Stack Exchange
log in

Thucydides

 Discussion on answer by Dragongeek: C…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
May 18, 2020 13:32
Actual military and fully automatic weapons have been outlawed for years in the United States for civilian ownership. The most powerful weaponry that you might find in an urban setting (anywhere in the world) would be the armoury of a police station, especially if you know where the Riot police or SWAT teams are housed. Actual military bases have military weapons, but in all cases ammunition is likely stored separately, and could have deteriorated (especially explosive munitions, rockets and missiles)
 

 Discussion on question by Vogon Poet:…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Nov 1, 2019 01:40
In our own civilization, "War is the continuation of politics by other means", and "Politics is a means of allocating resources". So what are the scarce resources that need allocating by non market means, how is the market being coopted or subverted (and by whom) and what is the desired end state for each party? Without that information the question is really too vague to answer.
 

 Discussion on question by MindX: In a…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Jun 24, 2018 04:49
We can reliably identify and date artifacts from the Bronze age and read 3000 year old languages, and indeed can decipher and partially understand burial practices from the Neolithic era. Indeed there are some practices from even earlier which might be understood as prototypes of burial (putting bodies in deep holes in caves to prevent animals from eating them, perhaps).
 

 Discussion on question by Jedboo: Min…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Mar 30, 2018 03:50
Read "Command in War" by Martin Van Crevald, which can give you an overview of the problem. Also read "On Psychology of Military Incompetence" by Norman Dixon.
 

 Discussion on question by ScienceKean…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Feb 19, 2018 17:29
I like the repo man answer. But why would a ship need an external panel, when you could probably access it with your laptop or tablet and the ship's WiFi hotspot.
 

 Discussion on answer by Ash: Why can'…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Jan 31, 2018 22:28
@kingledion The reason such a large output was possible is Frederic had essentially conscripted or contracted every skilled craftsman around and each one was put to work making one or a few items they specialized in. If you were not part of that order, you might have to wait in line for months or even years to receive your order. The craftsmen were working on nothing else.
 

 Discussion on answer by AlexP: Why ca…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Jan 31, 2018 22:27
Except the Ottomans spent their money on the Janissaries and focused on the use of the recurve bow as their main weapon. They were also more concerned with things like mobility (cavalry), and were also early adopters of firearms, in this case siege cannon.
 

 Discussion on question by user6760: H…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Oct 22, 2017 03:47
I've just picked up a fault in the AE35 unit. It's going to go 100% failure in 72 hours.
 

 Discussion on answer by Will: Would a…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Oct 6, 2017 14:10
Ground effect flight is a function of wingspan, and aircraft go into ground effect at @ 1/2 their span length off the ground. A circular low aspect ratio wing wold have little or no grind effect until you are practically skimming the surface, in which case a large wave could become trouble....
 

 Discussion on answer by Sherwood Bots…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Sep 23, 2017 18:33
@Olga I'm not sure what sort of research you are reading, but the Athenians had compulsory voting. In the History of the Zelloponessian Wars, Thucydides recounts how the Athenians were swayed to massacre all the men and sell the women and children of a rebeling city state into slavery by the demagogue Cleon. 24hr later, they realized what they had done , called a new assembly and recalled the fleet. Compulsory voting neither stopped the vote for massacre or demanded a redaction.
Thucydides
Sep 23, 2017 18:33
@Olga, compulsory voting was a feature of ancient Greek democracy, and Demagogues were the bane of Greek city states, as the historian Thucydides attests.
 

 Discussion on question by Mario Trucc…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Sep 21, 2017 15:00
Based on conversations I've had with customer service call centres or the returns desk, or reading the comments sections on may blogs, I'd almost have to say a large number of people could not pass the Turing Test today....
 

 Discussion on question by Tiny TrEs-2…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Jan 5, 2017 14:47
Trump Tower in Manhattan.
 

 Discussion on question by Pᴇᴛᴇ: The A…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Dec 23, 2016 03:43
Don't you think Zwarte Piet is going to object? Dealing with naughty children (by stuffing them into a sack and taking them to Morocco to be sold into slavery) is his job.
 

 Discussion on question by Mike.C.Ford…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Dec 7, 2016 10:17
The Grinch is responsible. Be careful in approaching him, he has a 39 and a half foo pole to defend himself.......youtube.com/watch?v=ZgP0aUKlmNw
 

 Discussion on question by DasBeasto: …

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Nov 10, 2016 00:22
A coup has a specific meaning, and that is usually a small cable of plotters (generally who have access to the levers of power) like government ministers or military officers. You are speaking of a rebellion or revolution.
 

 Discussion on question by PatJ: How t…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Nov 7, 2016 17:55
I'm assuming you are not going to use more "conventional" methods of generation like tapping the magnetosphere or using specially tuned solar panels to gather infra red radiation from Jupiter.
 

 Discussion on answer by ohwilleke: Ho…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Oct 26, 2016 16:17
Chicago has a terrifying rate of gun crimes, but when you drill down through the statistics, only 3 areas in Chicago actually have the most crime; if you were to redact those statistics the rest of Chicago as a whole would have a gun crime rate comparable to Ontario, Canada.
Thucydides
Oct 26, 2016 16:17
The crime rates in the UK and Australia have gone up rather than down even though guns have been banned or strictly controlled (in Australia, the rise is pretty apparent after the population was disarmed by government mandate. The simplistic solution of eliminating guns simply means criminals now outmatch civilians. The true solution is obviously more complex, and cultural factors need to be considered.
Thucydides
Oct 26, 2016 09:48
Washington DC had banned guns, yet still had one of the highest rates of gun crimes in the US. Chicago has draconian gun control laws, yet has one of the highest rates of shootings in the US as well (over 3000 to date this year alone). Toronto, Canada had a gun crime rate which escalated during the time David Miller was Mayor, despite ever tightening restrictions. What ended the Toronto crime spree was an international police operation which took down the "Shower Posse" criminal gang, not gun restrictions.
Thucydides
Oct 26, 2016 09:48
So solders finished their conscription no longer keep their assault rifles at home? When did this happen? (Also when did the requirement to keep 200 rounds at home for training and immediate use end?)
Thucydides
Oct 26, 2016 09:48
As opposed to now where the strict UK and Australian gun bans have had very negative outcomes? People armed with small crossbows might still have some self protection capabilities, but the time to nock the arrow, draw and release (or cock and release in the case of a crossbow) still puts you at a major disadvantage over a gun wielding criminal. At any rate, gun crime seems to be cultural. Switzerland makes it a crime not to have an automatic weapon at home, but also has the lowest gun crime rates in Europe.
 

 Discussion on question by Bloc97: Is …

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Oct 23, 2016 18:17
WRT the 10MT weapon, the only weapons that size that may still be in service were thought to be stationed with a single SS-18 regiment, and the sole purpose of that regiment was to turn the deeply buried command centres for NATO, NORAD, SAC etc into lakes. As well, Soviet nuclear warheads were separately stored and guarded by the KGB, not the Strategic Rocket Forces, so a "missing" warhead becomes much more difficult.
 

 Discussion on question by Magic-Mouse…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Oct 5, 2016 02:46
So 80% of electrical energy appears by magic?
Thucydides
Oct 5, 2016 02:46
The energy density of hydrocarbon fuels is 20-50X that of even the best current battery technology. Even if you are using electric vehicles, what is powering the generators that charge them? (Hint: @ 80% of electrical energy production is via thermal (coal) generators).
 

 Discussion on question by what: Why w…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Sep 26, 2016 19:51
Terrorism is spreading fear and uncertainty through the population in order to pressure or force government or society to make changes desirable to the terrorists. It is the tactic of a militarily, politically or economically inferior opponent against a greater adversary. What political or social changes do the terrorists in your story desire, and why does the government or society not want to mane this change?
 

 Discussion on question by Mano Giliss…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Sep 12, 2016 10:39
Read "I Pencil" en.wikisource.org/wiki/I,_Pencil to see just how difficult a task you are setting yourself.
Thucydides
Sep 12, 2016 10:39
If they are starting entirely from scratch, the answer is going to be never. A chip fab is a billion dollar factory that stands at the apex of an industrial, social, economic and technological ecosystem that is (depending on your start point) 300 to 500 years old. The entirety of Western civilization is encompassed in the hardware alone, and teams of hundreds of software engineers write code regardless if it is a crappy OS like Windows or something advanced like UNIX or LINUX. Even dropping 20,000 humans on an island isn't going to get you there in any reasonable amount of time.
 

 Discussion on question by Bryan McClu…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Sep 2, 2016 14:54
Arcologies are unheard of in real life since they are more expensive to build and run than conventional architecture (particularly since the idea of recycling outputs to become inputs is still not perfected in real life). The other issue is that since the building is fixed in size, it isn't going to be quickly adaptable to changing needs of the inhabitants.
 

 Discussion on question by Terry: How …

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Aug 9, 2016 13:16
You might like this website to reference: xibalba.demon.co.uk/jbr/futurese.html
 

 Discussion on question by Mooz: How w…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Aug 5, 2016 23:26
The people with the money and power will be voting people like you off the island, not the other way around. Like so many questions about changing society, the OP never considers the ultimate issue is "who decides" what is right, moral, good for society, the most useful trait etc. Look at the US elections and tell me that Hillary Clinton, or Donald Trump would meet most normal definitions of "good", "useful", "productive", inspiring" or even "intelligent" (although they are intelligent enough in their specific realm).
 

 Discussion on answer by Thucydides: M…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Jul 19, 2016 15:55
That part isn't clear in your question. And it is difficult to see what advantage being near a supernova provides in decrypting a message. Maybe you can edit and explain?
Thucydides
Jul 19, 2016 15:55
Way beyond my pay grade. maybe make this a question and see who can answer this to you.
Thucydides
Jul 19, 2016 15:55
The Supernova is outshining 100,000,000 stars. This is a truly incomprehensible amount of energy, and I would guess the Neutron star would be simply consumed by the outpouring of radiant energy.
Thucydides
Jul 19, 2016 15:55
Given the scale of energy release by a supernova, even using a neutron star as a shield might not be enough (outside of the obvious problems of using such a thing in the first place). So far as I know, the explosion will be spherically symmetrical, or at least close enough to make no real difference in the outcome. Pack your bags and move the planet; its the only way to be sure.
 

 Discussion on question by downrep_nat…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Jul 16, 2016 19:15
They are already afraid of us, and this shows why: youtube.com/watch?v=OcPqk-O-fD4
 

 Discussion on question by AmiralPatat…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Jul 12, 2016 19:00
At that kind of speed, what will strike the planet's surface is a slug of plasma moving at 300,000 m/s. Starships will have sensors capable of looking at all wavelengths for normal flight, and military ones can be assumed to carry sensor drones to provide data as well. Simple triangulation will work, and most "Rods from God" type "ortillery" will be made of high density materials to survive re entry and provide a solid strike on target.
 

 Discussion on answer by Threose: Does…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Jul 8, 2016 03:51
I think the reference to "reaction fuel"is for a solar sail. Agree the terminology is very poor, though.
 

 Discussion on question by Hendrik: Wh…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
May 12, 2016 02:03
The Movie "Brazil" by Terry Gilliam uses comedic memes to tell the story, but in the end it is still a tragedy. The version of "1984" released in 1984, starring John Hurt, shows the terrifying stagnation of such a society. The Brezhnev era Soviet Union was also quite stagnant, and serves as a real life example. Some will say the suffocating conformity of US Universities under "Political Correctness" is an example of using social control rather than police surveillance. In almost all cases, the terror is enforced by the arbitrary nature of the arrests or public "shaming" being carried out.
 

 Discussion on question by Serban Tana…

Imported from a comment discussion on worldbuilding.stackexcha...
Thucydides
Apr 29, 2016 16:56
Now, big dragon, little wizard, take your true shape. I command you by the power of your true name-Yevaud" Birt could not move at all, not even to blink. He cowered, staring whether he would or -it. He saw the black dragon hang there in the air above Blackbeard. He saw the fire lick like many tongues from the scaly mouth, the steam jet from the red nostrils. He saw Blackbeard's face grow white, white as chalk, and the beard-fringed lips trembling. "Your name is Yevaud!" "Yes," said a great, husky, hissing voice. "My truename is Yevaud, and my true shape is this shape."
 

 Joe rebooting the atomic power plant

worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/questions/28836/…
Thucydides
Nov 4, 2015 10:34
US Navy designs were all pressurized light water reactors. CANDU is a pressurized heavy water reactor, Chernobyl used a graphite moderated reactor and pebble bed reactors have no naval ancestry at all. HTGR (High Temperature Gas cooled Reactors) also are not related to US Navy designs. All of them are ones you probably want to stay well away from, since they are complex and have very different failure modes.
Thucydides
Nov 4, 2015 10:34
Most nuclear power plants have diesel backup generators to supply emergency power to the cooling pumps in a crisis situation. In an apocalyptic situation, they would probably have been triggered and ran continually until the fuel was exhausted, granting a few hours for a more graceful automated shutdown. Assuming you don't have a radioactive mess from the cooling pools, it is probably more useful to salvage the generator sets and make biodiesel to run them.