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Activity for Mr Bumble‭

Type On... Excerpt Status Date
Comment Post #213124 Yesss. I was similarly surprised by the lack of smell here (as it were). You beat me to it.
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almost 4 years ago
Answer A: Factors that determine the geology of a planet (what factors determine the elemental composition of the planet)
Rather than copying the list of resources to here, I suggest that interested parties browse the answer to this previous question (A list of worldbuilding-resources?) where an humongous long list of resources is to be found. You could do worse than start with this intro youtube vid to the solar syste...
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almost 5 years ago
Answer A: Could a "bouncy planet" work in principle?
First, the object hits: The Atmosphere. Earth's gasses and most other like-fluids as we know them would exert pressure and friction on any incoming objects, the objects would heat-up on the surface ablating in the process, as the heat penetrates, the objects (say take a typical comet - part water-i...
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about 5 years ago
Answer A: Black hole as a storage device?
Kugelblitz. If your weapon is mass/energy then yep you are in the right territory. If it's matter in a particular configuration (a complex piece that took hundreds of thousands of work-hours to make) you may be out of luck. Black-holes can be used as energy storage, using magnetic fields to spin th...
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about 5 years ago
Answer A: SFR Breeders on Small Mars Moon feasibility
As I see it you have 3 issues here: Gravity. Normally sodium circulation would occur because of a temperature/density gradient which facilitates convection to carry it through the heat-exchange cycle. In minimal gravity the circulation would be crippled without a pump, both for the core->sodium h...
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about 5 years ago
Answer A: What are some examples of minerals that Earth might require in the future from space?
This answer stands as an historical artifact, obsolete because of an edit to the question's tags. Energy-rich minerals of unknown composition from the surface of Mercury. Mercury, the planet has an eccentric orbit leading it to be at it's closest point to the sun it is bathed in searingly hot unfil...
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about 5 years ago
Answer A: Alternative to Magnesium's Role in Photosynthesis
You couldn't just replace the Magnesium directly without making other changes. Taking beryllium as the first example. In Plant-like organisms there are at least two different types of Chlorophyll, they work in pairs synergistically, one as an oxidizing agent and one as a reducing agent in the ATP a...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Constructing airtight, human suitable facilities in (near) vacuum (Moon, Mars etc)
Laser Syntered Regolith First the dust and rock on the surface of the Moon would need to be passed through sieves, to enable the grade of material suitable for printing to be fed to the printer head. The process itself would be very much done as a 3D printer does it now, but being heated by lasers ...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Why is transplanting a specific intact brain impossible if it is generally possible?
Paranoid Schizophrenia. The brain is malfunctioning, it perhaps contains a brilliant intelligence or valuable information, but the dopamine receptors respond abnormally. The artificial brain to which it is uploaded is designed to correct such unbalanced perception and thinking and so the mind is en...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: How many years before enough atoms of your body are replaced to survive the sudden disappearance of the original body's atoms?
Even if they survived Zeiss Ikon's way, there's not a hope of surviving this: The neurons in the brain don't get replaced over this sort of time period. It is widely understood now that new neurons can grow, but when a nerve cell dies, it is gone for good. The nerve cells in your brain today have th...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Using Molten Metal as Mortar--Would it Work Today?
Bi58, with a little help. An alloy of bismuth and tin in the proportion 58:42 known as Bi58. by itself has a melting point of 138 °C (280.4 °F), but doesn't by itself have suitable properties to act as mortar, as it needs to be able to stay where it's troweled to and although denser needs the appr...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Would using carbon dioxide as fuel work to reduce the greenhouse effect?
Yes, but not from the link in the question. According to the link in the question, Carbon Dioxide can be used to produce an energy storage medium in a rudimentary way, a bit like the chemical production of alcohol out of sugars by yeast or even sugars out of CO2 sunlight and water. In all these case...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: How would a very old biosphere differ from Earth's "young" one?
The planet's life-forms have gone through several stages: Natural development, natural environmental factors such as repeated ice-ages and extinction level events have produced over a significant timeline - a diverse range of species. Particularly in isolated island environments - much like Birds-o...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Sprawling climbers: how will they develop tools and civilization?
Tool use (a prerequisite for developing technology) comes in all shapes and sizes: Corvids wield sticks with their beaks. Attribution - Science news Some animals have developed specialist tools from their given attributes. An Aye-aye, "drinking" an egg using it's specially adapted finger. To be ...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: In order to successfully have 3 orbital rings around a planet how do you have to orient them?
Any way you want. It depends on the energy you have available. To not tether them requires that you have thrusters of some kind to enable them to maintain position (ie. not crash into the planet). The most energy efficient way to orient them would seem to be in line with the ecliptic plane, becaus...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: How to build the Cube Prison from Cabin in the Woods?
Like M-Blocks. In this clip you will see them performing extraordinary maneuvers twisting, jumping and walking. This part 45 seconds in shows them interacting nicely with each-other. They use magnets to stick together, and computer controlled inertial flywheels sped up and slowed down to produce to...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: How can I prevent the creation of fruit-salad chimeras?
Rule of law and transparency. (What's in a name.....) All magic-users have magical-names (one each), either given them by others or chosen by themselves (more accurately, they need to find out what their magical-name is to start practicing magic), it is by invoking this name that the spell-caster is...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: What would prevent chimeras from reproducing with each other?
The Gods determined that taboos must be broken. Just as in Greek mythology, the Sphinx - Σφίγξ- was most often depicted as female with a human head, a lion (or other great cat) and wings: treacherous and merciless In Egyptian mythology it would have been without wings and male. Such a...
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over 5 years ago
Question A deadly disease, 95% of the population dead, suppresses or alters memory in unpredictable ways
Whilst not strictly relevant to this question, the questions and answers may interest the curious: this is the 4th in a series of question here - 1, 2, 3. My population (in excess of 500,000) undergoes a huge dieback event, almost extinction. Narrative necessity (possibly) dictates this. I've run t...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Are "living" organ banks practical?
Some yes, some no. There are alternative pathways laid out below: If you're going to grow a clone for replacement parts, you need stem cells. These can be found in one of a few ways: Day 2 or 3 after egg fertilization (prior to implantation and cell differentiation), a few cells would be shaved ...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: How could a very strong impact on a planet create deformations on the opposite side?
A Collision at relativistic speeds with a PBH. A primordial black hole, according to Russian Physicists: Yakov Borisovich Zel'dovich and Igor Dmitriyevich Novikov in 1966 first proposed the existence of such black holes. The theory behind their origins was first studied in depth by Stephen H...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: What would be the best way for a supernatural entity to fit into a physical body smaller in mass and volume?
Aethir. Known to the ancients of Greece, Aether (after a god of the same name): pure upper air that the gods breathe... According to Epiphanius, the world began as a cosmic egg, encircled by Time and Inevitability (most likely Chronos and Ananke) in serpent fashion. Together they constr...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: What does the view outside my ship traveling at light speed look like?
Edited. - as per edit to the question. Assuming the Current model of the universe. Fore: nothing, because - Photons blue-shifted beyond the furthest reaches of the EM spectrum (way beyond human perception) as the Doppler shift would seem to predict - you would think. Aft: Nothing much, surely all ...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: What could a self-sustaining lunar colony slowly lose that would ultimately prove fatal?
Light and thus Energy. This probably will happen as a result of natural phenomena involving Earth's magnetic cycles. The current dust storms on the moon - referred to as "Moon Dust Fountains" that occur as a result of electrostatic levitation of tiny particles of regolith (as a consequence of being...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Can a generation ship withstand its own oxygen and daily wear for many thousands of years?
The key is in the ecosystem you're taking with you. Organic tech. I contend that it's about an integrated system, not just about one aspect of that system. The floor is a Tapestry Lawn: Attribution: grassfreelawns.co.uk The various species of bee and other insect that you'll no doubt be wanti...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Could a black hole be used to lessen surface gravity on a Super-Earth?
No. Tidal locking near a black-hole (which you'd need for your effect to remain in one place on your planet) is impossible because of: Magneto-rotational instability Black holes exist in an extremely hot, turbulent, and magnetically charged surrounding, IE it's not just gravity tearing you apart t...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Best species to breed to intelligence
Since you're in charge, the best way to go might just be squishy. Cephalopods.: nervous system of cephalopods is the most complex of the invertebrates Best to work with a species that has huge potential. (Intelligence, manipulation of it's environment, etc..). Their intelligence and natural ...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: What is the minimum required technology to reanimate someone who has been cryogenically frozen?
Possibilities: There are many possible developments in tech which would allow this, (OK , first, going along with the question's assertion that the freezing process has already occurred - thus excluding some modification akin to the adaptation in some frogs re. antifreeze in their cells): Scanning ...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: If quadruped mammals evolve to become bipedal will their breast or nipple change position?
Sure, it's called convergent evolution. analogous traits arise when different species live in similar ways and/or a similar environment, and so face the same environmental factors Natural selection expressed through (first) survival, and then reproductive success, ensures the continuation i...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Could a tree build its bark out of Starlite-like material?
They do on Earth, so why not. Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) [...] trees has evolved to make best use of the environment in which each species occurs. Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) bark offers protection from fire [...] Many Scots pines have very characteristic thick protective plates on...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Why do Ichisongas hate elephants and hippos?
A tale of envy. Hippos. The Ishisonga remembers swimming as a cub: it loved swimming, it would dive beneath the water and feed on the lush and delicious water-weed, reveling in the cool splashy games with the hippo children; swimming was what it dreamt about, what made life worthwhile. Then time p...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Pre-plastic human skin alternative
I give you two choices depending on use: Mortician's wax: Mortician's wax is a cosmetic wax used by morticians to cover injuries on dead bodies. The wax imitates the properties of human skin and is used to fill in gouges, lacerations and areas where flesh is missing. Makeup can then be app...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Can you replicate a being's DNA just from observing it?
No. You can deduce certain things about a person from their physical appearance, hair colour, skin colour, eye colour - will all give you clues to certain genetic markers that they will carry. You can perform every physiometric and psychometric test on a person at our disposal, and make a number of...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Assassin's bullet with mercury
No. Not even in the form of dimethylmercury. This extremely nasty organic compound was being carefully used by professional toxic metal researcher Karen Wetterhahn when a few small drops of it touched the outside of her latex gloves. At the time it was not known that this noxious substance could t...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: How could indestructible materials be used in power generation?
How could indestructible materials be used in power generation? Energy storage. If you can spin a flywheel to relativistic speeds on indestructible bearings using electromagnets (in vacuum), then you can use that flywheel as a lossless energy storage device. Wikipedia 2019 - CCSA License Th...
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over 5 years ago
Question A hang glider, sudden unexpected lift to 25,000 feet altitude, what could do this?
This is the third in a series of 5 (at this point) questions. It's not relevant to this question, but for anyone who's curious this was the first, this the second. Conditions for this question are: Earth-normal atmospheric pressure/content. (Or close) I'm aware that over 38,000 feet has been achie...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: Car headlights in a world without electricity
The obvious retro answer would be to use carbide lamps which work by dripping water onto a chamber of calcium carbide producing acetylene as was used on the original versions of the Model T Ford: Copyright Royce CaC2(solid) + 2H2O(liquid) -> C2H2(gas) + Ca(OH)2(aqueous) However, since the Calciu...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: How can a long lived species that reproduces slowly prevent themselves from going extinct?
The strength of the race is shared amongst all Eldar, such that when one Eldar dies, their strength is bequeathed to all of the fair-folk, ther lifespan and any magical or fay abilities (eg. glamour, stealth) would similarly be shared amongst the survivors. The Eldar are not as other races, their ne...
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over 5 years ago
Answer A: MacGyvering medieval poison
St. Anthony's Fire A fungus also known as ergot, found on rye grains and in rye bread containing a natural LSD substance. The convulsive symptoms from ergot-tainted rye may have been the source of accusations of bewitchment that spurred the Salem witch trials. Thought to have inspired the ...
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almost 6 years ago
Answer A: Plausible reason for gold-digging ant
Why would ants unearth pieces of gold? What evolutionary purpose would this behavior serve? It makes their chimneys work better. The workers gather the gold and bring it to the colony. The soldiers use their large powerfull mandibles to shape the soft gold into roughly flat flakes which they ...
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almost 6 years ago
Answer A: How do marine dragons evolve flight without any feathers and no hollow bones?
How do marine dragons evolve flight without any feathers and no hollow bones? Symbiotic Rocket Power. Symbiosis is defined as: any type of a close and long-term biological interaction between two different biological organisms, be it mutualistic, commensalistic, or parasitic. Your d...
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almost 6 years ago
Answer A: How to make society ravaged by random killing, prosper and remain happy?
The principle of the Two-Edged-Sword. The nanites were created for a purpose, to cure disease, prevent the ravages of ageing, to heal minor wounds and eliminate cancer and autoimune conditions. Mental illness is unknown as any major imballance of neurotransmitters is regulated and stabilised. The na...
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almost 6 years ago
Answer A: Would plants on a planet orbiting a star like ours, have any different color?
Plants come in many colours anyhow, Chlorophyll making the base colour green for most, other pigments occur naturally too; Carotenoids - ranging in colour from yellow/brown to dark green, Betalain - red and yellow, Anthocyanins - red purple or blue. Chlorophyll is of course green but if your plants ...
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almost 6 years ago
Answer A: How can merfolks stream video in a way much similar to our WiFi but underwater?
S-Waves The idea here is that instead of moving through the water like sound or EM waves, the waves here are generated in the ocean floor in the Local Comms-Node, and come out to whomever wants to connect to the system. A simple tranciever connected to the I-Pod, Cephalopod or whatever would be drop...
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almost 6 years ago
Answer A: Realistic alternatives to Horses
I recommend the Procoptodon: A giant cousin of Skippy the Bush Kangaroo. Attribution Wikipedia 2019 Licence a genus of giant short-faced kangaroo living in Australia during the Pleistocene epoch. Extinct now, but thought to have been around as recently as 18,000 years ago and quite suited...
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almost 6 years ago
Question Reducing atmospheric pressure on Snowball Earth
A Snowball Earth is a global condition (which may have occurred many times) in which the temperature everywhere on the surface was, for extended periods (up to tens of millions of years), below the freezing point of water. It occurred both before and after photosynthesis radically transformed the pr...
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almost 6 years ago
Answer A: How to design an electrical grid for a flare star planet?
How to design an electrical grid for a flare star planet? Initial discoveries about electricity on such a planet may lead to a circumspect approach to this sort of thing, because of the unpredictable, painful and sometimes fatal effects to a(n at first) primitive society of inductances within me...
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almost 6 years ago
Answer A: Separating light gases from heavy without chemistry
How do steampunk civilizations get lifting gas? What you want is "Synthesis gas". It's what all good fellows with a hunger for flight and adventure need. How shall I make this gas you ask? Well, since you're so inclined, then I'm inclined to tell: [...] is made by passing steam over a red-ho...
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almost 6 years ago
Answer A: How close could a planet get to a super massive black hole before being destroyed
You want to know how close your planet would get to a supermassive black hole. The Planet wouldn't get near the black hole itself. Not even near the Roche Limit. And I'll prove it. The vicinity of a super massive black hole as the one at the centre of our galaxy is an extremley hot, turbulent, an...
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almost 6 years ago
Answer A: How long a human being could live with stem cells?
How long a human being could live with stem cells? Science-based and the science-fiction tag, hmm. If the science is right and with some restrictions, perhaps forever barring physical assault or accident. A human normaly ages such that each time it's cells reproduce to replace aging injured on...
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almost 6 years ago