[TML] AWAD: Interzone

[Timothy Little]

On Mon, Feb 04, 2008 at 12:40:26AM -0500, Jerry W Barrington wrote:
> I think good mysteries are crafted on purpose.  What you describe is
> just a matter of rationalizing.  But that's me.

You're not alone in that.


> Then there is the escape velocity for O2.  If you can't hold that,
> you're left with a CO2 atmosphere (Mars & Venus)...  not fun.

In the case of the really small planet, it doesn't have nearly enough
gravity to even retain CO2.  It would escape more slowly than O2, but
still only on the order of a year or so for each halving of density.


> The basic laws of physics are still observed, we just postulate that
> there is some specific law of physics we don't know yet that allows
> our FTL.

To me, this is the fundamental thing that makes science fiction,
*science* fiction.  The fictional world has features extrapolated from
physical laws, and where not otherwise stated those laws are at the
least quite similar to our own.

In my opinion, good science fiction economizes on the number of
unexplained differences in the basic laws.  Where it introduces
something like that, it does so because it is necessary or at least
highly desirable.  In the case of Traveller, a core feature is that
people can travel between stars on familiar human timescales.  That
makes FTL necessary to the premise of the setting.

So going back to the original issue: is it necessary that the planet
be inexplicably small for having a breathable atmosphere?  Was it even
intended?


- Tim