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fandomhigh2013-09-22 11:44 pm
allhopeliesinme.livejournal.com) wrote in fandomhigh2013-09-22 11:44 pm
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Science You Cannot Possibly Comprehend, Monday, Period 5
Today in the lab, there was a hull of what sure looked to be a space shuttle in the front of the class. There was also plenty of metal panels and what looked like very thick styrofoam next to the hull.
"Last week, I spoke briefly of the great, early accident that set me upon my path," Doom said. "Never let it be said that Doom possesses no humility." Don't say it, students. Don't. You will get detention.
"This week, I will speak to you of another scientist's defining accident, and how his recklessness only just turned out well for him. The scientist is a man named Doctor Reed Richards. During my youth, his was the only intellect I had met that could compare to my own." Remember, do not say Doom possessed no humility. DON'T DO IT. "While I chose to liberate my country, Richards remained a tool of your government. His great invention was an experimental spacecraft of flawed design. When the government threatened to stop funding his project, Richards stole the ship with a ramshackle crew that was completely unprepared for such a mission."
"The crew, if this story isn't familiar to you, included his best friend, his girlfriend, and her teenaged brother. His best frind was a reasonable choice, as he at least was an accomplished pilot. His girlfriend had no qualifications, and her brother was a sub-par high school student, no older and much less intelligent than any of you," Doom explained. Hey! That would be a compliment to the students, unless they knew how little respect Doom had for Johnny Storm and thus how faint this praise truly was.
"This ship that Richards built, stole, and launched with an unqualified crew did not have adequate shielding, so when the poor navigation led them into a field of strong cosmic radiation, the bodies of everyone aboard were changed on a genetic level. After crashing the craft back on Earth, somehow surviving reentry despite the critical lack of shielding, each member of the crew found themselves with strange powers. One burst into flames. Another turned invisible. Richards' best friend was cursed to be a monster made of rocks. When Richards saw what his actions had done, he immediately declared himself Mister Fantastic and swore that these four would be a team named after himself: the Fantastic Four."
"Unintended consequences benefiting scientific exploration should be celebrated. It is only right to do so. However you come about knowledge, intentionally or not, it is something you have achieved," Doom stressed. "But when you reject your own calls for safety, your government's calls for safety, and employ an untrained, untested, and inadequate crew, the only way you truly benefit science is by showing the rest of us what not to do. If you survive by some strange miracle, through means that have not been adequately reproduced and shown to be safe, you should simply consider yourself lucky to not be another space shuttle disastr."
"On your desks are specifications for Richards' spacecraft and information on proper spacecraft shielding. Review the materials. Then each of you is to write a list of all the things Reed Richards did incorrectly and unsafely. In brief, what did Mister Fantastic do wrong?" Honestly, you could do the entire assignment just be writing down everything Doom already listed. But you could probably add to that list. Bonus points if you focus on how uncaring toward Richards' supposed 'family' this whole thing truly was.
"And then, you'll have the remainder of the class period to work on two things. Either read your handouts in more depth to understand how to travel into space safely with Earth technology. Or you may come to the front and see if you can insulate a spaceship better than Doctor Richards. At the end of class, I will subject the hull to a barrage of cosmic radiation so we can make a direct comparison. Begin your lists now, then move on to the second part when you are done."
"Last week, I spoke briefly of the great, early accident that set me upon my path," Doom said. "Never let it be said that Doom possesses no humility." Don't say it, students. Don't. You will get detention.
"This week, I will speak to you of another scientist's defining accident, and how his recklessness only just turned out well for him. The scientist is a man named Doctor Reed Richards. During my youth, his was the only intellect I had met that could compare to my own." Remember, do not say Doom possessed no humility. DON'T DO IT. "While I chose to liberate my country, Richards remained a tool of your government. His great invention was an experimental spacecraft of flawed design. When the government threatened to stop funding his project, Richards stole the ship with a ramshackle crew that was completely unprepared for such a mission."
"The crew, if this story isn't familiar to you, included his best friend, his girlfriend, and her teenaged brother. His best frind was a reasonable choice, as he at least was an accomplished pilot. His girlfriend had no qualifications, and her brother was a sub-par high school student, no older and much less intelligent than any of you," Doom explained. Hey! That would be a compliment to the students, unless they knew how little respect Doom had for Johnny Storm and thus how faint this praise truly was.
"This ship that Richards built, stole, and launched with an unqualified crew did not have adequate shielding, so when the poor navigation led them into a field of strong cosmic radiation, the bodies of everyone aboard were changed on a genetic level. After crashing the craft back on Earth, somehow surviving reentry despite the critical lack of shielding, each member of the crew found themselves with strange powers. One burst into flames. Another turned invisible. Richards' best friend was cursed to be a monster made of rocks. When Richards saw what his actions had done, he immediately declared himself Mister Fantastic and swore that these four would be a team named after himself: the Fantastic Four."
"Unintended consequences benefiting scientific exploration should be celebrated. It is only right to do so. However you come about knowledge, intentionally or not, it is something you have achieved," Doom stressed. "But when you reject your own calls for safety, your government's calls for safety, and employ an untrained, untested, and inadequate crew, the only way you truly benefit science is by showing the rest of us what not to do. If you survive by some strange miracle, through means that have not been adequately reproduced and shown to be safe, you should simply consider yourself lucky to not be another space shuttle disastr."
"On your desks are specifications for Richards' spacecraft and information on proper spacecraft shielding. Review the materials. Then each of you is to write a list of all the things Reed Richards did incorrectly and unsafely. In brief, what did Mister Fantastic do wrong?" Honestly, you could do the entire assignment just be writing down everything Doom already listed. But you could probably add to that list. Bonus points if you focus on how uncaring toward Richards' supposed 'family' this whole thing truly was.
"And then, you'll have the remainder of the class period to work on two things. Either read your handouts in more depth to understand how to travel into space safely with Earth technology. Or you may come to the front and see if you can insulate a spaceship better than Doctor Richards. At the end of class, I will subject the hull to a barrage of cosmic radiation so we can make a direct comparison. Begin your lists now, then move on to the second part when you are done."
Sign In
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Listen to the Lecture
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POP QUIZ: What Did Reed Richards Do Wrong?
Re: POP QUIZ: What Did Reed Richards Do Wrong?
Because seriously. Jim had friends too but if they didn't know what the hell they were doing, Jim wasn't going to bring them along on some life or death mission.
Re: POP QUIZ: What Did Reed Richards Do Wrong?
Re: POP QUIZ: What Did Reed Richards Do Wrong?
1. He didn't trust the government. Which was really silly; if you can't trust them, who can you trust? Besides, they might have had some weather catastrophe planned that day, and he could have messed the whole thing up!
2. He didn't obtain approval from the high school to experiment on one of their students. Really, that's pretty important; otherwise, it would be an unexcused absence, and the penalties are pretty steep.
3. "Mister Fantastic and the Fantastic Four" really is a pretty awful name. You're just setting yourself up for all kinds of jokes, even if the light show is pretty nifty. Can they even sing?
Re: POP QUIZ: What Did Reed Richards Do Wrong?
Read Up!
Space Shielding!
And yet Reed Richards couldn't handle that.
Yes, you were getting plenty of time for a simple task to prove that high school students were better than Reed Richards. You were going to succeed with time to spare.
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She was wondering if there was a trick in here, somewhere.
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So, Jim started piecing things together quickly.
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Topher was not seeing this class session as the gift horse it was, clearly.
TESTING!
"This screen is my own design and will protect us from the cosmic radiation with ease. But it is not necessary, since the cosmic rays will be focused entirely on the shielded hull. Now, let us see how you faired."
Doom touched his gauntlet again, and the machinery started to glow. You might just barely see the light running from the machine to the hull. After precisely two minutes, the machinery started to wind down. Another touch of his gauntlet and data started to appear on the curtains. "Congratulations. The radiation that made it into the hull was minimal, well within safe levels. Consider this if you come from a world with a Reed Richards. You did in the course of a class period what he could not in months with the backing of your space program. Class dismissed."
Speak to Loki
Speak to Doom
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OOC