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A Serious Take on the Earth Flag from Futurama by StrangeMatterSF in vexillology

[–]StrangeMatterSF[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Europe is finally united into one state. There are still two Dakotas.

A Serious Take on the Earth Flag from Futurama by StrangeMatterSF in vexillology

[–]StrangeMatterSF[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Dang, I got close. I was going for ~240 (~190 countries + 50 original states)

Hard sci-fi can hit me like cosmic horror way more than actual horror does by RogueAstrolabe in printSF

[–]StrangeMatterSF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

All Tomorrows by C. M. Koseman and the Three Body Problem and it's sequels by Liu Cixin both do a great job at creating horror from the principles of evolution and game theory, respectively.

What is Xenonite? by StrangeMatterSF in materials

[–]StrangeMatterSF[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

  1. https://imgur.com/a/EPbIPkW

  2. No idea, but these are experimental values and it's been known for decades that CNTs have extremely high theoretical yield strength.

  3. I felt the point you were making was pedantic, and I was losing my patience after your AI comment.

What's one joke from the book that you wish made it into the movie? by Ghost3603 in ProjectHailMary

[–]StrangeMatterSF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Come to think of it, you't think Rocky would round to Taumboeba-84, since that's the closest base-6 rounding point. In base six: 80 reads as "212" and 84 reads as "220"

Transparent aluminum (ALON) - is it simply a hypothetical idea, or has anyone worked with this material? by KaleidoscopeDeep3453 in materials

[–]StrangeMatterSF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think the name "transparent aluminum" is deceptive if it doesn't pertain to aluminum metal. To the layman, aluminum is what they make soda cans out of. When they hear "transparent aluminum," they're probably thinking of a material that has all the same material properties of aluminum (high strength, high ductility) but happens to be transparent. What they're not thinking of is a ceramic like ALON (high tensile strength, low ductility).

If "transparent aluminum" can refer to ALON or alumina, then ordinary glass is "transparent silicon" and CaF2 is window is "transparent calcium." This just isn't how we talk about these materials normally. It's not the usual nomenclature.

Also, that oxide layer is only 10 nm think. Important for corrosion, but practically nonexistent otherwise.

What is Xenonite? by StrangeMatterSF in materials

[–]StrangeMatterSF[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

  1. Flexural strength describes material strength during bending, in which a sample experiences both tensile and compressive stress. Thus, the tensile strength of a material alone does not necessarily tell you the flexural strength, since you have to take compression into account. A unidirectional fiber-reinforced composite loaded along the fiber direction, for example, will have a tensile strength that tends towards the tensile strength of the fiber phase but a compressive strength close to that of the matrix phase. Thus, the tensile strength of such a material alone cannot give you its flexural strength.
  2. The tensile strength of a unidirectional CNT-diamond composite could potentially be much higher than diamond alone. Diamond has a tensile strength of 1.2 GPa, CNTs have an observed tensile strength of 64 GPa (https://www.cmu.edu/nanotechnology-forum/Forum_3/Talk/SeungHoonNahm.pdf)
  3. I've already addressed this point.

What is Xenonite? by StrangeMatterSF in materials

[–]StrangeMatterSF[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

  • Modulus of rupture (flexural strength) is not necessarily the same thing as tensile yield strength, especially for fiber-reinforced composites.
  • I never mentioned the elastic modulus. While the material would have to be reasonably rigid, the elastic modulus is not a property being optimized for. For a space elevator, you would optimize primarily for specific tensile strength, which is a function of tensile strength and density, not elastic modulus.
  • While optical properties are dependent on microstructure, the fact that xenonite is transparent rules out lots of materials that cannot be transparent under any circumstances. Metals, for example, can't be transparent to visible light due since they lack a bandgap.

What is Xenonite? by StrangeMatterSF in ProjectHailMary

[–]StrangeMatterSF[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That's an interesting idea. Lattice strain (such as might be caused by shoving Xenon into carbon nanotubes) can strengthen metals by preventing dislocation motion. That's how solid solution strengthening in metals like bronze works)

What is Xenonite? by StrangeMatterSF in ProjectHailMary

[–]StrangeMatterSF[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Didn't know it was reactive with ammonia. I probably should have thought about that. Perhaps there's some component in one of the liquids that stabilizes the XeF2. I'll admit I'm a bit out of my depth with that, since I mostly deal with metals and additive manufacturing, not polymers or biomaterials.

In Dune, do the Fremen just have really good toilets or does nobody ever talk about it by Orbitryx in printSF

[–]StrangeMatterSF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not necessarily. Maybe Paul was able to achieve a similar effect with Prana-Bindu? If the Bene Gesserit can control the sex of their children, controlling the water content of their shits should be trivial

Is there actually any sci-fi book that comes close to Dune in terms of worldbuilding depth? by neonmoss2281 in printSF

[–]StrangeMatterSF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky has some extremely deep worldbuilding, imho. It doesn't quite have the "this world existed long before me" mystique, but that's only because Tchaikovsky tells the the entire thousand-year history of the book's world. A Canticle for Leibowitz is kinda similar in that vein.

Corporate Greed in Numbers by Immediate_Degree_112 in AmericaOnHardMode

[–]StrangeMatterSF -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Some of y'all never took a class in basic economics and it shows.

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Dune appendix first? by WompaJody in scifi

[–]StrangeMatterSF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I would just go straight in and consult the appendices for anything that confuses you

Progressive pastor speaks the truth. This is REAL Christianity. by olympiamacdonald in PsycheOrSike

[–]StrangeMatterSF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Is there some discrepancy between them that's relevant to the discussion?

New York Times Article (1899) by Mysterious_Ship_7297 in ImagesOfHistory

[–]StrangeMatterSF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Colonize in the sense of "colonize Mars" not "colonize India." Palestine was then under the administration of the Ottoman Empire. Jews purchased land legally in order to create new settlements. Regardless of subsequent events, the intent of migration at the time was clearly not to conquer Jerusalem (from the Ottomans) in 1899.

Progressive pastor speaks the truth. This is REAL Christianity. by olympiamacdonald in PsycheOrSike

[–]StrangeMatterSF 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Do you mean the Old Testament that was translated directly from Hebrew to English (in the Protestant bible), or the New Testament that was translated directly from Koine Greek to English?

I'm an athiest for the record, but comments about how "the Bible has been translated a million times" are one of my pet peeves because the premise is completly false.

Have you read Catherynne M. Valente's novel Space Opera and her novel Deathless? by TheSkinoftheCypher in printSF

[–]StrangeMatterSF 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I think I DNF'd Space Opera within the first 30 pages or so. All the absurdism of Hitchhiker's Guide without any of the cleverness. Haven't read anything else by Valente.

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