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Post by Mlle Bienvenu on Aug 13, 2004 4:32:56 GMT -5
Against my better judgment, I think I may start another fic (hears groans from raven and Lolua's side of the internet) as I want to test asimov's statment that 'any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic' (it's all SE's fault....I swear LOL) So... I might do a Star Trek version of the Harry Potter Series... Was making up races for everyone.... LOL... thought I'd post what I had...
Harry - half-...something
Lily - Terran
Lupin - Vulcan (just so he can freak out in time for the Shrieking Shack scene Pon Farr anyone?)
Snape - Romulan Chemist - Head of Sciences Goes well with the lupin animosity bit
Tonks - Changling
Dumbledore - Trill? Q? (Depends on how omniscient you think DD is....LOL)
Trelawny - Betazed a la Lwaxana Troy
Moody - Bajoran with an Ocular implant
Draco Malfoy - Andorian
Lucius Malfoy - Andorian
Hagrid - Half Klingon
Mundungus - Ferengi
Gringott's Goblins - Ferengi
Wesley Crusher as Cedric Diggory.... J/K
Harry of Dudley - 'I always thought my cousin looked like a Tellarite.'
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Post by Big Brother on Aug 13, 2004 5:52:57 GMT -5
Against my better judgment, I think I may start another fic (hears groans from raven and Lolua's side of the internet) as I want to test asimov's statment that 'any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic' (it's all SE's fault....I swear LOL) It was Arthur C. Clarke, not Asimov, who is famous for making the statement that "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic". Which is of course bull paddies. Any technology which is indistinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced. Magic is for the initiated only...not just anyone can get into Hogwarts. Technology is aimed at reaching everyone, at being easily used. Early VCR's were nearly impossible to program, and the blinking "12:00" became a running gag. Now VCR's practically set themselves, and have helpful on-screen promptings which make them practically self-explanatory: the technology is sufficiently advanced that it is no longer like magic. Magic is secretive. Think of the Department of Mysteries, where important things are hidden from the view of even most wizards, let alone muggles. Science and technology are the exact opposite: the first thing a scientist does when he comes across a new discovery is to publish his findings to as wide an audience as possible. Science is not made for keeping secrets. Even crass commercial technology, as opposed to pure research science, only keeps secrets on a very temporary basis, the length of a patent. But even while a patent gives legal protection from copycats, the important information of what the discovery is or how the invention works is freely available to all who request a copy of the patent. Magic is unreliable. Speak an incantation wrong, stir your potion the wrong way, and the consequences can be catastrophic. Mature technologies just need to be rebooted. Most magic has little effect on the day-to-day lives of most people. Think of your typical fantasy novel, where the wizard works at his spells in a high tower while in the fields around him the peasants still toil with muscle-power alone. The magical forces at the wizard's command do not lighten the burdens of living in a pre-technological agricultural society, and they still plow fields behind a draft animal and die horribly from epidemic diseases. Science and Technology are aimed at helping people, making their lives easier, longer, and more fulfilling. The scientist and engineer produce tractors and hybrid crops and medicines that have so changed agricultural labor that practically no one is a farmer any more. But this guy states these things far better than I do, because he actually is engaged in technology, and not just lying in bed with a laptop on his chest BS'ing at five in the morning: www.mixolydian.org/goliard/ |
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Post by Lolua on Aug 13, 2004 12:34:15 GMT -5
And thank you, Martin, for that lovely diatribe. Trelawny - Betazed a la Lwaxana Troy Oh, yes, I can totally see it. Too bad Trelawney doesn't get to have a Lurch. Wesley Crusher as Cedric Diggory.... J/K  .... I dunno, he was always more of a male Hermione to me, swooping in with his pubescent technological skills to save the whole freakin' ship from the catastrophe du jour. So, what about Voldemort? Are the Death Eaters the Borg or what? |
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Post by Mlle Bienvenu on Aug 17, 2004 14:39:22 GMT -5
Dangit, I had a good response written for this, but the 'puter ate it....grrrr  It was Arthur C. Clarke, not Asimov, who is famous for making the statement that "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic". Ack, I always mix those two up.  I'm going to have to dissagree with you. Mainly on your interpretation and emphasis of Clarke's statement. I think what Clarke is saying is that at a certain point, technology gets so advanced that to the uninitiated, it seems to work against the bounds of logic. The newfangled VCR's you mentioned, for example. To someone who doesn't know the technology, it would appear as though the VCR just knew the correct time for your timezone, and knew also the date, and would switch accordingly for daylight savings (should it apply to you) Obviously this isn't magic, it's merely picking up the time from a signal broadcast from the tv station/sattelite in your area. But you have to admit that without knowing this, it might seem like something bordering on magic. Your views on the secretive and unreliable nature of magic are from a very.... for lack of a better term ... muggle point of view. Magic is not unreliable. Nor is it particularly secretive to the community that practices it You may balk and say that not everyone practices it and therefore it's secretive. I would respond to you that not everyone practices technology either. There are people in the world today who would find the VCR fascinating and magical, although to us it is common place. There are those who would see technology and be afraid of its power and therefore may react hostily, such as when nuclear power was invented, or ignore it altogether, such as Amish people. As for your statment on the unreliable nature of magic, I would beg to differ... anyone who has a magical system that doesn't act in a predictable way isn't trying hard enough. (you may site Peter Beagle's 'The Last Unicorn' and Schmendricks 'Magic, do as you will.' to be an unpredictable magic system. However, everytime Schmendrick said this phrase, it always resulted in an effect which, in the long run had a better effect than if he had tried to recite a specific spell. It's a bit like using a sort of 'smart function' on a device, it choses which option would be best in a given situation. ) To site Harry Potter as an example, when Harry learns a spell, as long as he meets the requirements of that spell, it will work for him always. You stated that if you speak an incantation wrong, stir the cauldron the wrong way and the consequences could be catestrophic. How is this different from technology? To take chemisty as an example, potion's muggle equivalent. Certain molecules, when brought to a certain temperature, will be benign, however, if brought to the wrong temperature, turn into poisons, such as the active ingrediant in Splenda' (don't bake with it, as it turns into a nerve toxin BTW) Also, I feel the function of magic is that same as technology. To make people's lives easier. If you think on the different spells and potions and whatnot that people use in just the Harry Potter world alone, you see that they are not very different from things you'd find in your life... Sleakeasy's Hair Potion, the dishes washing themselves... etc we have muggle equivalents, and they are examples of things that make our lives easier, better, more fulfiled, safer. True, in your typical fantasy novel, as you said, there is a sort of... class system involved. But the same holds true for technology. Throughout history, there have been examples of people withholding technology from the poorer classes. Also, I may state that not every novel contains this system, and is a choice of the author and is not inherent in magic in general.. I can think of several books who doesn't follow this archaic class system. (The Dark Lord of Derkholm Series, The Harry Potter Series, The Song of Albion Trilogy, to name a few.) |
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Post by Mlle Bienvenu on Aug 18, 2004 0:50:46 GMT -5
And thank you, Martin, for that lovely diatribe. Oh, yes, I can totally see it. Too bad Trelawney doesn't get to have a Lurch. .... I dunno, he was always more of a male Hermione to me, swooping in with his pubescent technological skills to save the whole freakin' ship from the catastrophe du jour. You're right, of course... I was only joking. (and now that it's not 4:30 in the morning, it doesn't make a lot of sense., to be honest...LOL) So, what about Voldemort? Are the Death Eaters the Borg or what? Hmm... that's an interesting idea... I haven't decided on them yet. Never really liked the Borg much (I mean as a villain) too powerful... I like the assimilation thing, very interesting but they got too powerful.... sort of became a Butter Battle....each side developing more powerful weaponry ... Although that would be funny.... Snape would be the Seven of Nine ... LOL.... I don't think Silly would mind seeing Snape in a catsuit.... LOL |
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Post by Illyria on Mar 31, 2005 5:31:45 GMT -5
LOL! You're nuts like me, with all the crazy crossovers  Except mine would be sort of leaning more towards ST/BtVS (Buffy) rather than HP |
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.... I dunno, he was always more of a male Hermione to me, swooping in with his pubescent technological skills to save the whole freakin' ship from the catastrophe du jour. 
