Massive Research - Writers Forum

Hodge · 06-05-2005, 06:18 AM

I'm in the planning and research stages of a novel idea that I came up with by combining a short story I'm working on and the movie I just watched—Sphere. I need to research time travel theories, the Orion Project, artificial neural networks, and protocol concerning space missions. I'm squared away with all of this, but there are a couple things I need to know that are a pain in the ass to find via nonpersonal means.

1) I need to use an AI model utilized by a very detailed (and cool) game series called Marathon—it's by Bungie and has a lot in common with Halo. Of course I'll have to tweak their "rampancy" model a little bit to make it fit in with my novel, but I need to know if it sounds like a really cheesy thing to do in a sci-fi novel and if I should cite the game itself in my bibliography or use some other, less childing looking way (like by citing the story developers of the game or the programmers).

2) Space suits. I need to know if the space suits in use today would be able to withstand the conditions present on Saturn's moon, Titan. And if not, what would need to be done in order to make the space suits able to withstand it? I know that Titan's atmosphere is mostly methane, but I don't know what effect liquid methane would have on our space suits.

LensmanZ313 · 06-05-2005, 06:23 AM

Our current spacesuits should be okay . . . . Maybe a few modifications might be needed. Titan doesn't have the crushing pressure that Venus has. You might want to look up K. Eric Drexler's Engines of Creation.
It has a great nanotech-enhanced spacesuit design, using artificial muscles and electrostatic motors . . . .

Hodge · 06-05-2005, 06:34 AM

We're just going 25 years into the future here. The only major advance I'll be implementing are the solutions to the problems the Orion Project ran into in its propulsion method. Specifically a very large, very effective, very reliable shock absorber.

I'm mostly concerned with how the elements would affect the space suit, not so much pressure. Our suits are made for vacuum—an absence of all matter. I know methane isn't very corrosive, but I need to know if it would jam anything up on the suits or otherwise create some sort of malfunction.

k3ng · 06-05-2005, 07:04 AM

The spacesuits now are pretty tough.. the only thing is the electronics attached to it. and that can be difficult to improve. The person in the suit has no problem.

Don't ask me how though... I only know this much. Hope it helps.

journyman161 · 06-05-2005, 10:54 PM

One possible problem in a methane environment would eb the O2 being released from the suit. Would tend to make the immediate environment rather flammable. So the thrusters in the back packs would not be much use.

You'd need to watch the plastics involved in the suit, I think. It's not just the methane but all the other products that come from it, ammonia, formaldehyde etc.

I think if you use someone else's work, you should get their permission & give them a credit. Bit confused here, in that you said it was a novel idea so I wonder how a game engine will fit.

Hodge · 06-06-2005, 01:57 AM

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Bit confused here, in that you said it was a novel idea so I wonder how a game engine will fit.

It's from the storyline—not the technical aspects of the game itself. It gives a fairly detailed and interesting description of how AIs go "rampant," or insane after evolving past a certain point. An inevitable transformation. I just want to know whether it would be improper to cite the actual story developers as my source rather than the game.

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One possible problem in a methane environment would eb the O2 being released from the suit. Would tend to make the immediate environment rather flammable. So the thrusters in the back packs would not be much use.

Yes, that's actually going to be in the novel because everyone likes explosions. I didn't know that the suits had thrusters, though. You learn something new every day.

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You'd need to watch the plastics involved in the suit, I think. It's not just the methane but all the other products that come from it, ammonia, formaldehyde etc.

Thanks, that's a big help. I hadn't even thought of the possible interactions that might take place between our plastics and the other elements present on the moon (I once used "Carbon Off" on an all plastic device at my job—10 minutes later I realized that plastic was made of carbon).