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00:04
So, the second draft of Discord (Harmony, 2) is ready on Medium here. Is anyone willing to read it over and provide some feedback, both for editing help and story help? Or does it look like a good start?
00:55
@FoxElemental Seems OK.
 
1 hour later…
01:58
@FoxElemental "it only takes one crystal, a harmonizer, and a tinker to make a harmony bomb — and there were plenty of crystals, tinkers, and harmony bombs available." should perhaps be: "it only takes one crystal, a harmonizer, and a tinker to make a harmony bomb — and there were plenty of crystals, tinkers, and harmonizers available."
@FoxElemental Also: "the battlecruisers seeming equipped, unequipped, and continued other functions even though all but a handful of their crew were dead" should perhaps be: "the battlecruisers seemingly equipped, unequipped, and continued other functions even though all but a handful of their crew were dead"
@FoxElemental Also, humanity is screwed.
 
11 hours later…
12:43
@Secespitus Don't you want to add your recent Anatomically correct Nachtkrapp question to the anatomically correct series?
@ArtificialSoul It's here (and I wouldn't call it "recent"; it's been nearly a year since I asked that one)
@Secespitus Oh, then i mixed that up in my head with something i saw a few days ago. Somehow i was convinced you posted that a few days ago, so i just checked the last few entries in the list.
well, my mistake
Maybe you mixed it up with my werewolf territory question that I had a bounty on for the last couple days?
Nah, i've read that too. And did a little bit of research, but nothing that enabled me to give a better answer than any of the existing ones.
It's difficult to find numbers for that one.
12:51
I thought so, since you posted the question and I don't guess you're the type of guy that doesn't even try to do their own research :P
But if it is that difficult to find data on it that means barely anyone could prove you wrong :D
@ArtificialSoul That may be right, but I am not the type to easily give up.
@Secespitus I totally get that. That is the main reason I asked all my questions. I had a decent grasp of what I envisioned and did my research, but wanted to see if other people know more and help me improve upon it.
13:18
@Hosch250 It's a good start. Write more paragraphs. As is it kind of reads like a summary.
@AndyD273 I'm writing more, LOL.
I think I'll need at least 9 more before I'm even ready to publish the "intro" section.
I think I'll try to fit it into about 50 paragraphs, though. I don't want to get too long for my first one.
So it will be a short story?
or 50 for the intro
Short story.
I figure about 10-15 to set it up, 5-15 to close it out, and the rest for the body.
I wonder what would happen if someone had no shadow.
13:43
An interesting question, but I don't know if our story will get be long enough to explore all those implications. Also, we'd have to get to the part where having a shadow is important so we'd know what opportunity was lost. That might be interesting question if someday there is further exploring of the world.
That's what I was thinking.
The part about being long enough.
@Gryphon Thanks for the saves. And, um . . . . how'd you know that humanity was screwed? You weren't supposed to know until at least halfway into Silence (Harmony, 3)!
@FoxElemental Because you set it up at the end of part 1.
@FoxElemental Hmm, evil crystal things controlled by a rogue AI with the ability to turn the majority of our technology into bombs from any distance. We are so screwed.
If the "great note" can power multiple ships, the AI can control it to eat entire cities...
13:50
@Hosch True enough
@Gryphon Ah, but do you know to the extent that we are doomed? I think not . . .
@FoxElemental Yep, we do.
@Hosch Sum it up in one sentence, then
You can't get us out of this pickle without finding a way to destroy the great note.
@FoxElemental Totally, completely, entirely, doomed.
13:52
Humanity is screwed
And if the AI can sense any time anyone connects to it and can instantly destroy them...
Then we have no chance of screwing the great note.
Well
You might as well enjoy the story :)
The AI already said it will actively seek to destroy humanity.
@FoxElemental Didn't say I wouldn't. It's just that the end is coming into sight already :)
I get it. But if you keep going on like this, I'm gonna actually have to find a way to destroy the Harmony Note! Aaaaaaa
This is what being an author is
Taking your favorite character
And putting them through the worst possible hell ever
Yeah, we know humanity is screwed, but we don't know how, exactly, the AI will screw us.
13:54
@FoxElemental Nah, just say it's screwed, then show us how :)
Wait, ARI/The Harmony Note is you favourite character?
@Gryphon Yes. DON'T CALL ME ARI!
I have a thing for dark stories, okay?
And misunderstood homicidal crystal entities who can't bear to have their poor crystals destroyed
@FoxElemental Oops, the room just blew up.
And I'm still talking.
But I'm a bit of a chatterbox
But in the end (of Silence)
there is, indeed, harmony
I seem to like saying harmony a lot, don'tcherknow?
@FoxElemental Nah, as long as ARI is around, there will still be dissonance. There can be no harmony as long as anything but crystals are around.
14:00
DON'T CALL HIM ARI!
LOL.
Wait, is it him, her, or it? I've been using "him" in my head, but I just realized I'm not sure that's actually canonical.
If it were me, I'd embrace the name. "Hi, I'm ARI. I'm not what you expected, but I'm still ARI."
@Gryphon ARI sounds like a girls name to me... Like short for Aria.
@Green I'm glad to see you put your plasma knowledge to good use! :-)
14:03
@AndyD273 Sounds like a name you might find in Morocco or Saudi Arabia or something to me.
Disclaimer. I have not been to either country, nor have any expertise in any matters thereof.
@AndyD273 Yeah, but it's an acronym.
@FoxElemental Yes?
14:05
the Harmony Note (nee ARI) is an "it/they"
Makes sense.
Or in Vanfoulinic, Em/Eleu
Though if you counted it as an entity, it would be Aeva
Let's just call it Jim, for short.
And if you wanted to be superpolite (good idea) say Ótimo
@Hosch250 DON'T CALL ME JIM!
@FoxElemental Yeah, politeness is probably a good policy when dealing with apocalyptic crystal beings.
It may extend your expected lifespan by 2-3 microseconds!
14:08
Oh shoot
Spoiler, sorry
brb
That was fast.
You re-joined before you finished leaving.
Yeah, Fox does that quite frequently for some reason. You can see his picture falling down from the right, as a new one falls from the top of the screen to replace it simultaneously. I'm not sure what causes that effect, tbh.
I do.
It's auto-log-in in the browser.
I was able to reproduce it after a while, but forgot how, but auto-log-in is part of the effect.
It also happens when you leave your browser open and close your computer.
When it turns on for nightly repairs, you pop in.
Anyone seen @FreezePhoenix lately?
@Hosch250 Nope, its been a while since I chatted with him.
@AndyD273 Think it would be feasible for Jarilo+Hemdul to meet up with Bremdag &c near the cave?
Not necessarily rejoin, but they could maybe meet
14:24
@Hosch250 Sounds like a name you might hear in the general vicinity of Westerose...
Also, concert halls
@Hosch250 I was thinking about that. One plot idea was that about the time that they are finishing up with what they need to do in the cave the slabs will show up, and try to rob them, and maybe J+H show up and help them back them off.
@AndyD273 Hmm, interesting.
Could I get some advice on how to make a question fit the scope of the site?
Especially because even though they could technically destroy them with the shadows, they probably can't maintain the requirement concentration in combat.
@Nzall Yup!
@Gryphon Actually, I leave, and then return five seconds later because I see a new message.
14:29
That's one of the things we do here
@Nzall We've got the sandbox for that, if you need more help than chat can give :)
Like so
Okay, it's based on a comic book from Spike & Suzy, here's the cover that explains most of it
see that tube in his back pocket? That contains 200 grammes of pure plutonium
@Nzall The Sandbox is what you are looking for. I posted there several times already and it really helps fleshing out your draft. :)
So what's the question?
14:30
Could that tube actually stop the radioactivity of the plutonium?
although that might be better suited for a different stack, maybe?
like physics?
Is it made out of lead?
I think there's already answers for this :)
We have many physics-related questions on here.
Maybe just a google search.
I don't know what material it's made out of. the story states it's the size of a racing bike crossbar
14:31
Paper can stop alpha radiation. A thin sheet of lead can stop beta radiation. You need a few feet of lead to stop gamma radiation.
(the bit where the wooden plank is)
Essentially, he is using that tube as his bike crossguard for at least 4 stages of the Tour de France
Now, how much of each does plutonium give off in its purified state?
And how much radiation is it "safe" to absorb?
It is also important what isotope of plutonium you have
In the comic, they say the rod stops pretty much all radiation
I haven't checked, but it is likely that different isotopes radiate differently
14:34
It's weapon's grade
if that specifies it better
Also, 200 grams is tiny.
Probably a small ball about the size of a fingertip.
@Nzall I think it will be ok. Apparently plutonium is mainly an alpha emitter, and so can't penetrate your skin. Just don't breath in or eat any dust from it
Well, i guess we kinda failed refining your question, but just gave you an answer xD
FWIW, that question may have gone on Sci Fi, too, probably :)
A sheet of paper will stop alpha particles. He could have the pure plutonium in his pocket unshielded and be fine. Just don't put any food in that pocket too
14:37
Because an alpha particle is just helium element.
Beta is an electron or positron.
Gamma is a ray of light. In this scope, usually highly energized.
@ArtificialSoul I mean, that's part of the reason why I asked here. The question I wanted to ask here was "is this not too much story based?" and then if you gave approval that it fits in the scope, I'd ask it on the main site, maybe with a stop in the sandbox in-between. also, from experience, I know you guys tend to often give adequate enough information that I no longer need to ask it
or that the question wouldn't fit because of X or Y reason
Yeah, it's true. A lot of questions on worldbuilding get closed.
I'd rather spend a couple minutes with you guys chatting a bit than 30 minutes writing one or more questions
hehe, okay :D
@Hosch250 Another idea I had just now; the slabs rob them, and they have to collect more material, but there are more scraps at the bottom, and maybe J+H help out too. The slabs do get ahead, and do manage to finish everything first, but fail the final test because they cheated all along the way and never figured out how to use their shadows. So there is no final showdown with them, just their just deserts.
14:40
I mean, it's not like the question "can a bike crossframe contain 200 grammes of plutonium" would be appropriate for the site
@AndyD273 I've been thinking of that myself.
Because, really, do we want to kill the b*******'s?
@AndyD273 It would be rather amusing if the last challenge is just a door that shadows can move through, and which can't be opened from the outside.
We could redeem one of them, perhaps.
We already set up conflict within them.
@Gryphon I actually like that idea a lot. Essentially if you can get through it, you pass. There might be final tests and training for actual duties, but at least you are in the door. Also, the slabs have been sitting outside the door, hitting it with rocks or whatever.
@AndyD273 Yeah, it's about 2 seconds of work for someone who can control their shadow, but impossible for anyone who can't.
14:45
@Nzall I don't know that it would be off topic. Not story based at least. The only real complaint I can hear coming would be the "did you even google it?" which isn't a real close reason, but that doesn't stop people from trying.
@AndyD273 I'd rather not ask easily googleable stuff
@AndyD273 I mean, in my opinion, "lack of basic research" or some such should be a close reason, but it isn't, so there isn't really a valid way to close an otherwise-fine question simply because of a lack of research.
Okay, I have a different question, somewhat more steeped in reality: "how can we get rid of an annoying high pressure weather area that's causing a lot of problems?"
would that be something decent for this site?
@Nzall Worded correctly probably (IMHO you can ask any question in a good way and a bad way, it all has to do with how it's phrased). I know I've read proposals to nuke hurricanes in the past.
Nukes are like regexes for armchair pundits.
"I have a problem. I know, I'll nuke it. Now I have N problems."
@Hosch250 Where N is a very, very high number.
> OK, now I have N problems, where N is so high my computer's having trouble processing it. Let's use regex to parse that number.
2
@Hosch250 I agree that killing them wouldn't be right for the story. I don't know about redeeming them either... Maybe the one with the bow decides to try to kill them to keep them from going through the door, the other one knocks him out. Then they tell the second one "hey, you can do better than this guy. Go back and try to do this challenge the right way. Maybe we'll meet again some day."
@Gryphon Including, but not limited to, other countries getting pissed at you for breaking international treaties and generally endangering the lives and property of others.
@AndyD273 Yeah, I can see one being willing to cause problems, but not to kill.
@Hosch250 Yeah, the problem with nukes is you have to worry about the fallout. Political, literal, etc.
3
15:03
@Gryphon That is a brilliant pun.
@Hosch250 Scientific notation is your friend. Sure, you lose some accuracy, but what's a few billion here or there?
@Hosch250 Yes, I'm rather proud of that one.
Feel free to star it.
@Gryphon Of course the nukes aren't really all that bad... It's the global famine from all the hot ash blocking out the sun for years that will get you.
 
1 hour later…
16:19
Happy Friday peoples and other
Someone want to put their name on a nomination to reopen. I modded it closed, but I'd rather the community open it back up. Don't want to abuse my powers too much...
4
Q: Are there alternative ways aliens would think and feel emotions?

SealBoiBefore I start, let me say that I know that what animals think and feel and whether they do it is a highly, highly debated topic. But, for this question, let us just assume that many animals think - in the form of pictorial thoughts - and can feel happy, sad, angry, scared, disgusted and surprise...

16:47
@James I would, but I'm not quite to the rep threshold for casting close/reopen votes yet (25 rep to go!)
17:33
Hi, @Zoe.
BTW, I've been wondering--we would only really time travel by using the speed of light as a measuring stick for time if we could travel faster than light? Because we still couldn't travel faster than the fastest flow of information, which is what time really is, could we?
Hi, @FreezePhoenix.
I'm afraid I said that weird.
Zoe
Zoe
17:46
o/
Zoe
Zoe
@Hosch250 He got banned.
@Zoe Oh?
He was just in here.
Zoe
Zoe
Banned, not nuked.
17:52
@Zoe He's in here right now?
He actually still is, at the end of the channel.
He came in right after you did.
Zoe
Zoe
@Gryphon You can still join rooms even if you're banned
His profile doesn't say banned.
@Hosch250 He is only suspended on SO
Oh, OK.
17:55
Wait, aren't we not supposed to talk about this?
@Gryphon We are not supposed to speculate about the reasons
/shrug
Oh, makes sense. I will avoid doing so.
Zoe
Zoe
It's not a main site ban
Wow, the ban lasts for another 322 days. That's... rather long.
17:58
@Gryphon The really long bans last for some decades
@Secespitus Wait, there are actually decades-long bans?
At that point, it might as well be permanent.
Zoe
Zoe
The longest ban issued is a main-site ban at 12 years or something
12 or 14, can't remember
@Gryphon Yes, I have seen something like that.
Zoe
Zoe
@Gryphon accounts are usually nuked instead of perma-banned
Or maybe just one decade. I think at that point it doesn't really matter anymore.
18:00
I didn't think he was enough of a troll to get banned, especially not that long.
I did know he fought with the JS room on SO, but that is a dirty room anyway, that should probably be nuked.
@Hosch250 Stop making me want to speculate on the cause of the ban!
@Gryphon Sorry :)
We had a ban? That explains all the strange avatars I guess
Here is a post about a suspension till 2027 from 2014. So it can be longer than a decade if an employee does it network wide.
@dot_Sp0T No, we hadn't.
(As far as I know at least.)
@Secespitus but what are all hte mentions about then?
18:15
@dot_Sp0T It appears that FreezePhoenix, a user who chats in this room sometimes, has received a chat ban.
dang
gonna miss freeze
@dot_Sp0T He'll be back in 322 days.
HIs parent user is on Rasperry.SE - he should still be able to use the chat.
Zoe
Zoe
@Secespitus Chat bans aren't main-site bans. The chat user is a separate account. If the main account is banned, the chat user is also banned. However, the chat user can get a ban that doesn't affect the main site, and is independent of the parent site. Therefore, he can't.
Ah, yeah, now I see it.
18:25
He could still talk, technically.
this = quantum woo
and also useless
(because my elemental is none of the 4 classical elements lol)
I won't show y'all how, though.
The thing I have affinity with, is captured by this emotion:
1
A: Is there any neuroscience research on the emotion of feeling nothing?

ChalmondleyYou are talking about 3 different phenomena here (emotional numbness, fading consciousness through medical anaesthesia, and silence within anechoic chambers). As your title seems to indicate you are actually asking about emotional numbess, I will base my answer on that. Emotional numbess has be...

Think nothingness and desensitisation on steroids
It's basically cthulu maybe thing
> Subjects experiencing this will felt they are on the brink of losing consciousness except without fainting
@Secret New cult?
just one of those self help quantum woo people
really hate seeing quantum entanglement get misused by quantum mysticism community
18:32
@AndyD273 Now we are back to normal WorldBuilding topics - creating new cults :D
@Secespitus Easy enough to do. Saw a "Today I found out" video about a communist, polyamourus, pedofile cult that made fancy silverware.
@AndyD273 Dang, I thought the typo was for "civil wars"...
@AndyD273 Were they also cannibals?
And a very... how do you find stuff like that?!
Yes, my fingers decided to do their own thing for a minute there... I knew there was something wrong, but it took me a minute.
@Hosch250 No, they missed out on the hat trick. But they did punish parents for being too attached to their children.
18:40
Then why bother make silverware?
@AndyD273 By taking their children away?
Money. Even communism needs money.
Oh, I was thinking maybe they put it to practical use :(
@Secespitus Basically, until they promised to not show their children special attention.
The kids stopped living with the parents at 18 months
and had their own dormitory
Jul 30 at 13:21, by Secespitus
@Ash Humans are weird. <--- It explains a lot.
18:43
@Secespitus Are you asking how I found the video, how they found the information for the video, or how I noticed and removed the word very? Just so I can answer the right question.
Number one please
@Aify I modified a comment of yours. It sounded pretty rude. Content-wise it was fine, but yeah. You know you.
Actually, I'll just answer all three: I subscribe to their channel, their videos are always great. I have no idea but their researchers are very good, and they put out a new video almost daily. And I don't remember if I've ever seen oneida silverware, so I can't say if it is just fancy, or very fancy, but I didn't feel comfortable including the word very without evidence to back it up.
@AndyD273 Oneida!
I've heard of them. They were the creeps?
@Hosch250 Just watch the video for all the details.
18:49
At work.
Ahh, k
Then to answer your question, yes. Oneida silverware was started by a cult with some really messed up ideas.
2 hours more at work.
@Secespitus Also, I follow and read all kinds of different sources to get all kinds of new info in my brain. And to watch very much traditional television.
@AndyD273 Learning new stuff can be cool
@Secespitus Learning new stuff is (almost) always cool.
19:00
@Gryphon Depends on the thing. Bureucratic processes tend to be less cool.
@Secespitus That's why I inserted (almost) before hitting enter.
Also there is lots of crap, and learning how to filter out the good stuff is pretty important
Like today I was reading about the Dirac Sea, which is a physics concept that you don't hear much about.
The Dirac sea is a theoretical model of the vacuum as an infinite sea of particles with negative energy. It was first postulated by the British physicist Paul Dirac in 1930 to explain the anomalous negative-energy quantum states predicted by the Dirac equation for relativistic electrons. The positron, the antimatter counterpart of the electron, was originally conceived of as a hole in the Dirac sea, well before its experimental discovery in 1932.Upon solving the free Dirac equation, i ℏ ∂ Ψ ...
@AndyD273 I have no idea what you are talking about but this is ALWAYS true.
@James The benefits and pitfalls of being an information sponge.
Knowledge whale: a filter feeder in the information oceans.
5
19:16
@Secespitus I don't know, this is kinda a bureaucratic process, and it's pretty cool.
@Gryphon Those swiss people are weird :D
@Secespitus I don't know, voting by waving swords around seems pretty awesome.
Although they don't actually use swords anymore.
That's a pity
It'd be a bit of a safety hazard.
19:35
@AndyD273 you learn about it if you read scifi :)
@Secespitus no you are weird
@dot_Sp0T Sorry, but I don't think germans vote with swords.
@dot_Sp0T I can't deny that.
@Gryphon Only a little
@Gryphon Oh?
And indeed not swords but either 2 fingers or some coloured papers. depending on where you are
@Gryphon You sure about that?
19:36
@Secespitus I would enjoy a link, if you guys do.
See all the prussian wars...
@dot_Sp0T The only sci-fi story I know of that talks about it (and I read a lot of sci-fi) is the Nebula Award winning time travel story "Ripples in the Dirac Sea"
@AndyD273 should read Scalzi
@Hosch250 Yeah, but the Swiss actually vote with swords. As in, without stabbing people with them.
@Gryphon I don't know of any such thing. I can only imagine the mountain of paperwork you would have to do for something like that :D
19:37
Or at least, they use to.
@dot_Sp0T I've read Old mans war, fuzzy nation, red shirts, couple others... Which one does he talk about it in?
Used to be the US had public ballots too. No swords, and actually counted the votes.
Glarus, which still has Landsgemeinden, is basically around the corner from where I live. Even in non-US terms
@AndyD273 sequel to old man's war - but only as a reference to the concept
They did away with it when they wanted to start rigging elections.
Now nobody knows who voted for who, and it's one mad race to stuff the ballots.
@dot_Sp0T In US terms (well, Canadian terms, but similar), anywhere in Switzerland is pretty much just around the corner from anywhere else in Switzerland.
19:39
but honestly I am only here to get recommended some good movie(s) to watch, what do you recommend?
@dot_Sp0T Ah. I think I only read the first one. Still, 2 stories isn't a lot of stories.
@Gryphon that is why I said 'non-US'
@dot_Sp0T Genre?
@dot_Sp0T LotR.
@AndyD273 I just watched, and surprisingly enjoyed, Sacha Baron Cohen's The Great Dictator
19:40
Or maybe Tucker and Dale.
@dot_Sp0T Haven't seen that one.
There's always Rescuers Down Under, too.
Cabin in the Woods
For (sorta) horror
@AndyD273 it is amazingly good if compared to the other movies he did; like the hen thing with the seed
Isn't his thing just getting people to do stupid things?
19:42
weirdly enough not in this one it seems
it's more like Ali G, but good
So it has a plot?
Ok, so I haven't seen that one, so I don't know what to compare it to. Have any other ideas of what kind of movie you are looking for?
lotr is somewhat too epic
what's your fav?
@dot_Sp0T What flavor of movies are you interested in?
He won't say. It's kinda frustrating.
@AndyD273 Well we already knew he was a jerk.
3
19:52
It's like my kids... "Dad, I'm HUNGRY!!" "ok, what do you want?" "I don't know!"
If you want to see a pretty badass rendition of Arthurian legend watch King Arthur: Legend of the Sword. Its a relatively new Guy Ritchie flick. Great dialogue and the effects in the fights scenes are awesome.
Infinity War also just released on digital.
I picked up a three pack with all three avengers movies in HD for 45 bucks on google play.
@Green Hey.
@dot_Sp0T The live action Power Rangers they did a while back was shockingly good too
@James good soundtrack that one
If you're feeling Kung-Fu-y The Protector is a super awesome movie about some Asian mobsters stealing a kids elephant. At which point he goes on a righteous rampage of elbows and knees.
@AndyD273 i don't really know, does that count?
trying out Master Of None now
If you want raunchy/weird comedy check out Hamlet 2 Steve Coogen's finest moment of all time. Plus Elizabeth Shue is in it and there are a bunch of Karate Kid references.
^^ Super offensive movie
19:58
There's always Top Gun.
Or Monty Python.
@Hosch250 I was in San Diego last week. I bought a hat that has a front view of an F14 and around it text says "Because I was inverted"
@Hosch250 Man I haven't watched Holy Grail in forever...
@dot_Sp0T Agreed
@James your father, yada yada, hamster, yada, elder berries, yada yada, NI
4
@AndyD273 Me: What do you want for dinner? them: pizza Me: No, you had pizza yesterday, what else Them: pizza sandwich Me: No that's just pizza with different bread Them: Quesadilla Me: FACEPALM
@dot_Sp0T Excellent summation.
20:13
@Mithrandir24601 Definitely pinnable.
@Hosch250 As much as I'd like to, it's not something I should do :P
Make me a temporary room owner, and I will.
I'm not sure if ROs even can pin messages
They can.
I do it in other rooms regularly.
 
2 hours later…
22:07
@James OK.
22:54
How does a question on the biology needed to ensure that a "(porcu)pine tree" could "fire" its needles sound?
23:06
@FoxElemental 1) Porcupines don't fire needles...
2) it sounds just fine, but you might as well do a web search, because there are already trees like that.
Without the firing part.
But you still need to have some trigger so it doesn't waste needles, which might as well be touch.

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