Well, it's mostly the waste of your higher brain functions. Like environmental activism.

Most Over Used Jokes Evar.

7. Anything involving your mother.

6. Anything on Disney Channel.

5. This is even more (blank) than that time I (blanked) with (blank).

4. Interupting a silence with a fart. Lame.

3. Puns of any sort.. God. Not funny for Shakespeare, not funny for anyone.

2. Anything with a misinterpreted "that's what she said" meaning.

And #1 is...
George Bush is stupid.

Oh, and instantmartians.com celebrates it's 100th hit. Keep it up!

Comment on any others you find. More lists to come.

Claymore

Big Guns

Just because I am in a good mood, and have been surfing Wikipedia for an hour, here is some more stuff to fear in the world: You don't need nukes to have a good time."

That, believe it or not, is NOT the sun. No. It is something much better... It is the 8 kilometer in diameter fireball caused in the first few milliseconds of the Czar Bomba's ignition. The Czar Bomba is currently the world's most powerful nuke. Developed in Russia, it has a blast radius 20 times wider than the bomb dropped at Horoshima. When the ruskies tested it, they only used half the full yield, for fear the fallout would produce a nuclear winter. HELL YA!

This is a White Phosphorus bomb dropped in a training exercise over the USS Alabama 80 years ago. White phosphorus ignites at only a few degrees above room temperature upon contact with air. Once ignited it will continue to burn even underwater and without exposure to oxygen. Due to its habit of sticking to skin and burning for hours (ouch) it is now classified as a war crime to use it offensively in combat. It is still used in many smoke grenades though...

One word: Napalm... If your whole experience with flame throwers comes from CoD 5, you have something to learn. This photo is of a US boat in Vietnam pwning up some unfortunate thing on land. As you can see, the fire is being thrown over a hundred feet. This is achieved with a jellied form of gasoline. The added viscosity gives it much more omph...

Hope you enjoyed that; torwch out.

Hail to the Chimp (Lol Monkeys)

Ok. Get out your angry stationary. My top prez would not be Obama. (If you need an explaination why just say so.)

Now, before I get ahead of my racist self, I should say who I think is better. Ronald Reagan was perhaps, the best leader of the 20th century. Lowering taxes, and essentially starting the break-up of the horrific Soviet Union, he laid the foundations for today. He also was a semi-champion of gay rights (Don't think so? See for yourself) If he hadn't resisted the U.S.S.R., where would we be now? Democrats would probably have turned us into a communist hell-hole, and everyone would be dirt poor. Awesome. That alone wins my vote.

Besides, who else do we have? Most leaders of the past 800 years have been rich aristocrats who were born into power, not elected. That basically leaves the heads of the US, and Canada, I s'pose, but Canada has to many Trudeau-esque crap on the table. So, who do you think is the best? Leave your vote in the comments box. Although, we only have like 6 of you, so this will probably not work too well, but hey.

Pce ftw!

Of course, usually the people protesting war are whining to the wrong people. Take 9/11 for example. Everyone wants peace in Iraq. But don't tell us. Tell the terrorists who insist on blowing stuff up. America doesn't start wars. But they sure as hell finish them. It is wrong to assume that by asserting their status as a non-punching bag (i.e. France) that makes them war mongerers. And no, this wasn't about oil. Just stop that train of thought right there.

is WAR worth it?

I was just recommended to listen to the song "Hero of War," by Rise Against. Pretty powerful stuff... Anyways, thought you might like to listen to it and share your thoughts on its message.



So, whadyall think? Can war be justified as a human instinct or should we forever abolish it? COULD we abolish it? Personally I think it cannot be abolished but we should try. Except if aliens attack, then all bets are off.

Post what you think,
torwch out

Army of Tomorrow...

While studying historic battles and ancient armies is all well and good, what type of combat could we expect in the future? When the human race eventually spreads to other planets and systems, war will remain inevitable. Will we fight as spaceship-to-spaceship, like in Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card? Or maybe the spacefaring Navy will only provide transportation and cover fire while troops duke it out on the ground, like in Robert A. Heilein's Starship Troopers?
Lets face it people, the earth isnt getting any younger, pretty soon this sort of thing will be reality. What style or strategy would you recommend? Lets see what the best of Science Fiction has to offer:

Molon Labe

Much to my dismay, I have to postpone the current arguement for sake of moving our schedule along. I'll bring it up later. I promise. Really.

Military: if you have it, you live. If you don't, well, you're just England. (By my count, from the fall of Rome to the High Middle Ages, the British Isles were successfully invaded 5 times.) But what was the best? One might say the French Grand Armee. Modern, disciplined, and successful. And boring. They marched at the enemy in a straight line, hoped they weren't shot by then, shot the other guys, then got shot.

In my opinion, the crown here goes to the phalanxes of Greece. (Yes, I am choosing Spartans. Cliche, but I digress...) They were almost undefeated by any army of the time. Again, history makes a great comparison tool.

It was almost beautiful in it's simplicity. It relied on your superior training, you're shield (and spear, I s'pose) and the guy to your right. You would charge the opponent, then crush him with your shield or knock him over and let the rear echelon take him out. It worked because of the other armies composition. Hardened veterans will always persevere over a fidgety bunch of militia. Think 300. The bronze-clad Spartans were to-a-man better trained than the other guys. Once you get past the infantry-centrism and add a powerful branch of shock cavalry, and some skirmishers, you have a world-class army. I personally like this style because of its fairness, in a way of speaking. It meant that because you were better, you won. That was how the Spartans did it. that's how Alexander did it. That's how Seleucus did it. You want to tell these guys their system's flawed?

Touche

Ok. Let's step up the debunking here.

Does Christianity preach violence? Answer me that. I have yet to hear of a single Christian in the last 100 years (Let's face it: people in general were pretty savage back then.) who has openly defied society as you said. Plus, if they had, you could bet that s/he would be as publicized as Hitler or George Bush. (Yet strangely not Che or Stalin.) Besides, Is Christianity really that diehard? I hardly consider going to Church on Sundays, Easter, Christmas, and a few other occasions as "follow us or else". The best answer, my friend, is a melting pot. That, or a strong Christian society like that of many, if not most successful societies. You can't argue with history.

...but only to a certain extent.

If one lets religion get too powerful, it will over through the government.
Religion is fundamentally a way of appealing to a higher authority.
If the people don't like you, they will pray to god and bring you DOWN.

A peaceful religion, like Buddhism, in which there are few priests and no supreme gods, are the best and the most beneficial to the people. These religions let people follow them casually, rather than enforcing a rigid "Do This Or Else" policy.
Plus they don't preach violence, so the government can ignore the needs religion and do the job it is supposed to: Govern.

...Yes It Can

Religion is not, as you said, a rebellion. Its is more of a searching for an explaination for what cannot be explained. With that said, a religion is not utterly neccessary for a country, but is rather a stablizer for what might be a boring and worthless existance. Let's look at the Middle Ages again. The peasants of Europe were dirt poor (actually, they probably can't affford dirt), and they had to perform back-breaking labour all day. So what did they have to look forward to? Heaven. And how do you get into heaven? Being a good Christian. Therefore, each day was worth living because of the effort you put into getting to eternal paradise. See where I'm going? Religion soothes the drudgery of everyday life.

Oh? But many horrific things have been done in the name of religion? Like? The Crusades? I think that you will agree with me in saying that the knights of Europe wanted the Holy Land just because the Seljuks did, not because of any real violence associated with their faith.

My point being that the things that were done for religion are more likely than not to have been truely motivated by greed or bigotry. That is why I propose Christianity as the main religion. why? Because there is nothing wrong with it. Don't get me wrong, All other religions are perfectly fine, maybe even more so. How exactly do I say this without being racist... Judaism seems to be the biggest target of crap from others in the world (Israel, for example) and many others promote certain aspects that are not acceptable with current activists and judges. (Polygamy. yay or Nay?) therefore, I go with what works, again, not to say that the others don't.

By the way, please keep all hate mail to a minimum, as I have absolutely nothing against any faiths or followers of said faiths.

Can a Country be Built on Religion?

I will start off with some questions: Can a country be run by a religion? Should the head of state and the head or the church hold the same power or position? What consequences does doing this impose?

Religion and Ruling seldom go hand in hand without intervention. During the Medieval age, kings were often seen as being "chosen by god," while this did increase their power to dietial (?) heights, it did limit them in some of the more *frivolous* activities. Some nobles got so pissed off that they formed their own religion solely to promote their aims. Henry the VIII of England (link) found it necessary, because of his 6?!?! wives to slaughter off most of the Protestant followers, preach the virtues of Catholicism to all who would listen, and declare himself the both the spiritual and political leader of England. He wasn't very committed though because on his deathbed, he converted back to being a Protestant.

Henry the VII, a fat vain king who never seemed to find the right lady.

Religion is usually seen as a form of rebellion. A sort of appeal to a higher authority. Here are some examples:

• Christ, in his day, was seen as many things. To his followers he was a martyr, to his family (yes he did have family) he was the miraculous child, and finally to the leaders of those days, he was a rebel. That is why they crucified him later.
• Muhammad, also a rebel, is said to have been met with criticism when he first began to preach. He, like Christ, was forced out of several cities because of his views.

For this reason, I believe that a stable country does not need to have a widely-practiced religion. A small order of monks that people may join by their own choice would be perfect. So, after that very long-winded post, I put forward the Dalai Lama and Buddaism as the best approach to religion.

That is how religion would look like in my ultimate country, only without the exile and occupation part...
torwch

A Cowntest for the Ages!

In what will surely be the biggest showdown since N64 vs. Dreamcast, Torwch and I will have the intellectual battle to decide the ultimate question: who could run this place better? A country, by the way, not Instant Martians. Here's how these shenanigans break down?

Rules
-Each will choose 1 person/style for each of the following positionsand justify their choice:
-President, General, A Style of Warfare, Religion (or lack thereof), Head of Academics.

Right. Torwch, it's on.