technical jargon

POSTED BY: pedme84
UPDATED: Thursday, October 10, 2002 04:33
VIEWED: 2493
PAGE 1 of 2

1 2 NEXT PAGE

PEDME84

Monday, October 7, 2002 9:54 PM

how in the hell do they write kaylee's, etc. technical jargon?

what's a grav thrust? what's a repression coil?
(i probably spelled that wrong)

do they just watch other shows about space ships in them and write down all the key words?

does anybody have an inkling of an idea where this stuff comes from?

- emily

THEGN

Tuesday, October 8, 2002 3:02 AM

I'm sure they just make it up as they go along, but many sci fi shows these days are relying on consultants in the engineering and physics field to come up with some of these items. For instance, Star Trek routinely consults physicists to determine what's new in the particle physics field, so they can continue to make up all these new and wierd particles. One item that you hear a lot in TNG that you never heard in the old Star Trek was "Inertial Dampeners." The reason for this is that after consulting with real phycisists they discovered that if a spaceship accelerated to light speed within a second, as the Enterprise was supposed to do, the "g-force" generated by the acceleration would pulverize everyone on board. The "Inertial Dampeners" then are devices that are supposed to "Dampen" the inertia of massive bodies on board.

I don't know if that answer your question or not.

WILLIAM08

Tuesday, October 8, 2002 1:58 PM

If the shows any good,it really doesn't matter.

William08

PEDME84

Tuesday, October 8, 2002 9:46 PM

i know, william08, but i'm coming from the perspective of "i want to write this" and that stuff's intimidating.

when kaylee went off on her rant on what's junk, my response was "damn! how do you do that?"

- emily

THEGN

Tuesday, October 8, 2002 9:56 PM

If your interested in writing plausible "tech" dialogue, just find a physicists or engineer online and ask him or her how something might work. If they're anything like me, they would get a kick out of explaining their trade. Then you can just throw in some usual jargon with what they told you. It's sure to work well enough.

Typically, in engineering the simplist geometric descriptions are used. If something looks like a coil or a rod, it's generally a "something coil" or a "something rod." Once you know a little basic science, it's not hard to fake it.

JASONZZZ

Tuesday, October 8, 2002 11:52 PM

Writers for SciFi shows actually do not commit these "tech terms" on paper... Unless if its absolutely essential to the story, they simply leave a "[ Tech ]" tag in the dialogue and someone will come behind and fill it in during the finishing process.

Don't let that little thing otherwise intimidate/hinder/impede you and your creative process. Someone else can do that part if that's an issue. And of course, the corollary to that is: you are writing the wrong story if the tech is absolutely essential to the dialogue and the story/plot line, but you have absolutely no idea on what that stuff means.

Quote:
Originally posted by Thegn:
If your interested in writing plausible "tech" dialogue, just find a physicists or engineer online and ask him or her how something might work. If they're anything like me, they would get a kick out of explaining their trade. Then you can just throw in some usual jargon with what they told you. It's sure to work well enough.

Typically, in engineering the simplist geometric descriptions are used. If something looks like a coil or a rod, it's generally a "something coil" or a "something rod." Once you know a little basic science, it's not hard to fake it.

ZICSOFT

Wednesday, October 9, 2002 12:51 AM

Quote:
Writers for SciFi shows actually do not commit these "tech terms" on paper... Unless if its absolutely essential to the story, they simply leave a "[ Tech ]" tag in the dialogue and someone will come behind and fill it in during the finishing process.

I'm told that some shows don't even do that -- they leave the tags in the script and the actors improvise. Usually the actors know that pseudo-jargon better than the writers anyway.

But that's crap. That's not science fiction. It's not even fantasy. It's just an invitation to turn off your brain for an hour. If I'm gonna do that, I'd rather watch porn. I prefer my masturbation to be more literal.

JOSS, WHERE'S MY CHECK???!!!

JASONZZZ

Wednesday, October 9, 2002 3:53 AM

hehehehe, maybe in MST3K they do that...

Anyways, there's only so much you can do in a TV show. You might have time to actually rehearst once and then it's time for print. You have to figure that is about the quality to expect.

And besides, lots of actors (SciFi or not) have creative input into the process (if not actually writing or directing their own episodes) by the time the 3rd season comes rolling around. Some of them really actually do know the characters and the storylines better than the writers do.

Like I said, if it's important enough and integral to the story; they won't leave the important tech stuff out... Most times, it really is the story that matters, tech is just there to dress it up... Like the communicator badges or little hallway computer panels... it's not a big deal either way, some episodes they are important, some not so much.

Quote:
Originally posted by Zicsoft:
Quote:
Writers for SciFi shows actually do not commit these "tech terms" on paper... Unless if its absolutely essential to the story, they simply leave a "[ Tech ]" tag in the dialogue and someone will come behind and fill it in during the finishing process.
I'm told that some shows don't even do that -- they leave the tags in the script and the actors improvise. Usually the actors know that pseudo-jargon better than the writers anyway.

But that's crap. That's not science fiction. It's not even fantasy. It's just an invitation to turn off your brain for an hour. If I'm gonna do that, I'd rather watch porn. I prefer my masturbation to be more literal.

JOSS, WHERE'S MY CHECK???!!!

THEGN

Wednesday, October 9, 2002 4:47 AM

I think, the tech jargon is more important then you are making it. A character like Kaylee, for instance, is defined to a large extent by her jargon. For any other character maybe it's not so important, but Kaylee has to sound convincing when she remarks about her stuff or she fails to present the persona of a competent engineer.

Now of course, if your audience is stupid, the writer has more artistic freedom, but that's a dangerous assumption to make. If your audience is not stupid, they'll see through poorly constructed dialogue. I'm of the mind to beleive that, in any writing, one should never assume that the audience can be easily fooled. It's always better to do your homework and not leave the jargon to whim, even in cases where it may not seem important.

-----------
In the Dark Ages, Romano-Celtic Britannia was over-run by Viking-like cultures collectively called the Anglo-Saxons. They were led by warlords called Drytinns, and the greatest warriors among them were the Thegns.

WILLIAM08

Thursday, October 10, 2002 2:04 AM

Okay, then try this. Get a physics dictionary, then get a dictionary of technical terms for the area you are writing about (ships, engines, airconditioning systems, etc.). Now, take a term from the first and use it as an andjective for a term from the second:

gravity thruster

spectral concentrator

event-horizon plotter

Ta-da. You're in business ;)

William

1 2 NEXT PAGE