Design of exploding control panels

May 09, 2011 82 Replies

I once read a SF story on exactly this theme - the "transporter" didn't actually transport the person's atoms - a scanner mapped the position and movement of each and every atom in the "source passenger's" body [suspension of disbelief - position _and_ motion? Heisenberg be damned!], and at the destination end, they just had bins of various atoms and molecules where they reassembled the passenger at the destination end. The dilemma was, what do you then do with the "source passenger?" Their solution was to drug the passenger unconscious, then at the destination end, revive them and check them out, to make sure it worked, then phone the guy at the source end, say, "OK," and they'd quietly dump the still unconscious "source passenger" into the disintegrator.

There was some controversy (in the story) about when some hot babe got transported, the "source passenger" would get all kind of groped and abused before they threw her away.

This dirty little secret got out, and much drama ensued. ;-)

Cheers! Rich

heh. From one of the documentaries on Trek, an advisor was asked "How does the Heisenberg Compensator work?" and he answered "very well, thank you!" and laughed.

if it weren't for skyhooks, they have no hooks at all :)I still like Trek, tho.

Yawp. And please note that unless the "soul" is an emergent phenomena of the arrangement of atoms ( not the usual way it's thought about ), then the copy would be .... a zombie.

So I would guess no Catholics in the transporter... but maybe some Vudu priests.... I'd like to see the Encyclical on

*THAT* :)

Sci fi writers... :)

That's vastly awesome. Remember who it was?

-- Les Cargill

No, unfortunately - I don't even rememember the name of the story or where I read it - I'm pretty sure it was in one of the pulps, but that's about it. )-;

Sorry. Rich

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