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Post by Dazo on Nov 25, 2004 3:53:28 GMT -5
These metals are only rare on earth, as I understand it they occur naturally in large amounts in asteroids. But I suppose it could be a carbonfibre based material they used, that would be corrosion resistant and non conductive wouldn't it. It could also be an alloy that uses trace amount of the platinum group metals to make it corosion resistant, that might work.
Hmmm I really want the look of this hive to be gleaming metal not a drab gray conrete colour. Plasteel would probably be ok, but can you get that in chrome as opposed to grey.
I want them rectangular, but I suppose the inner core could be circular, remember these are not pylons like you would find on a oil rig they are pillar cities, each pillar is vast, the lateral trusses between pillars are also city's. And they only have to support there own weight, they aren't holding anything up they are not supporting the hive, they are the hive.
I see no problem with that, but they would also have to be inedible, i don't want any edible life on the planet, I want it all grown and brought in from the moons.
Would it be possible to connect them in someway, like with a giant elevator. Or is that just way beyond the realms of physics.
Thats good, I like that idea, it makes a lot of sense
I think thats fine for the more advanced crystal life forms, but I still would like the wilder more primitive crystals to begin life with a bolt of lightening.
Yep I agree.
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Post by Destecado on Nov 26, 2004 13:31:20 GMT -5
These metals are only rare on earth, as I understand it they occur naturally in large amounts in asteroids. But I suppose it could be a carbonfibre based material they used, that would be corrosion resistant and non conductive wouldn't it. It could also be an alloy that uses trace amount of the platinum group metals to make it corosion resistant, that might work. Definite possibilites, to be cost effective though, there would probably have to be an abundant source somewhere in the system. I don't see the company footing the bill to have such resources mine in another system an transported to this world. That may work for the Adeptus Mechnicus, but a corporation would have to pay a high price for such transport of materials...even in their raw form. This might point to substantial mining taking place in an asteroid belt...are their any asteroid belts in the sytem? Hmmm I really want the look of this hive to be gleaming metal not a drab gray conrete colour. Plasteel would probably be ok, but can you get that in chrome as opposed to grey. Actually, instead of gleaming metal, what about a pearlesent crystal sheen? Similar to electro plating, there is a process called elctropainting (an electrostatic coating technique). Electrostatic Coating
An efficiently applied electric charge is sent through liquid paint and the object to be coated is grounded. The particles of paint should be attracted to the surface of the object and there should be little waste. A demonstration of this technique was done using a metal salt shaker.
The shaker was hung in front of a small spray gun, and when the spray was turned on for a few seconds only one side was coated. When four fine wires, spaced evenly around the shaker were charged with electrical current and the shaker was grounded and the spray was repeated, it was coated the object on all sides, top, and bottom.
A conventional spray paint application only goes to the surface directly in front of the spray gun. An electrostatic coating application wraps the material around the substrate ensuring an even mill thickness of the coating system. This leaves behind a finished coating without the unevenness, high and low spots of conventional paint spray applications.The "paint could actually be a polymer epoxy with a powdered version of the crystal as an aditive. Different Polymer Powder Coatings have special properties such as a soft touch, noise dampening, impact resistance or enhanced corrosion resistance. The crysalts may have been used to enhance corrosion resistance. In the upper parts of the city, where the now powdered crystal was no longer in solution with the colloidal fluid, it would be in a dormant state. Lower parts of the city (those extending into the water) would be standing in the solution and might thus accumulate additional layers of crystal...sort of how if you place a string in a solution of sugar water, the sugar crystals begin to collect on the string (a primitive version of rock candy). I think I may also have a solution to the construction material for the city's pylons...carbon nantube fibers. carbon fibers are known for their high tensil strength as well as flexibility. They have seen use in such structures bike frames, tennis rackets and even some of the newest fighter jets. Carbon being even more plentiful than titanium or other metals, might provide the perfect building material...I'll have to study the engineering potentials. I want them rectangular, but I suppose the inner core could be circular, remember these are not pylons like you would find on a oil rig they are pillar cities, each pillar is vast, the lateral trusses between pillars are also city's. And they only have to support there own weight, they aren't holding anything up they are not supporting the hive, they are the hive. No, I'm well aware, that each pylon is going to be a small city onto itself. Rectangular is a possibility, but one thing to consider is the effects of waves and tydal action on such a structure. Will the waves or tides hitting the flat surface have an effect on structure? This is one reason why bridges fail during floods. The additional pressure (force) exerted by the water, exceeds that tensil strength of the structure causing it to fail. We may be able to keep the square structure, but turn it side ways relative to the tidal action, presenting one corner rather than a flat face. The corner would act like the bow of a ship causing the wave to break around the structure...perhaps reinfocing will beneeded in this area...which may explain the crystal growth around the base of the Pylons. Actually if you don't want to call them pylons, what term should we use? I had a thought regrding the city structure as well. i know that you do not wish to have a deck (like an oil rig) sitting on top of the blocks, but what about decks built ad different levels of the blocks? These decks are later construction, added to accomidate increases in population. Perhaps they are also areas where gardens have been planted or to provide parkland between the cities. Also rather than having all of the blocks be the same height, what about a structure that sort of resembles an open pyramid structure? Each ring of blocks is slightly taller than the outer ring with the central block, which is the largest, being taller than all the rest. This would lead to not only a heirarchy within each block city, but within between the cities themselves. I see no problem with that, but they would also have to be inedible, i don't want any edible life on the planet, I want it all grown and brought in from the moons. Again this all depends on if the moons are under the same government or if they have their own governments. You are pretty much putting the population on the planet at the mercy of the moons. If they embargo the world, what is going to happen to the population? I can see the dominant portion of their food coming from the moons, but they should have some of their own food production...just in case. This food may take the form of hydroponically grown plants or it could perhaps be grown on the decks that I mentioned earlier. The decks may have been built much later than the original city. The could have been constructed as a stop gap. Maybe at some time in the past the moons revolted from the central government or placed the planet under embargo while they tried to jack up the price on food. The decks would provide enough food for the richest portion of society. They could also grow delicacies there or be the private parks or game perserves of the cities' well to do. Would it be possible to connect them in someway, like with a giant elevator. Or is that just way beyond the realms of physics. Beanstalks, or Space Elevators usually go to a station in geosynchronous orbit. It would be impossible for such a structure to be in geosynchronous orbit with two positions on the surface of two different rotating bodies. I think thats fine for the more advanced crystal life forms, but I still would like the wilder more primitive crystals to begin life with a bolt of lightening. Definitely. Calving only happens in the "mature" verson of the crystaline species. Again, I think it comes down to a size requirement. A smaller crystaline creature might have a filament break of, but if it is not of sufficient size to generate the necessary electrical charge to promote growth, the filament will become dormant and may eventually break down into its constituant chemical parts. |
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Post by Dazo on Nov 26, 2004 14:03:30 GMT -5
Yes, yes there is, and this idea would tie in with another one of my crazy ideas, the main superstructure of each pylon/spire was constructed in orbit then dropped into place.
The belt occupys the third orbit, the second is occupied by a small planetoid, this could be where the materials were shipped to after they were mined, the low gravity of the world in question might make it a good base for the construction of the pillars/pylons, they would then all be towed convoy style to the main world where finishing touches are made they are then lowered, somehow into there final resting place, or dropped in the sea and floated into position.
Absolutely, like nacre you mean, or like the pearl itself, I like the mother of pearl look, is that what you meant.
Thats what I meant, isnt that what they plan to use on that japanese mega city thing, with little machines that spin the fibre like spiders spin silk.
Yes or have the lower part a sharpened elipse
Lik ethat fungus you see on the sides of trees, like little steps, yeah that works, and that might be a good place, as you suggested to grow food. I'll relent on that, the population is just to vast to have to rely on moon cheese for their sustenance.
Yes the work of the clunky inept builders of the imperium, the ability to construct new pylons long since lost.
Yes, maybe thats why they joined the imperium, because they offered to slap the moons governers down hard.
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Post by Destecado on Nov 27, 2004 9:00:02 GMT -5
Yes, yes there is, and this idea would tie in with another one of my crazy ideas, the main superstructure of each pylon/spire was constructed in orbit then dropped into place. I'm not to sure about this. Construction of the Carbon Fibers in zero g or using a planet with low gravity as a place to fabricate most of the parts for the city sounds great. The sticking point is going to be dropping these finished sections from orbit. There is no telling what re-entry will do to the structure. The tensil stress and high heat could deform or weaken the structure or even cause it to break up entirely. Are their cargo ships large enough in the imperium to carry such large objects down to the planet's surface? Perhaps having each section dividided into pieces like the sections of a grapefruit or orange would allow them to fit into a specialized cargo ship which could land them on the planet. The sections would then be assembled on sight, with each section locking into the next. The would all be attached to the superstructure or at least the foundation that was constructed on site. Its not as easy as just putting a prefabricated structure down on a site and thats that. The foundation is just as important as the structure its self. Living near Boston (Massachusetts) and living with the BIG DIG (A major civic project to move the previously elevated highway under ground as well as build 2 additional tunnels and create miles of park land in Boston) I've had a first hand chance to see what goes into these large construction projects. The engineering structures created just to build the final project are wonders in themsleves. In order to build the tunnel section and be able to float them out into the harbor, they needed to build two gigantic drydocks. For drilling out the tunnels under the city, they had a special machine that supported the roadways and tunnels above where the new tunnel sections were being placed (All this with traffic and trains still using the tunnels). Perhaps the structure of the large ferrocrete (plasticrete) tubes were part of this initial building process. It would take more than 20, but maybe they were formed into a ring structure that would allow the enginneers to pump out the water. The could then attach the first sections and build up the structure. When the city block reached a height above the water, the structures could be broken down and removed. They could probably be reused on other block sections. There could also maybe shield generators in the structures to help keep the water back. Another alternative would be to increase the air pressure to several atmospheres, in order to push back against the weight of the water (or have Moses stand there with his arms raised... ;D). Absolutely, like nacre you mean, or like the pearl itself, I like the mother of pearl look, is that what you meant. Mother of pearl. Thats what I meant, isnt that what they plan to use on that japanese mega city thing, with little machines that spin the fibre like spiders spin silk. It was something like that, though I beleive they used concrete as well. I'd have to watch it again to be sure. The Carbon fibers are usually held together by an epoxy. this keeps them from unwinding and adds rigidity to their structure. Different epoxies have different properties. There could be one the closely resembles plasticrete which keeps the strands together, while providing a high compression ratio...which keeps the structure from buckling under its own weight. The pearlesent sheen is applied to the structure during construction. It serves as corrosion resistor and to seal the structure against leaks. Yes, maybe thats why they joined the imperium, because they offered to slap the moons governers down hard. So are the moons now under captive governments or were they replaced with nobles from Theta Corionis? Maybe there are still freedom fighters on the moons or perhaps anti-company sentiments. |
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Post by Dazo on Nov 27, 2004 9:20:08 GMT -5
Thats a fair point, i'll stick with your idea then, though much of the materials might have been manufatured further out and shipped in ready to be assembled on the ground as it were. Segment form makes more sense aswell, and I would imagine they would have used massive crane/cargo ships to fly them in and lower them into position. I have seen that one aswell, and I agree the construction of something like that is actually far more impressive than the finished thing. Plasticarbon nano fibre tubing maybe. Yes captive governments, the Imperium would want to protect its crystal shipments, so the moons would have to be slaved to the mainworld and not be allowed into a position where they could disrupt the production of said crystals. Freedom fighters, probably not, if there lives were basically quite good and there society was stable would they really want to rock the boat, would everyone else let them. Your probably going to say yes, and I would be hard pressed to counter your arguments other than by saying I don't want freedom fighters complicating things  Ooh man your going to need eye protection when you come to this world, I like  |
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Post by Destecado on Nov 29, 2004 11:10:13 GMT -5
Thats a fair point, i'll stick with your idea then, though much of the materials might have been manufatured further out and shipped in ready to be assembled on the ground as it were. Segment form makes more sense aswell, and I would imagine they would have used massive crane/cargo ships to fly them in and lower them into position. The Water Planet Habitation Platform concept I posted in the General Discussion Forum may serve well here for the purposes of construction. These vessels would provide stable platform for attaching cranes and moving the sections of the city blocks around. With regards to landing ships at the location, does anyone know if most Imperial drop ships are sea worthy? Are their perhaps specialized versions (like sea planes) that can use the water on water worlds (or other planets) as landing sites? Plasticarbon nano fibre tubing maybe.{/quote] Sounds good. Yes captive governments, the Imperium would want to protect its crystal shipments, so the moons would have to be slaved to the mainworld and not be allowed into a position where they could disrupt the production of said crystals. Would this mean that they would be under the control of the Imperium directly or an official from the planetary government? waybe they could have put a pro-company government in charge with oversite by the Imperium...or atleast IG contingents on garrison duty. This would allow the Imperium to keep a presence in the system. Maybe the Imperium has concessions from the planetary government to remain as peace keepers. The way I see it, the governments of the moons would probably still be upset at the corporation, who was unwilling to bargain fairly and instead invaded. Having the government in the hands of a third party (in this case the Imperium) might be less of an agrivation to the local populace. Of course, the cost of maintaining such IG units would be expensive...maybe the Imperiium ofFsets the cost by having the planetary government foot the bill for the peace keepers. They could also possibly defray the cost of the troops through concessions on the price of crystals (the Imperium gets a cut rate on the price, while others that purchase them would pay normal or inflated prices). either of these methods would allow the Imperium to maintain a presence in system at a reduced cost. Freedom fighters, probably not, if there lives were basically quite good and there society was stable would they really want to rock the boat, would everyone else let them. Your probably going to say yes, and I would be hard pressed to counter your arguments other than by saying I don't want freedom fighters complicating things So no terrorist elements...oh well I can live with that (for now).  Ooh man your going to need eye protection when you come to this world, I like Maybe its called the City of Light, Aurora City or some such on the tourist brochures. The idea was to try to emulate the naturally occuring brilliance of the crystal moutains (crystaline creatures) that rise out of the planet's ocean. |
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Post by Dazo on Nov 29, 2004 11:32:07 GMT -5
Yes, they would, for the early part of construction at least, I'm not sure how tall the spires are but they are big. At some point in the construction it would surely have been easier to transfere contruction to flying assembly barges, it would be easier to lower a segment 20ft rather than raise it 1000ft.
These things might have a hollow centre, so the spire would pass through the middle of the ship allowing direct welding/panneling/painting, the ship would rise along with the spire.
Ah ah, not imperial, GAoT drop ships, and I would imagine they were pretty much multifunctional, capable of both solid and liquid landings. Imperial ship would have no need to make a water landing as by the time they arrived the hive was complete.
Would those arrangements not fall under tithes, imperium gets crystals, corionis gets security. If not then corionis could easily afford not only a titanic IG force but also a technologically superior force. Plus they don't have to be bad guys, what if the people who lead the moon rebellion were not supported by the people, they simply had all the weapons. The imperium comes along liberates them, then hands governance over to the moderate goverment of coriolis, they might be better of now than they were before.
This is what confuses me, who else is there to trade with, the imperium is all there is.
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Post by Kage2020 on Nov 29, 2004 23:25:25 GMT -5
This is what confuses me, who else is there to trade with, the imperium is all there is. I would personally imagine it is a reference to the privileged place of the Imperium as the state. That is to say that the cost of the goods to the 'Imperium' is less than occurs in 'free' trade between member worlds. As you say, though, technically everything is the property of the Imperium but in reality it doesn't quite work that way. |
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Post by Destecado on Dec 1, 2004 17:12:43 GMT -5
Yes, they would, for the early part of construction at least, I'm not sure how tall the spires are but they are big. At some point in the construction it would surely have been easier to transfere contruction to flying assembly barges, it would be easier to lower a segment 20ft rather than raise it 1000ft. When the construct reaches a certain height above the water level , it is also possible to attach crains to the structure directly (as they do in modern sky scraper construction). Floating assemply platforms (floating in the air) will also prove useful. These things might have a hollow centre, so the spire would pass through the middle of the ship allowing direct welding/panneling/painting, the ship would rise along with the spire. Hmmm....actually you've given me a thought What if the foundation of the towers required the evacuation of vast amounts of water (earlier post about the cylidrical pylons). After the foundation was finished, the beginning of the super structure was attached. What of instead of evacuating all of the water from such a large structure they errected domes or some how evacuated the water from just the work area on the bottom. This would allow them to build the foundation without having to try to hold back all of those tons of water. This would ofcourse require deep sea mining gear and pressure suits, but it sounds more economical than the original concept. After the foundation was completed, they could have a prefabricated super structructure attached. With the superstructure in place, they could then go about making it water tight and then evacuate the water. This would allow the platforms to float inside the rising super structure and aid the building process up until the point it breaks the surface (actually just below the surface leaving the platforms enough draft to move outside of the superstructure). The platforms would continue assisting with the construction up until the height of the structure was beyond their ability to reach. By that time the foundation of another tower might be complete and they would be moved over there to assist with construction. What do you think? Ah ah, not imperial, GAoT drop ships, and I would imagine they were pretty much multifunctional, capable of both solid and liquid landings. Imperial ship would have no need to make a water landing as by the time they arrived the hive was complete. Perhaps a local varient then from before the imperium. Actually speaking of ships landing...if they are not going to land in the water, then where are they going to land. Are the tops of the towers going to serve as a starport? Plus they don't have to be bad guys, what if the people who lead the moon rebellion were not supported by the people, they simply had all the weapons. The Imperium comes along liberates them, then hands governance over to the moderate goverment of coriolis, they might be better of now than they were before. That's fine. I'll conceed the point about rebels. The qestion remains though, whethter the governments and societies on the Moons are going to be mirrors of Corionis or are they going to have their own identities. Will they be agrarian or has the technology and wealth of Corionis afford the importing of large scale farm equipment. do they have a problem with many small farms going under to be replaced by corporate farms. Maybe this is the case on one of the moons and the other has tried to stay closer toits roots. Maybe the government or at least a legislative body is composed of a growers (farmers) co-operative. To have a voice in the government or to be a member of this legislative body, you must own land...how does that dsound? This is what confuses me, who else is there to trade with, the imperium is all there is. The Imperium is not a monolithic organization. Corionis can sign trade agreements with other worlds or even with the Adeptus Mechanicus or other Imperial entities. Maybe they have an exclusive contract with the shipyards on Anargo, while another ship yard run by a private corporation might by from several suppliers. Maybe they also sell their crystals to some of the other sentient species in the sector...looking at the UWPs. there appear to be several non-human sentient species. |
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Post by Dazo on Dec 2, 2004 5:24:18 GMT -5
I'm not quite sure what you mean, the whole area where the foundation is to go is sealed of by a dome, is that what you mean. Well it sounds fine, except I thought the dome was supposed to keep the water out. and wouldnt the central shaft of the foundation already be void of water. It would seem far harder a task to pump all the water out aftre wards. I'm afraid you lost me  Yes they will, even though coriolis can provide its own food to a degree the imports from the moons will be vital to long term survival. I would say that the hive city has enough food for one week without continued input from the moons. Advanced farming methods, which are vital for the production of enough food, means both those statements would be correct. The hive probably makes the equipment for the moons so we have more of a symbiotic relationship rather than out and out parasitic. Yes, that would be the larger moon Myryn, it requires less support from the main world, the smaller moon Aura has a thinner atmosphere and is close to being a water world itself and so is more reliant on technological support from the main world Sounds good, would that be like medieval land owners, who would be considered the social elite or is it more a kind of primitive democratic parliament These are the vital stats of the moons by the way, thought you might be interested. Aura Basic World Type: Satellite Planet Diameter: 5,400 miles (8,640 km) Planet Density: Molten Core, 1.1 terra World Gravity: 0.695 terra Satellite Orbital Distance: 34,000 km Satellite Orbital Period: 0.721 standard days Seismic Stress Factor: 7.663 Atmospheric Composition: Standard oxygen-nitrogen mix, with pollutants taint Surface Atmospheric Pressure: 0.5 atm Base Temperature: 15.564 degrees C Native Life: Exists Hydrographic Percentage: 88% Hydrographic Composition: Tainted liquid water Myryn Basic World Type: Satellite Planet Diameter: 6,300 miles (10,080 km) Planet Density: Molten Core, 1.06 terra World Gravity: 0.799 terra Satellite Orbital Distance: 85,000 km Satellite Orbital Period: 2.85 standard days Rotation Period: 23.85 standard hours Atmospheric Composition: Standard oxygen-nitrogen mix, with sulfer compounds taint Surface Atmospheric Pressure: 1.2 atm Base Temperature: 67.394 degrees C Native Life: Exists Hydrographic Percentage: 35% Hydrographic Composition: Tainted liquid water Volcanoes: 5 |
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Post by Destecado on Dec 3, 2004 12:27:17 GMT -5
I'm not quite sure what you mean, the whole area where the foundation is to go is sealed of by a dome, is that what you mean. I was more thinking aloud on the site...Based on further research, I have revised my idea of how the construction process at leaset for the foundations of the city will take place. I've been looking at some sites that deal with gigantic construction at sea. An inteesting one is a project that appears in the most recent Popular Science magazine about the Rion-Antirion Bridge. This is a bridge that was built to span the Gulf of Corinth Between the mianland of Greece and the Peloponnese. It is the worlds longest cable stay bridge. The online article about the bridge is available here.What was most interesting is the fact that some of the Piers necessary to complete the span stand in water that is more than 200 feet deep. Lookng at the construction of this bridge may shed some light on the constructiion techniques that we can use to explain the building of the city pires...if we really want to go through the trouble of doing it at all. Based on what I have been able to find by researching the topic, the city piers are more than possible. Given the advaces from today to the time that the city would have been built, such cities...though enormous civil projects, are well within the bounds of reality. Yes they will, even though coriolis can provide its own food to a degree the imports from the moons will be vital to long term survival. I would say that the hive city has enough food for one week without continued input from the moons. I was thinking of another use for the floating platforms. After the construction was complete, some of course would be kept on in order to be used for repair purposes, butthis might leave a fleet of the floating platforms which were no longer in service. It could be that some of these were sold to private individuals for the purposes of floating habitation. Some may also have been turned into fish hatcheries. This may have been from the original time when they were attempting to seed the seas of Corionis with terrestrial species of fish, but may have also served another purpose when the dangers of open fishing in the oceans were realized. The bottom part of the platform is after all an enourmous water tank. If the water entering it could some how be purified or at least the elements that make eating fish directly from the sea, removed, then it may be possible to grow fish inside of the tank in order to feed the inhabitants of the platform. If not fish, the perhaps a fungus like nutrient paste. This would help to make the platforms more self sufficient, but would mean that they were no longer mobile. What are your thoughts? Advanced farming methods, which are vital for the production of enough food, means both those statements would be correct. The hive probably makes the equipment for the moons so we have more of a symbiotic relationship rather than out and out parasitic. It may be that they manufacture them...or more likely they buy them from another system and have them imported...this would probably be more cost effective. The city might build underwater craft and technology for fish hatcheries or hydroponic farming, but building machines for "dirt farming" (farming on dry land) would not really be their specialty. Yes, that would be the larger moon Myryn, it requires less support from the main world, the smaller moon Aura has a thinner atmosphere and is close to being a water world itself and so is more reliant on technological support from the main world. Aura is more likely to benefit from the underwater technology provided from Corionis. Also by doing aloth of wet farming (Algae harvesting, hydroponics), they may also be able to raise the oxygen content on the planet (in the long run) or at least remove the CO 2 created by a growth n population. Sounds good, would that be like medieval land owners, who would be considered the social elite or is it more a kind of primitive democratic parliament It could be a mixture of both. Mostly what I was shooting at is an outgrowth of the old cooperative bargaining that may have taken place in order to gain the best price for their food stuffs. Orange producers and many other agricultural groups use this technique so that they can maximize the profit from their crop and to keep the corporations from playing farmers of against eachother to low ball the price. This may not be the only governmental body and probably isn't. You will probably have a representative body for the people of the towns and cities. It could be that the Landowners hold a similar standing to the house of lords in the british parlimentary system. The landowners view themselves as stewards of the land...they are after all dependant upon it for their livelihood (and in turn are everyone else on the planet). |
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Post by Dazo on Dec 3, 2004 12:51:37 GMT -5
My thoughts would be...brilliant, thats brilliant, thats what we'll do then, this further reduces the out and out dependance on the moons, and the aquatic farming development program(depending on how long its been going) would mean another area of expertise that would be good for export to other worlds, I already have two such worlds in mind, Kolkhoz and Seleca, malikas world of quechit also is mostly water so theres yet another link to other sub sectors Coincedental terraforming, this just gets better and better we could possibly also export that as well. It needs a bit more polishing but I agree, but only for Myryn, as I don't see the same principles being much use on water worlds. If anything they would be more fractured but also more tightly controlled as they can't just say "right i've had enough, i'm off to that other country were the grass looks greener" |
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Post by Destecado on Dec 9, 2004 13:56:37 GMT -5
Ok, so we have one major city on the planet. Have you given any thought to the depth of water that the city will be anchored in? the original depth will affect initial construction, but once the crystaline creatures begin to grow up around it, they might displace most of the water...actually it might be interesting to have small areas where the see is still acceessable or maybe channels cut through the crystaline creatures that allow water travel between the cities towers...what do you think? Outside of the towers the could be human societies that spring up other crystal mountains. Maybe there are individuals that actually shape the crystal into other structures. have you ever seen artisans who use a blow torch to bend and shape glass into different shapes and designs? Mabe by using the colloidal fluid and electric charges, they can mold and shape the crystaline creatures. ..maybe into something like these sculputres done by Dale Chihuly in Venice.  [/i]For more examples click here.[/i] Instead of being supported by poles, maybe a small anti-grav unit is incorporated into the center of the mass so that the sculptures can float freely...or if an anti grav platform seems a little frivolis for the sake of art, perhaps they can generate a field between to structures that suspens the sculpture in the air. This would work on the priciples of magnetism and be similar to the magnets used to levitate high speed trains. Instead of having magnets in the sculpture though, it works off the charge and crystaline metalic properties of the crystal. This would also make the crystal vibrate, which might give off different tones. By varying the magnetic field, the tones would change, so it would be like a sining sculpture of crystal....of course I'm not sure how the crystaline creature would interpret being suspended in the magnetic field. These are just some thoughts to flesh out the culture further. can you think of any other areas we need to explore...other than fleshing out the moons. |
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Post by Dazo on Dec 9, 2004 17:06:20 GMT -5
Yes, it was the first thing I thought of actually, the city was built in shallow water no more than 100m deep at its deepest, its basically sitting on a shelf of land that would be the first bit of dry land to appear if sea levels drop. They would have chosen such a place deliberatly to aid with the construction in my opinion.
Well you could just walk across it really, or flatten it and drive across, but this stuff is being mined so bits are being carved out all the time, how they mine it might give insight into what methods of transportation they would use. I think it would be tracked or wheeled to be honest as they would have to be brought in during a storm or tidal surge.
Yes I have, but thats glass, you have to cut crystal to shape it..I think either way I doubt the people in charge would be to happy with people messing about with their high grade holocrystals, the stuff the independant harvesters bring in might be used for that as its quite low grade.
And is that blue thing glass, interesting.
Frivolis is the word I would use, not sure they would use crystal anyway they must be bloody sick of the sight of the stuff. Why not wood, that would be more interesting a medium for sculpture on this world of sharp crystal and shiny metal, and probably twinkly lights.
However, for export things might be different. I imagine the high ups on the capitol worlds would quite like to have these crystal oddities.
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Post by Destecado on Dec 9, 2004 17:30:49 GMT -5
Well you could just walk across it really, or flatten it and drive across, but this stuff is being mined so bits are being carved out all the time, how they mine it might give insight into what methods of transportation they would use. I think it would be tracked or wheeled to be honest as they would have to be brought in during a storm or tidal surge. Based on its structure, I don't know how much weight it could support. It is a bunch of filaments that interweave after all, so in places it may be very thin and fragile. The reason I thought that they might collect the crystal in the most natural way possible. The crystal already has a tendancy to calve (break off pieces) This would occur along stress fractures in the crystal. If these calved crystals fall into the water, they could be towed by boats down channels between the towers to the processing facilities that lay in the lower levels of the towers. Yes I have, but thats glass, you have to cut crystal to shape it..I think either way I doubt the people in charge would be to happy with people messing about with their high grade holocrystals, the stuff the independant harvesters bring in might be used for that as its quite low grade. Maybe it occurse on one of the floating habitats. They shape the crystals into interesting little sculptures for tourists to take home. And is that blue thing glass, interesting. Yes, its glass. each of those projections is a seperate piece of blown glass tied to wire framework. There was a great special about his show in venice and all of the work that went into creating these sculptures. Frivolis is the word I would use, not sure they would use crystal anyway they must be bloody sick of the sight of the stuff. Why not wood, that would be more interesting a medium for sculpture on this world of sharp crystal and shiny metal, and probably twinkly lights. However, for export things might be different. I imagine the high ups on the capitol worlds would quite like to have these crystal oddities. Your right, would sculptures or something made out of materials rare on the planet might be more the rage. The probably export these sculptures to other worlds. |
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