Comments on: Wacky Sci-Fi “Laws”

By: ACute Angle

ACute Angle — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 17:30:17 +0000

Regarding that third law and magic…

I remember reading somewhere once that magic exists for even the most techno-savy person, in that computer diodes are filled with a magic smoke that, like schrodinger’s cat both and neither exists and doesn’t exist inside a diode and cannot be proved to be there (or be involved in the functioning of the machine) unless the diode breaks. But once the diode breaks, the smoke is released and the magic is gone — the part no longer works. Or something like that. I remember laughing when I read it, but I honestly can’t remember where it was from.

By: mikeb

mikeb — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 17:13:32 +0000

You forgot Berneathys Best Guess -

” If gravity is all around us, How come you can’t push a fat dog down the stairs ?”

By: Chris

Chris — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 14:08:06 +0000

The corollary to ‘Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic’ is, by Greg Benford, ‘Any technology that is not indistinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced.’

By: S Good

S Good — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 16:44:30 +0000

Also perennially true of science fiction movies: the black guy will die first.

By: Qev

Qev — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 16:43:00 +0000

I’ve never liked Hanlon’s Razor, since incompetence has always been the first refuge of the malicious.

By: mzec

mzec — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 14:55:25 +0000

You could call Scott Adams’ “God’s Debris” a sci-fi book. It’s also short, awesome and free — I recommend checking it out.

By: heather

heather — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 05:35:26 +0000

The greater the amount and seniority of the people walking behind you is directly proportional to how bad you have to fart.

Gross, yes.
Immature, kinda.
True…oh yeah :)

By: Nicolas

Nicolas — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 04:17:03 +0000

Actually, about the first one, Hanlon’s Razor (aka Hanlon’s Law), “Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity”: my dad used to tell me that very thing when I was a teenager. He is 91 years old today. So, yeah, perhaps it was Napoleon…

By: Adam

Adam — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 03:49:47 +0000

Where’s the Prime Directive at?

By: Jim McDougal

Jim McDougal — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 03:44:18 +0000

LOL, I just love crazy Sci-Fi laws how about you? Many actually make sense in a strange sort of way!

JT
http://www.Ultimate-Anonymity.com