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Some sufficiently advanced species has decided they will move planets. Let's assume earth-like, life sustaining worlds. The only real way to do this as far as I know is using "gravity tugs" or mes...
I've been thinking about terraforming and planets in general. We can look at the planets we know that might be terraformable - Venus and Mars - and understand the technical requirements for doing ...
At the minimum, I'd like to create a creature with a jaw structure that splits into 4 moving parts (like a +-shape or an x-shape). In order to keep food in, the cross sections will have stretchy fl...
These planets would be similar in size to Earth. Mars and Venus don't need to exist in this scenario. So how many Earth-like worlds can be squeezed into the sun's "goldilocks" zone? Mars and Venu...
I'm curious what might need to be considered if a group were exploring the vicinity if a neutron star. Gravitational waves and radiation could be dangers, but what else? Is it possible that habit...
Wait ... what? Basically, this: Most land predators on Earth use their mouths to kill their prey. That is, they have to stick their precious, irreplaceable heads into harm's way every time they ...
I'm about halfway through a novel about a very advanced alien civilization that is systematically wiping out other species using engineered viruses. I am hoping to have the protagonists test samp...
I am trying to think of animals that would make the strongest enemy for humans if they were bred in a laboratory. My goal is to have an animal that begins by being used in a benign, controlled way...
In my world, there is a forest of giant trees on both poles. The trees create a canopy that is perpetually covered in ice. This frozen canopy extends so high that it supports a "land" of frozen clo...
And if not, how could you reinforce it so that it would? I'm trying to figure out if it's realistic in any possible way for a cyborg to dodge or deflect a bullet, and while my initial assessment of...
Premise On Earth the seas have numerous filter feeding species, large and small, sustaining themselves on the microscopic nutrients and organisms that drift in the current. The largest animal evol...
So I've got this civilization that doesn't have electricity, but does have municipal power distribution via compressed air lines. Now, you can do a lot of useful things with compressed air. Even i...
What would be the major changes that could happen if Earth experienced a solar eclipse caused by a fictional planet for a minimum of 10 days? Mainly what would happen to the oceans and flora in suc...
I am trying to figure out the geological effects that would happen if earths upper mantle was drained of heat. I am sure there are many ways that this could happen but the method that I am asking ...
So my main character was genetically engineered to be biologically immortal. By this I mean her DNA is a lot better than ours. The telomeres do not degrade over time same as genetic information. C...
We are developing a game setting and, while discussing certain aspects of the it, have stumbled upon our inability to adequately account for some phenomena due to our lack of knowledge. The thing i...
Is there any way for a large civilization to get objects into space without using rockets or explosions? I'm considering a planet roughly equivalent to Earth, where (for whatever reason) rockets ...
Assume we have a planet similar to earth in size and materials. But we put it in orbit of a mass much greater then our sun so that the year becomes much shorter like 10 days (or put it much closer ...
It is the mid 22nd century A.D. Twenty men and women signed on a ten year space exploration trip to the nearest star system. There are robots to do ship maintenance and a powerful A.I. to monitor t...
I'm working on this new story in which many people have developed "special qualities" or gifts - call it extreme DNA mutations, if you will. There's this character who has several rows of teeth (ma...
Scenario The straits of Gibraltar never quite opened and the entire Mediterranean basin is dry land apart from a few large salt water lakes at the lowest points ~5% by area. The Europe "“ Africa la...
The article Why Can't All Animals Be Domesticated? on Live Science sets out a list of criteria that a species needs to meet in order to be successfully domesticated by humans. In short, that list s...
Assume Earth of today was altered overnight. Some percentage of the more common elements of Earth's bulk (silicon, iron, and so on) are replaced with something much heavier. This changes the ov...
I'm trying to create a fictional world where the primary species breathes in gaseous nitrogen to survive (and hence relies on ammonia). I'm currently working with a planet that would be about the s...
I want a character who has a highly developed ability of empathy. She knows what others are feeling, and often thinking. This story does not have any supernatural or non-hard SF elements, so it n...
