"Star Trek" Subject lines always catch my eye... and take priority ;)
In a message dated 10/2/01 10:17:29 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: << I loved the opening credits. If they keep using that sequence, maybe it will inspire us to get the _real_ space program in gear again, like it was in the days of TOS.>> I did like the opening sequence. The song isn't exactly 'majestic', but it will do... as it also carried forward the theme of exploration being part of the human experience. (The song's also kinda catchy... I've been humming it off and on since I saw the show last night.) <<However, I was rudely jarred out of the fictional world when I realized that apparently none of the writers, producers, or director had ever read an astronomy book or even gone outside and learned a few stars, nor apparently do any of them own a calculator. >> You obviously didn't watch Voyager that often! ;) Voyager was the source of great, wonderful bits of scientific knowledge like deuterium needs to be _mined_ from rocks, like coal or gold. That had me talking aloud to the tv one night. A 'dark matter' asteroid that gave off electromagnetic radiation (which disqualifies it from being 'dark matter' by definition) was also the highlight of one episode. The writers are many things... 'intelligent' isn't one of them. My favorite site these days is www.cynicscorner.org. The Cynic reviews sci-fi shows like Andromeda, Voyager (while it aired) and Enterprise with an eye for bad science and continuity goofs. Here's an excerpt from his Broken Bow review -- it covers the problem you mentioned: "NEW GEOGRAPHY OF THE WEEK: "Space is big," says T'Pol. "Not big enough, apparently," says The Cynic. Kronos should not be four days away from Earth; even in the 24th century, that really shouldn't be the case. And since Archer pinned down Enterprise's speed in real world terms, we can prove without a shadow of a doubt that it's BS. So, let's do the math: * When Enterprise gets up to speed, Archer says the vessel is traveling at 30,000,000 km/sec, which is 30,000,000,000 m/s. � * The speed of light is 300,000,000 m/s. So, Enterprise is travelling at 30,000,000,000/300,000,000 = 100 times the speed of light. Sounds fast. But... � * Proxima Centauri, the star nearest to Earth, is over 4 light years, or 1,460 light days, from Earth. � * So it would take Enterprise more than 1,460/100 = 14.6 days to reach Proxima Centauri. And Kronos, presumably, is nowhere near that close. Looks like they'd better start using iso-meters, or something... " Jon
