Fogbow

keith wrote: ↑Mon Aug 01, 2022 5:27 am Yeah, I see where you are coming from, and I'd point out that these problems, some very extreme, have been dealt with fairly often (but don't ask me to point out where at the moment).

no problem, I won't

There are many stories addressing cultures that require different atmospheric conditions so the ship or city has 'sections' or 'quadrants' or 'decks' that cater to each.

I apparently haven't seen many of these

Its true that universes like "Star Trek" and "The Orville" seem to have an awful lot of species that can breathe the same atmosphere mix, but that is just so the makeup room can have fun, I think.

The medical facilities are magic enough that I suspect they can overcome day/night cycle issues, but just because they script doesn't point out how alien 'circadian' rhythms affect shift planning doesn't mean that it doesn't happen.

True, It doesn't, nut I'm not trying to figure out how it works on a particular show or nitpick at what the script writers may or may not have left out. The show, for me, is just a jumping off point. It's what prompted my wondering, but what I'm curious about is how real life people in out unknown future might try to address the issue.

Also something that comes up but not often enough: How aliens with different physiologies and DNA manage to reproduce. Even Earthlings and Vulcans with their similarities have significant differences, like heart placement and blood basis.

bill_g wrote: ↑Mon Aug 01, 2022 7:31 am It is, but it's based on the length of *their* arm, not ours. We won't even discuss their twelve fingers.

Kriselda Gray wrote: ↑Wed Jul 20, 2022 2:33 am We have small house - not even 1000 sq ft IIRC. Our A/C bills have been really bad this summer, though. I tend to have a lot more problems with the heat (especially sweating, which can cause painful rashes, and bad itching that can sometimes last multiple days) than my husband and caretaker do, so I kind of need to keep the room I'm in fairly cool when possible, but hubby's upset about how much it costs. We've got a whole-house A/C and a removable window A/C that we can use. Not that either of these options are particularly energy efficient, but which is worse: Running the whole house A/C all the time so the whole house stays cool, or set the whole-house A/C to a higher temperature where it cycles on and off, and use the window A/C just in my room, where it would run all the time. Either way, something is going to be running constantly, but hubby thinks it'd be cheaper to let the window A/C run all the time and let the big one cycle off and on as needed. I don't think it'd make much difference either way.

Any advice appreciated!

Something we've done successfully: Run the whole house A/C at night when it's cooler. Set it to cool the house down as far as you can stand it. Set it higher in the daytime, especially the afternoon; the less it runs in the heat of day, the better. Then only use the window unit briefly if/when it gets unbearable.

roadscholar wrote: ↑Mon Aug 01, 2022 10:27 am Something we've done successfully: Run the whole house A/C at night when it's cooler. Set it to cool the house down as far as you can stand it. Set it higher in the daytime, especially the afternoon; the less it runs in the heat of day, the better. Then only use the window unit briefly if/when it gets unbearable.

Thank you very much!

pipistrelle wrote: ↑Mon Aug 01, 2022 8:37 am Also something that comes up but not often enough: How aliens with different physiologies and DNA manage to reproduce. Even Earthlings and Vulcans with their similarities have significant differences, like heart placement and blood basis.

Yeah. That for me is hardest to suspend disbelief. It is just too hard to reconcile.

keith wrote: ↑Mon Aug 01, 2022 7:23 pm

pipistrelle wrote: ↑Mon Aug 01, 2022 8:37 am Also something that comes up but not often enough: How aliens with different physiologies and DNA manage to reproduce. Even Earthlings and Vulcans with their similarities have significant differences, like heart placement and blood basis.

Yeah. That for me is hardest to suspend disbelief. It is just too hard to reconcile.

Why would aliens have "DNA", that's an earthly biology concept. They could have replication mechanisms we think are impossible, so we cannot even describe them. (note: that's where i have problems with scifi authors).

RTH10260 wrote: ↑Mon Aug 01, 2022 7:38 pm

keith wrote: ↑Mon Aug 01, 2022 7:23 pm

pipistrelle wrote: ↑Mon Aug 01, 2022 8:37 am Also something that comes up but not often enough: How aliens with different physiologies and DNA manage to reproduce. Even Earthlings and Vulcans with their similarities have significant differences, like heart placement and blood basis.

Yeah. That for me is hardest to suspend disbelief. It is just too hard to reconcile.

Why would aliens have "DNA", that's an earthly biology concept. They could have replication mechanisms we think are impossible, so we cannot even describe them. (note: that's where i have problems with scifi authors).

Because in the Trek universe we know Romulans, Cardassians, Klingons and humans share genetic material.

The Chase: https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Th ... _(episode)

Re keeping cool in the summer - for me, I always have a tabletop fan running in whatever room I'm in. If you aren't currently using one, give it a try.

Kriselda Gray wrote: ↑Mon Jul 18, 2022 3:49 am So, what was Norway like? Was it as charming as it looks? Were you able to visit any interesting historical sites? That's some of what I most want to be able to see Was the food good?

(I was slow getting back to this thread.)

My sister-in-law worked with a travel agent who knew Norway and planned everything out before we left. We weren't there for the historical sites. We were interested in where our ancestors came from. My dad's parents were both born in Norway, but met and married in the United States. My SIL had arranged for a van driver to take us from Voss up the hill to the farm where my grandfather was raised, for example. We also saw the church where Grandpa was baptized and where he preached one time when they came back to visit. (Grandpa was a pastor.) We did the Norway in a Nutshell tour, which was great. We went on the Funicular in Bergen. We went on a boat ride in one of the fjords. We did a lot of walking around various cities - Oslo, Voss, Bergen, Stavanger, etc. The food was good, but I don't remember the details after all these years. I just remember being in a shopping mall when we were trying to figure out which restaurant to eat at. We passed on the one that served horse meat.

The tour my sister and her husband will be on later this month: Majestic Fjords of Norway

Very cool! Sounds like a lot of fun!

pipistrelle wrote: ↑Mon Aug 01, 2022 7:58 pm

RTH10260 wrote: ↑Mon Aug 01, 2022 7:38 pm

keith wrote: ↑Mon Aug 01, 2022 7:23 pm

Yeah. That for me is hardest to suspend disbelief. It is just too hard to reconcile.

Why would aliens have "DNA", that's an earthly biology concept. They could have replication mechanisms we think are impossible, so we cannot even describe them. (note: that's where i have problems with scifi authors).

Because in the Trek universe we know Romulans, Cardassians, Klingons and humans share genetic material.

The Chase: https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Th ... _(episode)

So do humans and gorillas.

keith wrote: ↑Mon Aug 01, 2022 7:23 pm

pipistrelle wrote: ↑Mon Aug 01, 2022 8:37 am Also something that comes up but not often enough: How aliens with different physiologies and DNA manage to reproduce. Even Earthlings and Vulcans with their similarities have significant differences, like heart placement and blood basis.

Yeah. That for me is hardest to suspend disbelief. It is just too hard to reconcile.

I get the point that sci-fi generally is a sort of "what if the universe/world was different?" exploration of ideas, and I get that it's difficult to tell stories if one species cannot interact with the others, and nobody would understand anything if the aliens didn't have excellent English (or a magic invisible universal translator in the case of the Tardis).

But with a lot of American sci-fi, one issue that grates to Yurpean eyes is how American the Venusians, Klingons, Planet Xians, etc. all are. Despite being from other planets, and ignoring the prosthetics, they often differ less from a modern white USian than does, say, a stereotypical African or East Asian. There's concern about status, saving face, with legal process - heck, the courts on other planets have adversarial trials with attorneys stomping around in the well of the court and judges behind a bench on a rostrum. Romance is as in any US sitcom or light drama, same dating rituals and worries.

Of course some sci-fi does better. But aliens should be from other planets, not just from a different state but with added rubber!

I hadn't thought about that before, but it makes a lot of sense. We Americans do tend to think everyone should naturally want to be like us - or at least some of us did until fairly recently - I'd rather we not be like us right now, but that's another matter...

One of the shows or a book series (I can't remember which at the moment) had a story about a group of highly advanced, very ancient aliens who went around from planet to planet seeding them with life. This helped the show/books to explain why so many of the lifeforms they ran into were so much alike. Because they used essentially the same "stock" of seeds for all the planets, the planets all needed the same basic conditions for life to take hold, and since they all had essentially the same building blocks for developing that life, they all tended to be relatively similar in a number of ways (bipedal, same or similar facial arrangement, similar methods of birthing their young, etc.) The main differences came from the chance mutations that pop up and the way the lifeforms adapted thru evolution and society-building. I thought it was kind of an interesting theory, at least as far as aiding the suspension of disbelief, if nothing else.

Kriselda Gray wrote: ↑Tue Aug 02, 2022 9:31 am I hadn't thought about that before, but it makes a lot of sense. We Americans do tend to think everyone should naturally want to be like us - or at least some of us did until fairly recently - I'd rather we not be like us right now, but that's another matter...

One of the shows or a book series (I can't remember which at the moment) had a story about a group of highly advanced, very ancient aliens who went around from planet to planet seeding them with life. This helped the show/books to explain why so many of the lifeforms they ran into were so much alike. Because they used essentially the same "stock" of seeds for all the planets, the planets all needed the same basic conditions for life to take hold, and since they all had essentially the same building blocks for developing that life, they all tended to be relatively similar in a number of ways (bipedal, same or similar facial arrangement, similar methods of birthing their young, etc.) The main differences came from the chance mutations that pop up and the way the lifeforms adapted thru evolution and society-building. I thought it was kind of an interesting theory, at least as far as aiding the suspension of disbelief, if nothing else.

viewtopic.php?p=123016#p122942

pipistrelle wrote: ↑Tue Aug 02, 2022 9:39 am viewtopic.php?p=123016#p122942

I'd seen your original post which helped remind me of the theory (gee, I onder why ) but I hadn't gone to the Memory Alpha link. Interestingly, I have no conscious memory of seeing that episode, and I know I saw all of TNG, but, yeah, that looks like what I was referring to. Thanks for pointing me back to it, and I'm sorry I didn't check your link initially!

Well, weird stuff in science... scientists have created a whole adult Mammal from skin cells! So,.who knows what's next.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog ... ortion?amp

Patagoniagirl wrote: ↑Tue Aug 02, 2022 10:48 am Well, weird stuff in science... scientists have created a whole adult Mammal from skin cells! So,.who knows what's next.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog ... ortion?amp

Please never fall over and scratch your skin: you just aborted the next potentially viable human!

Uh-oh! New "territory" for the pro-birthers!

This is just basically a dump, but I'm having another dark day in a string of dark days and just need to get it out of me. If you don't want to read it or reply, that's fine. I'm just hoping putting it in words and throwing it out to the universe might help make some of it better.

For some reason lately I've been struggling with fear. One is a fear that im going to die any minute now. I dont even kmow where that comes from because all my tests and stuff say my heart and such are fine. I just have chronic pain and can't get out of bed. I may not have much of a life at the moment, but I'm decidedly not ready to go. But lately I keep feeling like death's just around the corner and I'm terrified of the prospect, of what it will be like as I'm dying and if there'll really be anything after it or if I'll just be a lone awareness for eternity. And I can't figure out how to make it stop. I think it's probably stemming from years of doctors telling me my weight is going to kill me. My current doctor doesn't say that, but most of the rest did, often saying it would kill me by the time I was 50. I'm passed that now, but I think I'm at least partly afraid I'm living on borrowed time. I'm doing WW to lose weight, because I want to get out of this bed again before I die, but I have SO much to lose it doesn't seem possible.

The other big fear plaguing me is my dogs. All the dogs my husband and I have had have been friendly, except for our last one, Laika, who for reasons I never understood would sometimes snap at me out of nowhere and wouldn't let me pet her unless my husband or caretaker were also in the room. But even with the friendly ones, it was clear they preferred my husband and caretaker. The last time I had a dog that I felt like really *loved* me was 30 years ago. But both Von and Sasha make me feel very loved. They like to come into the bedroom and rest on the bed with me, and they love to snuggle. Just a bit ago when I got kinda choked up, Sasha came up to me like she was checking on me, and is now just lying at my side. So what's the fear? That the universe won't let me enjoy this very long and something will happen to one or both of them. I *know* it's silly to let that get to me as much as it has been, but just like the fears of dying, I can't figure out how to make it go away!

And on top of that, it's been 2 years since my Dad died and I still haven't been able to do anything with his and Mom's ashes. The ONLY instruction I was given was to find "someplace beautiful." And even though he knew I'm bedridden, he didn't even offer any suggestions when I asked. Sån Francisco was important to both of them, so I wanted to have them scattered there. I had a friend who was willing to scatter a small amount, but didn't want to risk more since it's illegal, apparently, and I figured that was better than nothing - I wanted at least part of them there - but I have NO idea what to do with the rest. We can't think of anyplace really suitable around here. I've asked my husband to see if maybe his Dad and step-Mom would be willing to take the ashes with the the next time they go sightseeing, but he keeps forgetting to... I just don't know what to do, but can't stop thinking about it.

So, hopefully, getting this out will make at least some of it go away. I really need a break from all these dark worries... if you actually read this, thanks

Hang in there and feel free to brain dump any time you need to.

Not the wisest of words, but I don't know what else to say.

Ashes: why fret? The clue's in the name, they're just ashes.

It's not the ashes who were dear to you, it was the living persons who filled that role. If it were a couple of pairs of their shoes, would you feel the same way? Probably not. By all means dispose of them appropriately and respectfully, but just think of the ashes as part of the normal tidying up of those completed lives.

My father was cremated in !992. I didn't know what happened to his ashes and I was never curious enough to ask my mother, and I only worked it out when she herself died about 15 years ago. She was to be cremated at the same venue, so we were asked what we wanted for her ashes. When they offered sprinkling on their garden of remembrance, we realized that would have been what my mother chose for my father, so we chose the same for her. No p!aque, no nothing, the memories are with us.

But then I'm an unsentimental sort! However "it's just stuff" can be a helpful attitude at times, when one needs to unclog one's brain.

My advice is to give the ashes to your Husband, tell him to get in the car and find a place he thinks is good, then scatter them. Tell him take a photo if he wants. Then come back. And it will be done.

The fact that it has not been done is weighing on you. Just do it. They will understand.

Maybe you don't need one special place for the ashes. As time goes on, you may a find place that is lovely and calming. Leave some ashes there. Send some ashes to your friend in San Francisco. Scatter some in a flower garden. A beautiful, breezy night with the full moon? Scatter some in the wind.

Thanks guys - there's some good, practical suggestions there that might work really well!