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[Question] [ I am wondering what would be the most likely cause of zombies. The movie [Night of the Living Dead](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_of_the_Living_Dead) suggested that radiation may have been the cause for the zombies. But plenty of incidents on Earth have exposed people to varying degrees of radiatio...
[Question] [ I hope this isn't a stupid question ("just add air"). I would like my intrepid explorers to have drilled through the ice of Europa and into the water without creating a geyser (they plugged the hole behind them). This is assuming a [liquid subsurface ocean](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europa_%28moon%29...
[Question] [ Tanks are better than (realistic) mechas. This is an unavoidable truth. However, whenever they appear in general fiction, mechas tend not to be overtly realistic. Still, plenty of the points argued for the benefit of using tanks are indisputable. They are lower to the ground, carry a bigger gun, and can ...
[Question] [ **This question already has answers here**: [Could a brown dwarf in our outer solar system remain undetected today?](/questions/146334/could-a-brown-dwarf-in-our-outer-solar-system-remain-undetected-today) (2 answers) Closed 1 year ago. I have an idea to put another life-bearing planet in the sola...
[Question] [ **This question asks for hard science.** All answers to this question should be backed up by equations, empirical evidence, scientific papers, other citations, etc. Answers that do not satisfy this requirement might be removed. See [the tag description](/tags/hard-science/info) for more information. In S...
[Question] [ I want to have a powerful Mesoamerican civilisation by the 1100s; one that decides to sail east and discover Europe. [Earlier versions of the story had them contacted by Zheng He in the 1400s](https://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/questions/173173/an-aztec-ship-sails-east-where-does-it-land), but I wan...
[Question] [ A creature I am imagining is a small mammal about the size of a domestic cat which - through symbiotic bacteria which live in its fur - is covered its whole body over in blue-white bioluminescence, 24-7. **Is there any reason why an animal would be bioluminescent all over its body rather than in just on...
[Question] [ Wild boars are well known for their large, bulky body, their aggressivity and their tusks. They are animals from which a predator would gladly stay away if some easier prey is available. And, last but not least, they are omnivore. How can a water dwelling creature (fish or water mammal) evolve to have t...
[Question] [ I am trying to figure out the sex-determination of a *very* foreign form of reproduction. A species has three sexes X, Y, and Z. X produces X gametes, Y produces Y gametes, Z produces Z gametes. They do not correspond to male or female, as any may impregnate or be impregnated. Only two parents of differe...
[Question] [ **Closed**. This question needs to be more [focused](/help/closed-questions). It is not currently accepting answers. --- **Want to improve this question?** Update the question so it focuses on one problem only by [editing this post](/posts/66587/edit). Closed 7 years ago. [Improve this question](/pos...
[Question] [ Humans got a one time ticket to the other side of the galaxy, traveling $2r$ in just a few days (where $r$ is the distance from earth to [the super massive black hole](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sagittarius_A*): 28,000 lightyears) The stars we see are roughly 56,000 years old; now, that's not really t...
[Question] [ The [Unicorn](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unicorn) is a iconic symbol of fantasy, appearing in both mythology and modern novels. It is simply a horse with a single, spiral horn erecting from atop its head. How could a creature like this realistically evolve? How close to the stereotypical unicorn can I...
[Question] [ I am wondering if alien race detecting our signal could actually understand such broadcast. But for my story, **I need the aliens being unable to understand what we are broadcasting.** How can I achieve that? Background about the aliens: * They are sapient species and able of space flight * They can use ...
[Question] [ While there have been [numerous arguments](http://www.projectrho.com/public_html/rocket/spacewardetect.php#id--Strategic_Combat_Sensors--There_Ain%27t_No_Stealth_In_Space) about ways of actually pulling off stealth in space, what I'm interested in is the scenario in which you can't conceal your presence ...
[Question] [ In my story [Elves](https://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/questions/167542/how-do-i-explain-the-long-life-spans-of-elves), Humans, and a bunch of other [fantasy races](https://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/questions/168595/why-would-humans-be-the-dominant-species) live along side each other and i'm c...
[Question] [ What shape would the eggs of a species of oviparous humanoids be? Eggs are common enough that you'd be hard-pressed to find someone who hasn't seen one. While birds' eggs are often thought of more frequently, a wide variety of eggs exist and are in use by various species around the world. However, someth...
[Question] [ The [Ahuizotl](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahuizotl_(creature) "Ahuizotl Wikipedia") is a creature from Aztec mythology. It is aquatic, and appears similar to a small dog with grasping forepaws like a raccoon or monkey's, and a very long tail ending with an extra hand. It is capable of mimicking the cr...
[Question] [ Trying to work out mechanics and visuals from one of two moons orbiting a gas giant. My idea is that the moons are tidally locked so they can never see each other's backsides, but this might be achieved by a different type of orbit. I just want these twin moons to maintain close proximity and they circle...
[Question] [ If you were to decide to live on a spaceship for the rest of your life, how would you farm? * You have access to the necessary farming materials; Dirt, plants; etcetera. * Ship is large enough to make room for farms, sufficient for ~20 people (Whatever means of farming you can come up with, the spaceshi...
[Question] [ One of the oddest of cryptids is an octopus haunting the lakes of Oklahoma, a landlocked state. The reason this is odd is that although freshwater mollusks are common, Cephalopoda (the class consisting of nautiloids, ammonites, belemnites, octopus, squid and cuttlefish) is exclusively marine. The chemist...
[Question] [ I am interested of a fictional future world where people can walk into a bar, order a drink with the flavors they want, and as that drink flows through their system, their DNA is modified. An example of desired DNA modification is, let's say, the electric eel. More than four-fifths of the 2 meter long bo...
[Question] [ There have been many questions on this site about helmets with antlers, but I am going out and asking about antlers with helmets. Specifically, I am asking in the context of creatures that are basically human for the sake of the question, so think a human with deer antlers. That's it. Also, I do not want...
[Question] [ I'm working with this alien race that looks and functions essentially like a mammal - skin, muscles, hair, internal bones, large size, etc. - but evolved from an insect or other bug. They're a large, about human sized, very territorial ambush predator species, and their planet is about Earth sized, fille...
[Question] [ **This Query is part of the Worldbuilding [Resources Article](https://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/questions/143606/a-list-of-worldbuilding-resources).** --- I recently posted a worldbuilding question on this stackexchange about a magic system I am trying to develop, and realize now that it would be b...
[Question] [ The general idea I'm looking to support here is that of a bird that produces a natural grease/oil that covers its feathers, similar to real-world waterfowl. Assume the purpose of this oil is to be lit on fire. Is there any material that could theoretically occur naturally, either produced by the bird or...
[Question] [ Thanks to the orientation and position of the planet, *PommeDeTerra* has a habitable island with a temperate climate at it's south pole that looks a little like this: [![My "unique" island.](https://i.stack.imgur.com/6sYhA.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/6sYhA.png) This island is very similar to Europe w...
[Question] [ In this world, there are two trans-human species that are emerging at the same time. They vehemently despise each other and conflict is fast approaching. I would like to make the struggle between the two trans-humans as hard-fought as possible. If I cannot realistically make the struggle close, and there...
[Question] [ **Closed**. This question is [opinion-based](/help/closed-questions). It is not currently accepting answers. --- **Want to improve this question?** Update the question so it can be answered with facts and citations by [editing this post](/posts/67378/edit). Closed 6 years ago. [Improve this question]...
[Question] [ If life were discovered in the supposed ocean on Europa, it would be a popular destination for scientists and researchers. I am curious as to what life on Europa would be like, in terms of engineering and building a sustainable habitat. First, to reach the ocean, is it more practical to melt down through...
[Question] [ So I have a couple of stories I'm writing (I find it helps brainstorming better) and am wondering if magic can function quite literally as science. In one of my stories, I have a character who currently attends a university for magic, but this character's world is nearly identical to our own except plus...
[Question] [ **The City itself** Let's assume we have a city of the size of the [Peloponnese](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peloponnese) (round about 22'000 square kilometers) which is very dense populated (by medieval terms) and is isolated from the rest of the world (think of something like an ocean surrounding the ...
[Question] [ I'm working on a story where the main character gains the abilities of a shapeshifter. In this case, defined as a human who can become any non-human animal, indistinguishable from the real thing, and retain his/her mental state. Part of the story revolves around the character having to decide whether to ...
[Question] [ This idea comes up quite frequently in science fiction, but there has not been a question about it yet on Worldbuilding.SE. **Is it possible that intelligent life was brought to Earth by an alien civilization?** Would it be possible for these precursors to seed intelligent life here on Earth without leav...
[Question] [ Alright, we are in a medieval fantasy setting. In this setting, northern warriors (basically vikings or typical fantasy barbarians) have berserkers that use certain potions that make themselves stronger, called tonics. There are three main types. --- The first type fills the warrior with incredible rage ...
[Question] [ The Great Wheel is a planar cosmology which defines how the planes, worlds, and realms of the multiverse are connected to one another. Throughout this multiverse, there are various gods that exist which have their own cult of worshippers and regularly interfere with humanity. Powerful barriers separate t...
[Question] [ What is one factor or ability a creature needs to sustain infinite work? By work I mean physical activity, and to make it more specific **running** I want a creature that can output work, or run until they literally collapse from sleep deprivation so the only thing stopping the creature from running is l...
[Question] [ **This question asks for hard science.** All answers to this question should be backed up by equations, empirical evidence, scientific papers, other citations, etc. Answers that do not satisfy this requirement might be removed. See [the tag description](/tags/hard-science/info) for more information. La R...
[Question] [ > > When the old mining town was founded, nobody did think of this ever growing into much more than a coal-mining town. The deposits of iron-ore, aside from the already developed peat bog to the north, driving the tools & weapons industries this city is now thriving from, have originally been estimated ...
[Question] [ --- > > **Thank you everyone.** > > This was certainly not a question with a simple solution, and was far more complicated than I could've imagined. All of you provided so many amazing, insightful responses, selecting an single answer has been extremely difficult. You illuminated and educated in so ...
[Question] [ A dragon has appeared on the streets of New York and is rampaging around attacking anything that moves- along with devouring the local wildlife (humans). **Dragon Characteristics** * Main body shares similar dimensions to a fire truck, with a serpentine neck of half that length and a tail of the same len...
[Question] [ In the universe I am designing, an anthropomorphic species exists that can create fire at will. One normal human wants to trick others into thinking she is one of these creatures. She wants to design a glove which produces little flames/sparks when it contacts human skin during hand-to-hand-combat, ther...
[Question] [ In [this answer](https://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/questions/64649/when-creating-a-human-like-cyborg-what-hardware-and-software-are-critical-f/64654#64654) about how to design the ideal cyborg, I said: > > ... > > > * **Use electric tissue to power the machines.** Cyborgs need some way to genera...
[Question] [ I recently came up with a lizard that had a sort of crystal-gem like attachment on its back. The problem was finding a way for such a thing to have evolved to have a largish crystal on its back. The lizard is around 2 metres long, has a height of around 1 metre tall, probably carnivorous, could stand on...
[Question] [ Every day the Sun is closer to be a Red giant, making the live of the initial home of the humanity practically uninhabitable. Humans are not there anymore. It's a protected territory, but the Sun gonna end with that and we need to do something. **What humanity can do? There are a way to save the Earth, t...
[Question] [ Are there bacteria or other types of lifeforms that feed on rocks and other ground minerals? And if there aren't, is it technically possible? It can eat other things but the majority of its diet should be rocks or ground minerals. [Answer] [Look up lithotrophs](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithotroph)...
[Question] [ Let's say there's a humanoid species that are essencialy humans but tiny, around 13cm tall. As their vocal chords are smaller they would have high pitched voices, but could that effect be minimized in a biologically possible way? [Answer] **Bullfrog says "NO WAY!"** [![bullfrogs](https://i.stack.imgur...
[Question] [ The demigods are immortal individuals that protect our reality from eldritch abominations, such as Cthulu, Niggurath, etc, on a plane that exists between our world and theirs. These battles against these eldritch forces and their minions happen on a daily basis to prevent them from breaching our world. A...
[Question] [ I've just been transported into a world where I have god-like powers, they are near absolute as far as I can tell, at least I've yet to find their limits. The guiding principle of my powers seems to be **"if I understand it, I can use it."** I want to experiment and figure out the extent of them, but a...
[Question] [ Despite the wide variety of movement strategies employed by Earthling animals, up to an including [curling their bodies into circles and rolling](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQtR6ZuUSLg), there is one mode of locomotion that is glaringly missing: nothing [slinkies](https://youtu.be/glkgyRsovRE?t=171)...
[Question] [ Scientists recently discovered a propellantless drive capable of completely negating gravity with low energy inputs! Huzzah! Sadly the Earth is going to be destroyed soon by a rogue handwave. Looking at their possible escape candidates the scientists settle on Venus. They build flying cities and sit them...
[Question] [ I am writing about two characters that come to our world from their own mirror dimension. There is cultural exchange between the two, but not tourism-level. The two characters are a royal witch and a vampire. When creating swears and slang, I want the characters each to have their own distinct feel, as ...
[Question] [ I want to have an Earth-sized planet (with similar gravity) with an extremely low-density atmosphere (comparable to Mars) at most of its surface. Complex life, including an information-age civilization, lives in enormous sinkholes many kilometers across, some up to 100 km across. Due to the lower elevati...
[Question] [ Piggybacking on this question: [Can you simply scale up animals?](https://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/questions/316/can-you-simply-scale-up-animals) how CAN we scale up living creatures to be giant sized? What would need to done to make truly giant animals (Dragons, Kong, Godzilla, etc.) possible? La...
[Question] [ **Closed**. This question needs to be more [focused](/help/closed-questions). It is not currently accepting answers. --- **Want to improve this question?** Update the question so it focuses on one problem only by [editing this post](/posts/106292/edit). Closed 5 years ago. [Improve this question](/po...
[Question] [ If there existed a planet that was made completely of liquid water, no solid matter at all, what would the core of such a planet be like? Let's assume that this planet has conditions similar to earth, so that it could support liquid water at its surface, with ice caps at the poles. But there's no matter ...
[Question] [ Assume you're in a world where you can increase your strength with magic and you can get a bow with enough resistance that you can shoot arrows at a supersonic speed. How strong would the person need to be to wield it? How many pounds of force would they have to be able to apply? Also, is there another...
[Question] [ This is going to require some explanation to set up, as I have been working on this world for a while. The world is an isolated alternate dimension (no stars in the sky) that contains a bizarre feature called 'The Rift.' The true nature of The Rift is unknown, but it is a 2km diameter feature that most ...
[Question] [ Distance in space battles is a crucial variable that affects the tactics and outcomes. With the following tech what is a reasonable distance for battles to be engaged: Engines: Fusion drives with max safe acceleration at 156 m/s2 Maneuver drives with max acceleration at 20 m/s2 Weapons: Railguns wi...
[Question] [ I know that when some rivers (such as the Nile) flow out to sea, they break up into several smaller channels. But I was wondering about the necessary features of the land and water for it to occur. [Answer] The reason why some rivers form a delta (Nile, Ganges, Mississippi, etc.) and some other form a...
[Question] [ I'd like to know if such a material would be, at least, theoretically possible nowadays, if we somehow were to be able to have enough material of whichever one we wished for and the theoretical knowledge to do it. The suit should be able to, at least partially, reduce the inflicted damage from attacks fr...
[Question] [ A ground based army wishes to be able to defend against orbital strikes by unguided hypervelocity projectiles. Handling orbital laser platforms and guided orbital projectiles is out of scope for this design. Since the best defense against these kinds of attacks is to not be where the projectile impacts, ...
[Question] [ Let's say I'm a secretive organization who's recently come into possession of two individuals of the genus, Giraffatitan (a sauropod similar to the more famous Brachiosaurus for those unfamiliar with it). Most other creatures that this organization comes into possession of aren't theoretically hard to fi...
[Question] [ What I'm talking about is a gun that shoots red laser beams at the speed of light in pulses in an equivalent of semiautomatic fire, delivering electromagnetic damage to an enemy that melts through his armor and slices through body parts while making a pew pew sound of some type? Something that makes caut...
[Question] [ It's common knowledge that one of the things that makes stealth aircraft so stealthy is that the body is covered in a skin of special material that interferes with radar. Would it be theoretically possible (for a more-or-less reality-based superhero concept) to create a "stealth car" based on the same pr...
[Question] [ **This question asks for hard science.** All answers to this question should be backed up by equations, empirical evidence, scientific papers, other citations, etc. Answers that do not satisfy this requirement might be removed. See [the tag description](/tags/hard-science/info) for more information. It's...
[Question] [ Concerning long term effects of zero gravity on humans living in space compared with those living on super earths with 1.5x to 2x G, how could the gravity differences cause reproductive failure among the two groups? What biologic traits might be selected for (or against) that would start to cause inferti...
[Question] [ [This question](https://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/questions/3188/what-should-three-men-and-three-women-do-if-everyone-else-is-dead) discusses the various steps a very small gene pool could take to avoid inbreeding however most of the answers agree that it's very unlikely that a group of 6 individua...
[Question] [ Normal seashores are curved. On a planet with earthlike features, the seashores are entirely straight. For example, [![](https://i.stack.imgur.com/7FA2F.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/7FA2F.png) . Long paths of straightness extend for many miles at a time. Note that these seashores aren’t hexagonal or o...
[Question] [ A long time ago [homo floresiensis](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homo_floresiensis) split off into two main groups Goblins and Halflings. Now Goblins are an odd little bunch (here's a rough mock up of what a [goblin](https://i.stack.imgur.com/vHimf.jpg) might look like) and I was wondering what evolutio...
[Question] [ I am writing a short story about an overworked planet whose civilization has achieved space elevators and orbital rings. The planet, which is earth-sized, has three complete orbital rings in stable orbit, each one 200 meters in width, which is about an eighth of a mile. The rings are used for heavy const...
[Question] [ If we were gonna develop a colony on mars would it be possible to explore geothermal energy and would it be viable? (Assuming we could transport the required equipment) **Edit:** Recently I found this video, where Elon Musk actually mentions geothermal. Could he have some knowledge we don't know about? [...
[Question] [ The premise: Radio-capable civilisations were detected on Venus and Mars in the late 1940s. At first by picking up accidental transmissions like radar pulses, then later with deliberate signals beamed to each world. Relations were reasonably cordial between the three planets, with regular data packets se...
[Question] [ A while back I decided to [create a zombie virus to wipe out most of the human race](https://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/q/34527/9498). That was fun and all, but now I'm faced with another problem - setting up a society. I originally wiped out nearly all humans in order to create a better society, ri...
[Question] [ Experience shows me that some people dislike when a given world has monolithic species. By this I mean the planet has one culture, language, empire or purpose that unifies all of its member. Most that dislike this idea claim it is not realistic, judging from humanity and Earth. Since it's not obvious, I ...
[Question] [ Imagine a powerful being of your choice casting this spell on Earth: 1. Earth can hold only 8 billion people 2. If a child is being born and this child breaks the 8 billion rule, this happens: 3. Wait 30 minutes. If someone else dies in this time, then everything is OK 4. If not, take every human older t...
[Question] [ If you see this type of road and you are Czech, you are going to say, that is made from cats heads: ![cats heads](https://i.stack.imgur.com/1Vju6.jpg) ([Image source](http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vrtbovsk%C3%A1_zahrada,_obl%C3%A1zky_dl%C3%A1%C5%BEd%C4%9Bn%C3%A1_cesta.JPG)) Imagine I am [Joe the...
[Question] [ Is it possible to have a planet that is both bigger than Earth and weaker in terms of gravity? I've got an idea about it being less dense, but I don't know what to do about its magnetic field. I need to know this because I desperately want to write a short story involving human-powered flight with artifi...
[Question] [ **This question asks for hard science.** All answers to this question should be backed up by equations, empirical evidence, scientific papers, other citations, etc. Answers that do not satisfy this requirement might be removed. See [the tag description](/tags/hard-science/info) for more information. All ...
[Question] [ Suppose a civilization from the past was suddenly given access to a huge database of information from modern times. How fast might such a civilization develop, compared to how they otherwise would without access to such information? Or, to make that a bit more concrete, let's say we gave the nation of En...
[Question] [ It's a commonly known fact that whale song travels huge distances. In fact apparently before the oceans were so noisy they could communicate over 10,000km! However, whales are very big! They can create very loud noises, far louder than any being of 2 metres. In addition whalesong is typically around 10-4...
[Question] [ Whether solid or a swarm, a problem that occurs to me long-term in building a dyson structure are damaging flares and magnetic storms from the host star. It seems like the absolute best option would be to build a structure around a fresh white dwarf, which is unlikely to be terribly turbulent, but it sho...
[Question] [ The People's Dominion of North Kadana is an arctic isolationist dictatorship, with lots of territory but it is all barren frozen tundra. Their plan: heat up the world by a few degrees, making their permafrost melt and turn into arable land, so that their nation becomes more productive whilst their southe...
[Question] [ What **existing material** (e.g. 410 steel, *no unobtanium*) and **what thickness** should the ribcage of a creature (of humanoid size and shape, let's say it's a genetically-engineered human) have, **to survive the bite of a Tyrannosaurus Rex?** The bite's strength can be up to **430,000 pounds per squa...
[Question] [ So, this question has been asked before, but I would like to make a few stipulations regarding the specifics of my question. Firstly, the aluminium in question is fabricated in modern times, and access to aluminium alloys and forges to produce them are available. Secondly, rather than use the aluminium ...
[Question] [ How would you modify a one-handed projectile weapon (preferably a crossbow) to make it trail a long, light string? **Technology Level:** Similar to the mid 1800's, but without the discovery of gunpowder or development of modern firearms. **Physics:** I'm trying to keep the basic physics of this world as...
[Question] [ I'm imagining if we can live on a very special white dwarf which has very special characteristics: 1. It has cooled down to a very low temperature 2. Its rotational speed on the equator can almost cancel out the gravity (ie: the gravity is almost same as on Earth) 3. Accretion occurs so that rocks accumu...
[Question] [ One of the many problems with making really, really big creatures is that their bones are, eventually, incapable of supporting their own weight. Eventually, they get to be all leg and no body. This is *especially* a problem when trying to make something that's humanoid but larger than normal, because you...
[Question] [ I have a planet covered with a large shallow ocean, which extends over most of its surface. I want to turn this planet into a great desert, specifically a salty desert (the salts of this desert are a mixture of several chlorides, not just NaCl, there is also NH4Cl, MgCl2, CaCl2, etc.). On Earth there are...
[Question] [ **Closed**. This question is [opinion-based](/help/closed-questions). It is not currently accepting answers. --- **Want to improve this question?** Update the question so it can be answered with facts and citations by [editing this post](/posts/126946/edit). Closed 5 years ago. [Improve this question...
[Question] [ To round off the little series started by [this](https://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/questions/123534/what-would-a-medieval-war-against-an-aquatic-race-look-like) and [this](https://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/questions/123598/what-would-a-medieval-war-against-an-air-borne-race-look-like), I figu...
[Question] [ My [question on refueling around stars](https://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/questions/79376/refueling-from-stars) got me thinking about the [transit method of detecting planets](https://exoplanets.nasa.gov/interactable/11/) and how it could be used to detect a ship whilst it is refueling (either by a...
[Question] [ I've watched and read many SF stories which included nanites as a wonder weapon that can do pretty much anything. One such series is the [Star Marine series](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legacy_Trilogy) by Ian Douglas. Those books frequently quote the nano disassemblers as able to chew through a meter o...
[Question] [ I have been daydreaming about this scenario a lot. There are many similar questions here about time travellers being thrown to the middle ages, but they usually can't prepare and can't bring anything from the modern times. Let's set some constraints: * Time traveler can only travel once from today to 14...
[Question] [ Many half-human mythological creatures follow a few common anatomical schemes. * Some consist of an animal with a human face, such as the sphinx, naga and manticore. * Some consist of a human anterior and animal posterior, such as the satyr, faun, ipotane and mermaid. * Some consist of an animal whose he...
[Question] [ People can, through sign language, express anything that can be expressed through spoken language so far as I know. So gestures *can* be fully expressive (there's enough "gesture-space" to build a language). Sign language, though, is derived *from* that spoken language, because it was developed to allow ...
[Question] [ In every fantasy setting, dragons are famous for their massive hoards of treasure. But the economic consequences of money suddenly disappearing from circulation are never really addressed. Smaug, for instance, took all the treasure of a small-but-wealthy nation. This would surely have farther-reaching re...
[Question] [ A long time ago in a galaxy called the Milky Way..... An alien race had its planet thrown out of its solar system. It is now a rogue planet. They survived for thousands of generations in underground artificial environments. Then they achieve FTL and begin colonizing solar systems. A thousand years later ...
[Question] [ **This question asks for hard science.** All answers to this question should be backed up by equations, empirical evidence, scientific papers, other citations, etc. Answers that do not satisfy this requirement might be removed. See [the tag description](/tags/hard-science/info) for more information. This...
[Question] [ I am trying to figure out how plausible it would be for people without electricity or steam power technology to use the sun to smelt and forge iron and steel. The people developing this solar furnace have limited fuel options for combustion. The mid 20th century [Odeillo solar furnace](https://en.wikiped...
[Question] [ I am working on a sci-fi story and need a way to clone a person, body and mind. I also want it to be done without "far future technology" where anything goes. I want it to be simple and crude, but also believable. And I might have found it... Background: It's the near future. A interstellar spacecraft is...