{"id":5132,"date":"2013-06-21T06:00:03","date_gmt":"2013-06-21T10:00:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.allandouglas.com\/blog\/?p=5132"},"modified":"2025-04-21T01:56:40","modified_gmt":"2025-04-21T05:56:40","slug":"making-things-bigger-badder-better","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/making-things-bigger-badder-better\/","title":{"rendered":"Making Things Bigger, Badder, Better"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>One of my favorite books is James Burke\u2019s <i>The Day the Universe Changed<\/i>, which looks at the effects that certain changes in prevailing thoughts, and a few inventions, had on society as a whole.\u00a0 It is amazing what changes can be effected with small shifts in thought and deed.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"width: 120px; height: 240px;\" src=\"http:\/\/rcm-na.amazon-adsystem.com\/e\/cm?lt1=_blank&amp;bc1=000000&amp;IS2=1&amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;fc1=000000&amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;t=alladougdesi-20&amp;o=1&amp;p=8&amp;l=as4&amp;m=amazon&amp;f=ifr&amp;ref=ss_til&amp;asins=B002WAUVCS\" height=\"240\" width=\"320\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<figure style=\"width: 320px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" \" style=\"border: 0px none; margin: 5px;\" alt=\"science fiction\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.staticflickr.com\/7453\/9019591276_074fc127bf_n_d.jpg\" width=\"320\" height=\"147\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jump Point by Oscar Cafaro<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In a similar fashion, it can take some innovative thinking to take our mechanical monstrosities to their next level.\u00a0 Lately I\u2019ve been deriding Sci-Fi writers who take the \u201cbecause I say so\u201d approach to technology in their novels.\u00a0 I admit to being something of a \u2018wet blanket\u2019, as Greta playfully put it.\u00a0 At least, I hope she was being playful!<\/p>\n<p>Now that I\u2019ve examined a whole host of the challenges that will need to be met in order for humankind to go frolicking about in deep space, let\u2019s take a look at what we will have to do to meet those challenges.\u00a0 To attack this subject head-on regarding space travel, would involve a huge, stinking, pile of speculation about what we might know and what we might have at our disposal in another hundred years.<\/p>\n<p>We do have some inklings of what might be possible through research channels.\u00a0 But most of the cutting edge stuff is being done by the government in the form or weapons research or reverse engineering alien spacecraft; and governments, especially the American government, are notoriously tight lipped about such research.\u00a0 It isn\u2019t until new technologies show up in our consumer products that we are clued in that they exist.\u00a0 And they will never admit that <a title=\"Vulcans brought us velcro\" href=\"http:\/\/memory-alpha.wikia.com\/wiki\/Velcro\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">velcro was a Vulcan invention<\/a>.<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>So let\u2019s step aside and take a look backwards.\u00a0 The video below is a fascinating look at key developments that helped aircraft manufacturers meet the challenges put before them and create bigger, more powerful, longer ranged, safer airplanes.\u00a0 You will see that rarely is taking the next step simply a matter of bolting on another engine.<\/p>\n<p>Before we begin, comments in one of my postings concerned the advances in materials, and how we would not have supersonic aircraft today if they never got out of the varnished canvas over wood frames stage.\u00a0 Sometimes advances come with a major leap in design or material usage.\u00a0 Sometimes it\u2019s a simple thing no one thought of \u2013 such as Howard Hughes deciding to grind down the rivet heads that held the skin to his racing planes to get an amazing boost in speed by reducing drag.\u00a0 Seems simple now, but it was revolutionary then.<\/p>\n<p>As we pine for the depth of space, we need to realize that getting there is not as simple as strapping rockets to an aircraft and blasting off to another planet.\u00a0 As sci-fi writers, we should be thinking not of a space shuttle on steroids, or ocean vessels in space, but of what might actually meet the challenges that we\u2019ll face out there.\u00a0 We will have to invent that technology, to be sure, but if we keep it as close to known facts as possible then we may just find ourselves rubbing shoulders with the likes of A.C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov and Robert Heinlein (metaphorically speaking).<\/p>\n<div align=\"center\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/lhnO0VT6y7o?list=PLlAo3mBMYZjN0qbRGmyuq8saRwyj-E409\" height=\"315\" width=\"560\" allowfullscreen=\"\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n(Note: the newer, 6 engine, <a title=\"More on the Antonov 225\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=daSbUOGfw64\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Antonov 225 <\/a>is even bigger than its little brother 224)<\/div>\n<h2>Similar Programs:<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a title=\"Bigger Cruise Ships\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=kxGAHeoKmxE&amp;list=PLlAo3mBMYZjN0qbRGmyuq8saRwyj-E409\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Cruise Ships<\/a>: In making passenger ships bigger, faster and more opulent, what challenges did designers face and how were they overcome?<\/li>\n<li><a title=\"Bigger submarines\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=TALsk2BpkB8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Submarines: <\/a>What is involved in taking a sealed environment under the waves and making it increasingly larger and more powerful?<\/li>\n<li><a title=\"Faster Trains\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=cygd0tvbk50&amp;list=PLlAo3mBMYZjN0qbRGmyuq8saRwyj-E409&amp;index=5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Trains<\/a>: Making trains bigger and faster hold challenges as well.<\/li>\n<li><a title=\"Bigger aircraft carriers\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=24nryd799Vc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Aircraft Carriers<\/a>: A sea-going airport, how to make it work and keep such a huge crew safe and happy.<\/li>\n<li><a title=\"Watch Space Stations on YpuTube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=x4JCcOFWzgM&amp;list=PLlAo3mBMYZjN0qbRGmyuq8saRwyj-E409\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Space Stations<\/a>: The evolution of space stations culminating in the ISS.<\/li>\n<li><a title=\"Watch Extreme Aircraft on YouTube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=LDEDDmX8UP4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Modern Marvels: Extreme Aircraft<\/a> Cutting edge aircraft and elements of what makes them special.\u00a0 Showcases the F35.<\/li>\n<li><a title=\"Watch Hitlers Stealth Fighter on YouTube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=NaJzKjtjZnY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Hitlers Stealth Fighter<\/a> The weapon that almost changed the outcome of WWII.<\/li>\n<li><a title=\"Watch Submarine Aircraft Carrier on Youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=q5-ijBs8iJA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Japan&#8217;s Submarine Aircraft Carrier<\/a> During WWII, Japan deployed two stealth submarines designed to carry aircraft<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>One of my favorite books is James Burke&rsquo;s The Day the Universe Changed, which looks at the effects that certain changes in prevailing thoughts, and a few inventions, had on society as a whole.&nbsp; It is amazing what changes can be effected with small shifts in thought and deed. In a similar fashion, it can &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/making-things-bigger-badder-better\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Making Things Bigger, Badder, Better&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5132","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-muse"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5132","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5132"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5132\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21541,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5132\/revisions\/21541"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5132"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5132"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5132"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}