General Q&A about worldbuilding and other speculative developments that can be extrapolated from science.
Filters (None)
Normally when conducting DNA testing, I presume techniques are utilized to ensure you're just testing one individual's DNA from a sample, even if it is possible that sample was contaminated one way...
First question! I'm excited to see if anyone can help me. Any missteps are unintentional, but feel free to tell me so that I may learn. So, I've recently started brainstorming over a possible st...
I have some ideas regarding this, but thought I would check to see what you guys can come up with, as I found some of the ideas here often trump mine in originality and/or plausibility. So, I hav...
Properly ventilating a deep mine is a significant engineering challenge. Ergo, you don't want to be carrying around torches that use up some of your precious breathing oxygen if you don't absolutel...
Assume that an Alcubierre drive is feasible. In fact, assume that one has been built. A superluminal starship can propel itself through space by distorting space in front of it and behind it. Howev...
Over several hundred years, a tide-locked, but otherwise Earth-like, planet orbiting a red dwarf is terraformed. The terminator is a very habitable zone, in terms of temperature, atmosphere, etc. C...
If you look at one of my previous questions, I ask about a tidally locked planet and it has come to my understanding that such a planet would be under a lot of radiation from the sun. So I'm curiou...
The whomping willow is a fictional tree from the Harry Potter series of books. It is a magic willow that can move its branches to punch people who come close to it. Small animals such as cats an...
Given an arbitrarily long time to do so, what is the maximum depth too which a dwarven civilization could practically extend their mines / cities? And what would be the final limiting factor preven...
We've seen it throughout media before, a crazy mutation that creates zombies, rabid people, giant spiders, etc. I'm spot checking how crazy I can get with this short story I'm writing about a bacte...
I know that currently, black hole civilizations are only theoretical. But here are my thoughts on why black hole civilizations are impossible. Black Hole Civilization Issues 1. Gravity This is...
So we humans get big into genetic modification and figure out how to make ourselves photosynthesize through our skin, and somehow it generates enough energy to be worth our while. Obviously we'd st...
I have a world where there are two types of beings. One type, let's call them X, exist in our "dimension," and the other, let's call them Y, exist in another "phase" or dimension. Only 10% of X b...
I am inspired by some people who apparently believe chocolate milk comes from brown cows. I know that for sweet, delicious chocolate to come into existence, we need to do things to cocoa. Ferment ...
In this alternate Earth, the axial tilt is still leaning to the extent of the temperate and polar zones having four seasons--spring, summer, autumn and winter. The one key difference is that each ...
Consider a planet $P$ of radius $r$ larger than Earth, whose mass is $r^3$. By the square"“cube law, this planet will have the same density as the Earth... assuming that the gravitational compressi...
I'm thinking of a predatory creature that lives deep inside large caves. Because this environment is so dark, the creature's eyes have disappeared through evolution since the creature relies on ech...
I have a concept for a species of arctic-dwelling organism (let's just call it a polar bear) that evolved an organ that was able to produce microwaves, which it uses to tunnel through ice. If such...
In an alternate universe, the nine realms of Norse mythology--Midgard, Asgard, Vanaheimr, Jotunheimr, Alfheimr, Hel, Nidavellir, Niflheim and Museplheim--are actual, real-life "Earths", in the sens...
The question is just as simple as it sounds. Would it tuck them under like a bird? make running motions like it does when running on the ground? some other movement that actually aids in fligh...
I am simply wondering if an organism could possess an enzyme that could ionize a noble gas such as argon, krypton, or xenon. I was thinking that the organism could obtain energy through light or ma...
While thinking about Starfish Prime's answer to the question Algae using UV light from auroras for photosynthesis, I considered the possibility of an alternate Earth which has a normal, Earth-like ...
Venoms have evolved in certain classes of animals on Earth (notably snakes and frogs, but also fish and maybe elsewhere that I can't think of right now), sometimes for defense and sometimes (partic...
Let's say there is another planet in our solar system that harbours sentient life and this sentient life can build castles, buildings, and other such structures. When would we notice that? We ca...
On a planet with Earth-like attributes in every way, including physics and geography, what repercussions would there be for a relatively deep 'dent' in one quadrant of the spherical body? This is o...
I'm writing a story that takes place in a world where people live on continent-sized chunks of earth (basically the size of tectonic plates) suspended in the air, left over from some cataclysmic ev...
In this world, there are reptilean demi-humans (like lizardmen and lamia) which are appearance wise half-human half-reptile, they live in coexistence with humans and other types of demi-humans. The...
I am going to finally create a human cyborg with super-intelligence to beat an AI. It's mid 2050's and my company Neuroconnect has produced a nanotechnology BCI (brain computer interface) capable ...
I was reading some questions on Quora and I found this claim: The polar regions have a very odd reason for them to have so much oxygen production. You see the Polar aurora run day and night in ...
I want to make a human able to fly, much as Superman or any other superhero can (meaning without wings or any other non-human physical characteristics), but respecting the physical laws otherwise. ...
I have a story idea that involves a human attempt to halt and reverse global climate change. The idea is a simple one - a satellite that partially blocks out the sun. The satellite is located at th...
My method of breathing fire involves humans stomachs producing ethane or methane and them holding a lit flame near their faces and just breathing out of burping . Fire breathing in this is mo...
I was going to sort this all out beforehand, and then write the book, but when the writing flows... you make hay. I am a perfectionist/details-oriented person, but you lose me on math/hard science....
With all the interest in VASIMR and the idea of getting to Mars in 39 days, the biggest challenge I can see is having a power source that is strong and light enough to make that possible. So I was ...
I am looking for a (if only semi or even the tiniest bit) scientifically explainable way to make a spaceship travel fast enough that interplanetary travel (take the average distance between any 2 o...
I have a situation in my imaginary setting, and I am specifically interested in how this situation would affect the weather. The situation is as follows: Positioned above a large landmass of m...
Imagine the other dimension is much much colder. Very little light/heat/etc. Suppose the portal only allows energy transfer, so matter can't pass through. What would the consequences be? Would it...
This is a continuation of a question I made earlier! The atmosphere consists of 80% N2, 17% O2, 1% CO2, 1% NH3. I am not extremely familiar with the chemistry of ammonia, but I do know that it beh...
Hypothetically speaking, if there was a substance you could drink/inhale (in an alternate reality) with superconducting properties, how would it influence the brain and the body? The superconduct...
So I read recently this article as I was trying to design a sci fi alien race for my story and I found out that a human only has an efficiency of converting food to energy of about 25%. What would...
I imagine that if we could transform the Moon into a beautiful planetary ring around Earth, wouldn't it be spectacular! Problem is the feasibility. Are there any practical solutions? Option I thi...
The setting I'm building has a race of people, derived from modern humans, whose primitive survival as a species relies partly on very fast reproduction, and I think I want them to have a tendency ...
In the climactic final battle Faction A engages Faction B on Faction B's planetary base, both in orbital and ground combat. Realizing they can't win, Faction A activates a device that transports an...
Could 2 moons that orbit same terrestrial planet never see each other if they orbit the planet at same time? Moons have different mass and gravity.
I am currently working on world-building a planet, and I wanted to try to diverge from Earth's atmosphere a little bit, but not extremely. I am planning on still having it be a oxygen-nitrogen rich...
Assuming a turtle or tortoise evolved adaptations to become large comparable to that of sauropods. How large could they become (in weight or potentially carapace size)? The turtle needs to be prima...
A whale, lets say a humpback (~40 tons) has to be pulled about 250 m from the port to the town square. The road is classic cobblestone. People put hooks into the whale meat with ropes attached and...
It's a basic fact that most plants need sunlight to generate growth. Sure, they also need water and nutrients, but their reliance on sunlight is the one sole thing that separates them from animals...
Suppose we have a planet whose atmosphere has roughly the same gaseous proportions as Earth, but helium replaces nitrogen, and has a strong hydrogen presence in the upper atmosphere; has a gravitat...
Consider a planet very similar to Earth, with the same radius and the same mass. In a very simplified model of its interior, 70 % of its mass is magnesium silicate and the remaining 30 % is iron. T...
