Friday, May 14, 2010

Plasteel

Plasteel is the primary structural material in high tech level societies in StarCluster. It is a transparent fluid which can be hardened permanently with radiation, foamed, and shaped. It can be made Active - that is, it can be programmed with shapes, and if a brain controls it, live nearly infinite morphing. Surface films over the plasteel can be actively colored - that is colored under arbitrary control, or programmed as a display. The film can also be actively textured, enabling arbitrary surface texture under live or programmed control.

Some things that Active Plasteel tech from StarCluster implies:

[*]Auto-conformal wings on aitcraft and shuttles, always able to take the optimal shape for the speed and flying quality wanted. Also wing warping rather than flaps and ailerons.

[*]Weapons which change shape to multitask - a rifle changing into a shotgun, for example.

[*]Jointless personal armor.

[*]Legged vehicles as simple as wheeled vehicles.

[*]Peristaltic pumping piping.

[*]Masks and clothing that move and change shape.

[*]Secret doors, windows, and caches that show no sign of their presence even to the best trained eye.

[*]Display panels thougher than steel, with active sirfaces

And since all plasteel - even structural, rigid plasteel - is naturally transparent, there is no structural difference between a wall and a window - even on a spaceship.

-clash

6 comments:

  1. [*] Furniture that grows out of the floor / walls / ceiling in response to voice command, or signal from subcutaneous neural-jacked transmitter

    [*] Mood sculpture

    [*] Efficient packaging (crates that can assess the volume of what they contain and shape themselves to maximise the available storage volume when stacked correctly by the controlling computer

    ...just some ideas,

    Marchand

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  2. Excellent idea, Marchand! Thanks! :D

    -clash

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  3. I love that stuff. Spacesuits that fold into a beltpouch?

    Emergency gear in batman type utility belt?

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  4. Already got the first, Tim, but a utility belt is a sweet idea!

    -clash

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  5. What about Riot Shields that can expand to fill a space (Room sized shields), Compressed gel forms fire from guns that wrap around targets like a super plastic-wrap net.

    Personal Surfing (water, sand) gear that can be worn rather than carried. Food packages that become their own plate, knife, fork, and spoon. Or for that matter a single rod that does the job of all three of the latter tools?

    A literal "multitool" programs for three or four thousand shapes from hammer to different sized wrenches?

    Programmable rooms for police/hospitals/lawyers--shape the moods you want to convey for each client--from calming rooms for victims, to hard interrogation rooms for criminals or opposing council. A whole psychological manipulation device the size of your location.

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  6. Expandable riot shields I got, and the wrap 'em up non-lethal weapons. I like the personal surfing gear! The packaging/plate is cool too! My fave is the morphing multitool, though! :D

    -clash

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