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From: barnett@ut-sally.UUCP (Lewis Barnett)
Newsgroups: net.startrek
Subject: Re: Enterprise Gravity
Message-ID: <2712@ut-sally.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 19-Aug-85 23:56:48 EDT
Article-I.D.: ut-sally.2712
Posted: Mon Aug 19 23:56:48 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 21-Aug-85 06:45:02 EDT
References: <848@voder.UUCP>
Distribution: na
Organization: U. Texas CS Dept., Austin, Texas
Lines: 37

>    I think you're completely overlooking reality here. Star Trek was a 
> television series.  It did not have a billion dollar budget for each show.

Yes, I realize that cost was the overriding reason for not showing an
actual failure of the gravity generators.  I don't think invalidates
the point concerning designing for possible zero gee conditions,
however.

>    Now the animated series showed a loss of artificial gravity on the bridge
> at least once, 

Heaven knows I tried, but I could never get all the way through an
animated episode.

> and of course the movies showed an anti-gravity sled and one
> person standing on an anti-gravity `step ladder'.  Also Spock floating in
> his suit, perhaps Star Trek IV will give us something more.  

>    Ignoring cost for a moment, it would seem that something like an artificial
> gravity system would be as fool-proof as possible, perhaps even having it's
> own independent power source.
> ---
> Kevin Thompson   {ucbvax,ihnp4!nsc}!voder!kevin
> 
The movies did have humongous budgets, and state of the art special effects.
And they also had battles in which the Enterprise was damaged far more
seriously than in any of the TV episodes.  Sure, the gravity generator
would be as sturdy and well-protected as possible, but nothing is 
totally foolproof.  But, I guess if they had taken all of this into
consideration, our heroes would have wound up on the Nostromo.
Or something.


Lewis Barnett,CS Dept, Painter Hall 3.28, Univ. of Texas, Austin, TX 78712

-- barnett@ut-sally.ARPA, barnett@ut-sally.UUCP,
      {ihnp4,harvard,seismo,gatech,ctvax}!ut-sally!barnett