#sci fi explanation

[magentapink-art]

Further explanation for how I explained the workings of the old version

Supposedly this suit is made of a sort of fluid/liquid-esque material that has two modes. When in the first mode it stretches enough that the person can get in through the basically turtleneck sized neck hole… the helmet connects with a flexible lip inside of the helmet that attaches onto three layers of seal over the neck/shoulder area of the suit. Once the helmet and life support are attached the second mode activates which makes it stop stretching, and as a fluid material it maintains the same thickness so when a limb bends it does not stretch or wrinkle, the material automatically flows from the compressed side to the expanded side.

Also at the time I didn’t know mechanical counterpressure was a thing at all so I said it’s gas pressurised but it’s made from a 3d scan of the astronaut’s body and a close enough fit that it looks the exact same pressurised and unpressurised.

I don’t really buy this whole explanation anymore which is why I made the redesign.

Other flaws in this design include:

- High heels for no apparent reason

- Helmet too large it’s a waste of air (it was even egregiously bigger in the old drawings because I didn’t sketch before inking at the time, those were on paper)

- Exposed air hose between helmet and backpack is vulnerable to damage, putting the connection inside the suit is a better option

- Even if the suit was perfectly moulded to the body, the human body has concave parts so the suit wouldn’t look the exact same pressurised

- Why is the control panel an ipad

[cant-afford-lobotomy]

Not to post doctor who on main but my theory is that the reason everyone ran away from Ruby is that seeing the woman close up cancelled the perception filter (which was explicitly mentioned) which also allowed them to see through a perception filter on Ruby, which will become relevant in the series finale. Idk what this means tho.

[semisolidmind]

Wait a minute, so how does your dogday hunt/eat? Like, does he have teeth at all?

idk man, how do any of the toys in poppy playtime eat? how do their digestive systems work? how does stuff get absorbed into their bodies? does it pass through? if they're capable of eating and apparently starving, how have they lasted as long as they have without food?

i don't know how to answer most of these. they eat, and they can starve. im sure the game, like a lot of sci-fi, won't actually explain any of the science to us. so i don't know how to explain how something without teeth or any visible gullet can eat anything.

however, i can explain how dogday (at least the survivor version who never lost his legs) would go about hunting. he's got speed, stealth, and strength from surviving in the factory for so long; and he's got an axe from y/n's barn.

if what y/n makes isn't enough and he's feeling like killing something, off into the woods he'll go.

[gotyouanyway]

my favourite thing to explain about looms to the uninitiated is that their original stated canonical reason for existing is a witch's curse. not a sci fi doctor who "curse" that's actually a telepathic virus or something. a literal curse from a mystical soothsayer witch

[bubble-jasmine-tea]

Sketch concepts for theoretical X-Naut MDs… always thought it was interesting they have only chemists & bio-engineers(?) but no medical staff! What’re they supposed to do if someone gets stomped on by an Italian plumber while exploring a brand-new planet???

[astral-schools]

posting some backlogged sketches: beasein edition. featuring beatriz courtesy of @thenothlng

explanations for each under the cut

1. comm of them being goofy post wallaru 2 & 3. star magic scars 4. sort of a riff of that "you look lonely" scene from bladerunner that escalated based on a sci-fi AU of mine 5. hug ? dont remember the context 6. christmas party aftermath guest starring aedan & his dasein

[penumbralwoods]

sighs. anyone got some book recommendations

[quibbs126]

So how would the whole cog situation translate if you make the Transformers One cast humans?

I mean, I can see the cogs themselves being translated as like, magic or something, as I’ve seen some people do. But how in a human AU do you translate cogged vs cogless and how the cogless don’t have theirs? And how they get new ones?

Going with the magic explanation, you could maybe say that the cog would be like, an organ that creates said magic, like the bile sacs in The Owl House, since T-cogs kind of are organs. But then there’s the question of how they get new ones, did Alpha Trion perform open heart surgery on the quartet? Did D-16 give himself impulsive surgery when getting Megatronus’ cog?

I suppose it could also be an external thing, like some sort of gem. Would make a lot more sense than surgery. But then how do you explain how they’re born with them? Since they are a natural part of their bodies

I don’t know, I’m aware it’s putting too much thought into this, the human designs are supposed to be just for fun and a lot of things in Transformers shows would be hard to explain if they were always humans. It’s just that I keep thinking about this and also the cogs are so integral to the story and why the characters physically change appearances, so my brain keeps wondering how it’s supposed to work

[virvasiipi]

Normalest guy ever. Hes Reyes dad (he is not a good person)

[pizzazz-party]

i started rereading the series instead of jumping right into System Collapse. im almost there

[magentapink-art]

I realise I haven’t posted this here.

A while back I came up with a concept for a hybrid gas pressurised and mechanical counterpressure pressurised space suit for within the sci fi universe some of my stories are set in.

It’s called the ASHES, short for Adaptive Support Hybrid Environmental Suit.

Full explanation for its workings below.

TW: Very long and technical

ASHES (Adaptive Support Hybrid Environmental Suit)

The ASHES is a space suit intended for use in the exploration of celestial objects in vacuum or with a lower pressure than earth. It is a hybrid of mechanical counterpressure (MCP) and air pressure, to compensate for the flaws of using either one on its own- the head, chest, hands, feet and crotch use air pressure and MCP is used everywhere else. Of which, the head and chest are connected as one pocket of air with fittings that allow flexibility around the neck.

The chest section is constructed in a form similar to late medieval era breastplates in that it has a large compound curved form and is domed all around, and the bottom of it reaches the natural waist just below the ribcage. This form allows for more even distribution of pressure and flexibility at the waist without segmentation in that area, but there is a built in ring around each scye of the arm, sealed to be part of the same air pocket and mounted with springs inside, that increases movement range of the shoulders.

The crotch section is air pressurised via a u-shaped hard shell. Air enters via a tube in the back of the section that connects to the base of the back of the chest dome. To allow maximum range of motion but maintain the seal, the middle section that curves beneath the crotch is narrower while the front and back ends widen into a more circular shape. Aside from providing pressure, this piece also functions to collect and funnel liquid waste into a collection compartment mounted on the outside of the right thigh, so the wearer can spend longer in the suit.

The gloves are largely the same as currently existing space suit gloves, although in form differing in that they have wedge shaped attachments on the fingertips to allow for more precise motions than the fairly rounded glove fingertips will allow by themselves. A notable feature of these gloves is a dial on the wrist that allows the wearer to adjust the pressure of the glove, of which it can be increased for more protection and padding although increasing the stiffness, or decreased for more dexterity and flexibility since hands don’t actually need as much pressure to survive as you would need for breathing. The glove pressure can be lowered even further if the dexterity is necessary for particular tasks, but only in short periods at a time so the glove can be repressurised before swelling or bruising begins to happen, and sensors within the glove will repressurise automatically if enough time has passed with the glove in lowered pressure that it becomes a risk.

The mechanical counterpressure parts of the suit use the principle of lines of non extension in a way similar to the Biosuit. It is made with sections along the sides that can be tightened to provide pressure, while when untightened has enough room to be put on easily. These sections are mainly tightened with the electronic control panel, but can also be tightened manually using knobs similar to the BOA lacing used on snowboard boots, although with an additional part that locks the knob down after it has been tightened.

The suit consists of multiple layers. The first are the chest and crotch pieces, which are rigid and need the skin contact to properly seal, which makes use of a rubber lip that also curves inwards at the end so it can provide air pressure where the edge meets the MCP parts. If necessary, garments such as a bra can be worn underneath the chest dome as long as it does not interfere with the seals.

Next is the MCP layer, which also has parts that go over the two rigid sections, although those sections do not provide much additional pressure because the rigid part already provides air pressure, so the MCP suit serves only to hold those in place in those sections. The MCP suit has built in socks and touchscreen sensitive inner gloves which are also detachable, but contain the wrist and ankle sealing rings for the gloves and boots. The outside of the inner glove and sock parts have an airtight coating so it can form a space for air pressure once the outer glove is attached to the ring. The material for the rest of the MCP suit is gas and liquid permeable so the wearer’s body can naturally cool itself via sweat. The suit also has small openings to attach the tubes for pressurisation, which lead from the chest dome and plug into the crotch piece, gloves and boots, although the boots and crotch receive their pressure after a single tube that goes down the middle of the spine splits off into three at a hub placed in the small of the back. The tubes are aligned to the inside and back of limbs to minimise obstruction to movement and have allowance around joints or highly mobile areas, attached to elastic to allow slight shifting for mobility. It is at this point that the suit is tightened using the control panel, which is a touchscreen that supports both capacitive and resistive types of sensing, with deliberately large buttons onscreen so it can be used even with the gloves set to their maximum pressure. The tube that the crotch piece funnels into is attached to the collection compartment.

On top of the MCP layer is the outer shell layer. This can be made in several variations to suit different conditions such as temperatures and what gases or vapours the atmosphere, if there is one, consists of. For use in environments that have the potential of becoming very cold, such as the moon, one version of this suit is made of a flexible aerogel material. One side of the material is coated to be airtight, but the other side is left without this coating so it will not trap air and expand when exposed to vacuum. This layer goes over the majority of what is underneath except for the hands and feet, where the layer seals to an upper section of the wrist and ankle rings, and seals around the ports in the back of the chest dome that link to the air supply and life support systems, as well as the base of the neck ring on the chest dome. This layer also includes a section that covers the flexible joint portion of the neck ring to prevent interference with the function of that part. This layer has hard shell portions that go over the chest dome, liquid waste collection compartment and crotch piece, further securing them in place and protecting them from damage. The layer has vents placed strategically to allow air movement for the body’s natural cooling and to release air that may have leaked out of the air pressurised parts. There is also a pad attached to either side of the backside to prevent too much weight from being placed onto the crotch piece which could cause discomfort from the edges pressing in. This layer also serves as protection for the air tubes. The material of this layer is resistant enough to protect against micrometeoroids and puncture via sharp objects, as well as block radiation.

The gloves, boots and helmet can then be attached to their respective rings. The air tubes for the gloves feed through a port in the wrist ring that leads to the pressure dial. The helmet has a built in communication system. The control panel is attached to the back of the wearer’s non-dominant forearm, and a cover can be attached over the control panel so it prevents any unintended changes caused by contact to the screen. The gloves are long-gauntleted to cover the wrist ring and the boots also have material that extends above the ankle ring, which means that the front strap of the control panel is attached over the glove. The helmet has a photochromic visor, which means it can change brightness or tint depending on the lighting conditions, allowing the best visibility available for the condition while protecting against bright light such as the sun or glare from tasks such as welding. The helmet is fitted with lights on either side of the head- forwards-pointing illumination lights for seeing the task they are working on, and indicator lights at the top so others can see the current status and location of their team members and can also work as an alert signal for emergencies.

The life support is in the form of a backpack that attaches to the back of the chest dome. It provides oxygen and other mixed gases for use in pressurisation. It also contains drinking water, accessible by the wearer from a tube within the helmet, and can add slight humidity to the breathing air supply for comfort.

A notable feature of the outer shell layer is what is known as the IsoLock Mode (portmanteau of Isolate and Lock). While in normal operation, the open vents allow heat and moisture to be released via the airflow, allowing for comfort and cooling. When IsoLock Mode is activated, the vents are shut to form a hermetic seal from the outside environment. This mode can allow astronauts to safely enter places with materials and gases hazardous to skin contact or dangerous when inhaled even in small amounts, although even without the mode, the air supply of the helmet is sufficient in preventing such inhalations. This mode will also allow an amount of air to be added into this now sealed space, creating an insulating effect. This insulating air can also be warmed as it is added, or alternatively for hot environments, cooled. At the same time, this air forms a slight gap between the MCP layer and the outer shell, further forming an isolation between the wearer and environment and will slightly soften impacts. The fact that this air also creates a positive pressure in the suit means an even better effect in resisting contamination. Visually, having IsoLock Mode activated will cause the suit to appear slightly thicker.

However, the IsoLock Mode is not without its flaws, which means it may not be desirable to have it permanently activated. The sealed layer of air will reduce the suit’s flexibility, causing the wearer to have to exert more strength to move, especially when bending joints. The slightly expanded form of the suit may make it difficult to manoeuvre in narrower spaces, and motions may become clumsy for precise tasks. Additionally, providing air for the entire body as opposed to just the parts that require air pressure will lead to the suit’s air supply to be expended faster. It is also not ideal for use in submerged or partially submerged cases as it will lead to buoyancy. However, the sealed vents without added air can be used for submersion.

Even with these flaws, the IsoLock Mode’s ability to seal off the suit gives it another purpose. In the case that the MCP fails, the outer shell layer can be fully pressurised instead, preserving the wearer’s life. This level of pressure is generally not ideal in typical operation for the outer shell suit because it will render the material almost entirely rigid, and because it was not constructed for this as its main purpose, will cause ballooning, and the slightly elastic property of the material will push this further. As a result, the wearer will become immobile and need to be carried to safety. In this mode the wearer will not be able to reach the control panel, but in the case this was mistakenly activated or the wearer wants to deactivate it on their own, the thigh vent should be in reach and can be manually opened to release the pressure. The functionality of this mode should be considered like an emergency life raft, and only used if absolutely necessary. This mode will also cause the outer shell’s rigid parts to become separated from the part it was covering underneath.

Also here’s an alternate/simplified version of the design I made for animation

[grimark]

i do think the doctor's lil speech about "time lords are the most civilised civilisation, we're beyond your petty genders and gender stereotypes" is pure cope btw. time lord society for sure is up to their eyeballs in rigid and stifling social conventions, they're just different to the ones humans have. that's why the doctor secretly cannot fucking stand the place and does everything in their power to avoid visiting it, even when it hasn't been recently exploded.

[anomellee]

trying to read project hail mary but as an actual scientist this book is mildly painful

[un-pearable]

twice while watching separate brothers asked “why do they have knights” and “if they’ve got all this tech then why do they use swords”. because it’s FUN . NEXT QUESTION

[marlynnofmany]

It’s fun to have one character be an enthusiastic history teacher. She’s great about dropping background lore and explanations that I want to get across somehow.

“Yes, Lakeview,” Jenrietta confirmed. “That dry sea was the lake.”

Moss cocked her head at the map in the most judgemental fashion. “Okay, I don’t claim to understand griffin naming trends, but I have questions. A sea is not a lake, and a dry seabed is also not a lake.”

Mindylise laughed. “You didn’t say it was that fallen city!” she said to Jenrietta. “My favorite by far. Moss, there was the most amazing passive-aggressive feud between the sky city and the people who lived by the sea. ‘It’s not a lake!’ ‘It looks like one from up here’; that level of pettiness.”

[hes-a-plant]

I honestly think about this post at least once a week. So important

new doctor who tommorow. And I it’s honour- Here’s this Very Important Post