ASPOLOGIA SCIENTIA:
I know it might sound a little strange coming from one of the physics-addicts,
but I'd love seeing more aliens. My interest in aliens actually lies
in the challenges of roleplaying them (and the biology of an alien is not
seperable, in my uneducated opinion, from its psychology). The biology is
interesting, but the psychology is what really gets me going. On the other
hand, I'll always pick a book of xenopsychology SF (CJ Cherry, Sturgeon) over
a book of the harder physics variety of SF (this isn't to say that the science
in Cherry or is bad, because it's not - it's just that the characters are
_SO_ good). An alien without a xenopsychology and without a culture is just
another lifeform, 'ya know? ;-) So please, if the lifesci-nerds want to
wax eloquent about bio matters, please do so! I think we could profit by a
better balance.
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OPEN MOUTH, REMOVE FOOT
Mark Cook's injunction to research PRIOR to stuffing one's foot (back) into
one's mouth is one well worth heeding (yea, verily, by me too). Ever since
the discussion on grav belts and free fall and velocity limitations thereto
apertaining, I've been digging out my refs on exposure and other wind-related
injuries, with the aim of posting up a synopsis of what injuries/trauma are
induced at which velocities...but I'm not done yet (AND I'm in the middle of
moving, which makes things a little harder than usual because my EMT texts
are in a box _SOMEWHERE_). What I'd like to find (and expect to be able to
find at the UCal library) is a ref which details the trauma induced by sudden
acceleration/deceleration (something which NASA did a lot of research on, I
believe). Then I'll really be in business as to having my facts all lined up
and well-behaved.
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TML STORY LINES/ROLEPLAYING EXAMPLES
I don't think I will ever mind the story lines that people have been posting
on the TML, because the quality has been good, and I also enjoy seeing how
other peoples' games and characters work. (You can take that as a yes vote,
Herr Doktor Metlay.) The point of view of the 4.5th frontier war is a real
good example - before 4.5th, I always thought of the Zhodani as The Evil
Empire(tm). I won't say my opinion (as far as my imperial characters is
concerned) has changed, but my outlook has been broadened. I'm also putting
together a robot character, because I liked the way the Imperial Advisor
presented the pseudo-biologicals as characters, and I'd like to try it myself.
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PARTING SHOTS
My account is going away in 3 days, and my new account isn't active yet. "See"
you all in a few weeks. Try not to be too interesting in the interim - I don't
want to miss anything... ;-)
Catie Helm