Other Science Fiction Series
Trailer for new J. J. Abrams series "Revolution"!
POSTED BY: CrevanReaver
UPDATED: Saturday, May 26, 2012 22:06
VIEWED: 10802
PAGE 2 of 2
Saturday, May 26, 2012 10:06 PM
Quote:
Originally posted by felixdacat:
With 21st century know how, I’m sure that they could create smaller and more efficient steam engines, likely running on gasoline.
FX
Yup, lets just knock up a design on Autocad, order the fiddly parts off the internet and run up the custom bits on CNC lathes and milling machines... Oh. Wait.
Modern technology is highly dependent on having the machine that makes the machine that makes the part. Break that chain and you are heading back to the dark ages.
Sure, what you suggest is possible, but there is going to be a hiatus while the handful of people with the skills to either hand-craft precision engine components or adapt designs on the spot to use scavenged parts pass on their knowledge and start to build some early 19th century production lines. That, against a backdrop of civilisation going to hell within a day or two because food, water and heating supplies have failed.
If your bike chain broke, or a gear got stripped, would you know how to fix it other than "order new part from EBay and fit it"? (Maybe you could, but you'd be in a minority) Where's your nearest blacksmith, and are they good at anything other than making souvenir horseshoe paperweights? Even if they are, would they have the capacity to keep any significant fraction of the population on two wheels?
The good thing about horses is that they know how to make more horses.
Obviously, though, this show is going to need some SF or Fantasy plot device to explain such a selective change in the laws of physics (see, e.g. Vernor Vinge's A Fire Upon The Deep).
OTOH, the premise reminds me somewhat of [url= http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Changes_(TV_series))]The Changes[/url] which simply had people suddenly and irrationally turn against technology. That had a fantasy explanation (which the BBC completely cocked up in the TV version).
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