I love the idea, either as a fusion drive or annihilation drive, but the world had better be damned peaceful before we start making that kind of thing. As Larry Niven explored several times, such a drive is also a weapon of mass destruction on a potentially global scale. It’s the ultimate dual use tech, because it’s effectiveness as a drive is directly proportional to its effectiveness as a weapon. Whether in the form of “The Kzinti Lesson” or a smalle scale like what’s found in The Ethics of Madness we’re talking about something serious. The only difference between peaceful use and militaristic use is just where and how you aim the exhaust.
Thst without worrying about someone turning a ship into an R-Bomb!
We already live in a world where if e.g. North Korea wanted to destroy the huge swaths of our entire species, they probably could. See things such as salted nukes, like a cobalt bomb. [1]. I think there's an even more general lesson there as well. We first utilized nuclear weapons in 1942. Up until that time major developed powers going to war with each other was a relatively normal part of existence. And given that reality, it would not have been unreasonable to predict nuclear weapons resulting in the end of the world. As Einstein witted, "I don't know what world war 3 will be fought with, but world war 4 will be fought with sticks and stones."
But after the realization of nuclear weapons, unrestrained war between developed nations simply ended. And we've entered in what is likely the safest and most peaceful 80 years of human existence ever. I realize how absurd that sounds, but statistically it is almost certainly true. It's hard to even imagine the death toll of previous wars. In World War 2, some 3% of the world's population was killed. Today that would be 231 million people. For some scale imagine a 9/11 type event happening, every single day, for 211 years. If you have kids when you're 30 then your great great great great great grandchildren would be experiencing a daily 9/11 event each and every day of their life. Now take all that death and suffering, and compress it into 6 years. Really puts our modern losses into context.
The point of this is that weapons (or equivalent) capable of immense harm don't necessarily have the impact you might expect. Similarly, get rid of all nukes in the world today while guaranteeing they could not be easily recreated - and you'd likely set in motion a series of actions that would lead to the violent deaths of what could be billions. I find unforeseen consequences endlessly fascinating. Bring on the planet busters. Hope there's nothing we're not foreseeing!
Also, regarding The Kzinti Lesson ("A reaction drive's efficiency as a weapon is in direct proportion to its efficiency as a drive.") I have to feel like you could drop 'reaction' and maintain accuracy... Given that reactionless drives are planet killers.
gotocake|7 years ago
Thst without worrying about someone turning a ship into an R-Bomb!
rjf72|7 years ago
But after the realization of nuclear weapons, unrestrained war between developed nations simply ended. And we've entered in what is likely the safest and most peaceful 80 years of human existence ever. I realize how absurd that sounds, but statistically it is almost certainly true. It's hard to even imagine the death toll of previous wars. In World War 2, some 3% of the world's population was killed. Today that would be 231 million people. For some scale imagine a 9/11 type event happening, every single day, for 211 years. If you have kids when you're 30 then your great great great great great grandchildren would be experiencing a daily 9/11 event each and every day of their life. Now take all that death and suffering, and compress it into 6 years. Really puts our modern losses into context.
The point of this is that weapons (or equivalent) capable of immense harm don't necessarily have the impact you might expect. Similarly, get rid of all nukes in the world today while guaranteeing they could not be easily recreated - and you'd likely set in motion a series of actions that would lead to the violent deaths of what could be billions. I find unforeseen consequences endlessly fascinating. Bring on the planet busters. Hope there's nothing we're not foreseeing!
[1] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cobalt_bomb
DuskStar|7 years ago
And thus Burnside's Advice - "Friends don't let friends use reactionless drives in their universes."
Semi-related, but Project Rho is awesome. http://www.projectrho.com/public_html/rocket/reactionlessdri...
Also, regarding The Kzinti Lesson ("A reaction drive's efficiency as a weapon is in direct proportion to its efficiency as a drive.") I have to feel like you could drop 'reaction' and maintain accuracy... Given that reactionless drives are planet killers.
Pristina|7 years ago