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Space Opera (role-playing Game)
''Space Opera'' is a science-fiction role-playing game created by Edward E. Simbalist, A. Mark Ratner, and Phil McGregor in 1980 for Fantasy Games Unlimited (FGU). While the game's system can be used to create any science fiction genre, ''Space Opera'' has a default setting focused on creating space opera themed adventures. Development According to the Scott Bizar, the founder of FGU, "I wanted a SF rpg and I gave the job to Ed Simbalist. During the process I’ve never met Ed, nor Phil McGregor and Mark Ratner, who lived in the Canadian west, Australia and the east of the USA, respectively. The project was completed over more than two years entirely by correspondence." Simbalist was responsible for all the editing and coordination. Phil McGregor sent some technology and space ship related stuff which Simbalist liked so much that he incorporated it in the finished product. While the background universe was based on Mark Ratner's '' Space Marines'', Ratner had little input int ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Role-playing Game
A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, or abbreviated as RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of player character, characters in a fictional Setting (narrative), setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting or through a process of structured decision-making regarding character development. Actions taken within many games succeed or fail according to a formal role-playing game system, system of rules and guidelines. There are several forms of role-playing games. The original form, sometimes called the tabletop role-playing game (TRPG or TTRPG), is conducted through discussion, whereas in live action role-playing game, live action role-playing (LARP), players physically perform their characters' actions.(Tychsen et al. 2006:255) "LARPs can be viewed as forming a distinct category of RPG because of two unique features: (a) The players physically embody their characters, and (b) the g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shark
Sharks are a group of elasmobranch cartilaginous fish characterized by a ribless endoskeleton, dermal denticles, five to seven gill slits on each side, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the Division (taxonomy), division Selachii and are the sister group to the Batoidea, Batomorphi (Batoidea, rays and skate (fish), skates). Some sources extend the term "shark" as an informal category including Extinction, extinct members of Chondrichthyes (cartilaginous fish) with a shark-like morphology, such as hybodonts. Shark-like chondrichthyans such as ''Cladoselache'' and ''Doliodus'' first appeared in the Devonian Period (419–359 million years), though some fossilized chondrichthyan-like scales are as old as the Ordovician, Late Ordovician (458–444 million years ago). The earliest confirmed modern sharks (Selachii) are known from the Early Jurassic around , with the oldest known member being ''Agaleus'', though records of true shar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Positronic Brain
A positronic brain is a fictional technological device, originally conceived by science fiction writer Isaac Asimov. It functions as a central processing unit (CPU) for robots, and, in some unspecified way, provides them with a form of consciousness recognizable to humans. When Asimov wrote his first robot stories in 1939 and 1940, the positron was a newly discovered particle, and so the buzz word "positronic" added a scientific connotation to the concept. Asimov's 1942 short story " Runaround" elaborates his fictional Three Laws of Robotics, which are ingrained in the positronic brains of nearly all of his robots. Conceptual overview Asimov remained vague about the technical details of positronic brains except to assert that their substructure was formed from an alloy of platinum and iridium. They were said to be vulnerable to radiation and apparently involve a type of volatile memory (since robots in storage required a power source keeping their brains "alive"). The focus o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Atlatl
A spear-thrower, spear-throwing lever, or ''atlatl'' (pronounced or ; Classical Nahuatl, Nahuatl ''ahtlatl'' ) is a tool that uses leverage to achieve greater velocity in Dart (missile), dart or javelin-throwing, and includes a Plain bearing, bearing surface that allows the user to store energy during the throw. It may consist of a shaft with a cup or a spur at the end that supports and propels the butt of the spear. It's usually about as long as the user's arm or forearm. The user holds the spear-thrower in one hand, gripping near the end farthest from the cup. The user puts the butt end of the spear, or dart, in the cup, or grabs the spur with the end of the spear. The spear is much longer than the thrower. The user holds the thrower at the grip end, with the spear resting on the thrower and the butt end of the spear resting in the thrower's cup. The user can hold the spear, with the index and thumb, with the same hand as the thrower, with the other fingers. The user reaches b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stillsuit
Technology is a key aspect of the fictional setting of the Dune (franchise), ''Dune'' series of science fiction novels written by Frank Herbert, and derivative works. Herbert's concepts and inventions have been analyzed and deconstructed in at least one book, ''The Science of Dune'' (2007). Herbert's originating 1965 novel ''Dune (novel), Dune'' is popularly considered one of the greatest science fiction novels of all time,Touponce, William F. (1988), ''Frank Herbert'', Boston, Massachusetts, Boston, Massachusetts: Twayne Publishers imprint, G. K. Hall & Co, pg. 119, . "''Locus (magazine), Locus'' ran a poll of readers on April 15, 1975 in which ''Dune'' 'was voted the all-time best science-fiction novel…It has sold over ten million copies in numerous editions.'" and is frequently cited as the best-selling science fiction novel in history. ''Dune'' and its five sequels by Herbert explore the complex and multilayered interactions of politics, religion, ecology and technology, among ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Smartphone
A smartphone is a mobile phone with advanced computing capabilities. It typically has a touchscreen interface, allowing users to access a wide range of applications and services, such as web browsing, email, and social media, as well as multimedia playback and Streaming media, streaming. Smartphones have built-in cameras, GPS navigation, and support for various communication methods, including voice calls, text messaging, and internet-based messaging apps. Smartphones are distinguished from older-design feature phones by their more advanced hardware capabilities and extensive mobile operating systems, access to the internet, business applications, Mobile payment, mobile payments, and multimedia functionality, including music, video, mobile gaming, gaming, Internet radio, radio, and Mobile television, television. Smartphones typically feature MOSFET, metal–oxide–semiconductor (MOS) integrated circuit (IC) chips, various sensors, and support for multiple wireless communicati ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mainframe Computer
A mainframe computer, informally called a mainframe or big iron, is a computer used primarily by large organizations for critical applications like bulk data processing for tasks such as censuses, industry and consumer statistics, enterprise resource planning, and large-scale transaction processing. A mainframe computer is large but not as large as a supercomputer and has more processing power than some other classes of computers, such as minicomputers, server (computing), servers, workstations, and personal computers. Most large-scale computer-system architectures were established in the 1960s, but they continue to evolve. Mainframe computers are often used as servers. The term ''mainframe'' was derived from the large cabinet, called a ''main frame'', that housed the central processing unit and main computer memory, memory of early computers. Later, the term ''mainframe'' was used to distinguish high-end commercial computers from less powerful machines. Design Modern mainfr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Psychokinesis
Telekinesis () (alternatively called psychokinesis) is a purported psychic ability allowing an individual to influence a physical system without physical interaction. Experiments to prove the existence of telekinesis have historically been criticized for lack of proper scientific control, controls and repeatability. There is no reliable evidence that telekinesis is a real phenomenon, and the topic is generally regarded as pseudoscience. Reception Evaluation There is a broad scientific consensus that telekinetic research has not produced a reliable demonstration of the phenomenon. A panel commissioned in 1988 by the United States National Research Council to study paranormal claims concluded that:despite a 130-year record of scientific research on such matters, our committee could find no scientific justification for the existence of phenomena such as extrasensory perception, mental telepathy or "mind over matter" exercises... Evaluation of a large body of the best available ev ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Psionics
In American science fiction of the 1950s and '60s, psionics was a proposed discipline that applied principles of engineering (especially electronics) to the study (and employment) of paranormal or psychic phenomena, such as extrasensory perception, telepathy and psychokinesis. The term is a blend word of ''psi'' (in the sense of "psychic phenomena") and the -' from ''electronics''. The word "psionics" began as, and always remained, a term of art within the science fiction community and—despite the promotional efforts of editor John W. Campbell, Jr.—it never achieved general currency, even among academic parapsychologists. In the years after the term was coined in 1951, it became increasingly evident that no scientific evidence supports the existence of "psionic" abilities. Etymology In 1942, two authors—biologist Bertold Wiesner and psychologist Robert Thouless—had introduced the term "psi" (from ψ ''psi,'' 23rd letter of the Greek alphabet) to parapsychology in an a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gas Composition
The Gas composition of any gas can be characterised by listing the pure substances it contains, and stating for each substance its proportion of the gas mixture's molecule count.Nitrogen 78.084 Oxygen 20.9476 Argon Ar 0.934 Carbon Dioxide 0.0314 Gas composition of air To give a familiar example, air has a composition of: Standard Dry Air is the agreed-upon gas composition for air from which all water vapour has been removed. There are various standards bodies which publish documents that define a dry air gas composition. Each standard provides a list of constituent concentrations, a gas density at standard conditions and a molar mass. It is extremely unlikely that the actual composition of any specific sample of air will completely agree with any definition for standard dry air. While the various definitions for standard dry air all attempt to provide realistic information about the constituents of air, the definitions are important in and of themselves because they est ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wookiee
Wookiees () are fictional humanoid aliens in the ''Star Wars'' universe, native to the forest planet Kashyyyk. They are distinguished from humans by their gigantism, hirsutism, and physical strength. The most prominent Wookiee in the films is Chewbacca, the co-pilot of the ''Millennium Falcon'', and best friend to Han Solo. Inspiration According to an interview with creator George Lucas, the inspiration for the Wookiee was Lucas's dog, Indiana (whose name is used in Lucas's Indiana Jones movies): "He was the prototype for the Wookiee. He always sat beside me in the car. He was big, a big bear of a dog." The species' name was inspired when, during the climactic chase scene in ''THX 1138'', one of the robotic cops, voiced by actor Terry McGovern, improvises: "I think I ran over a Wookiee back there", and thus the word was born. "Wookey" was the surname of a friend, Ralph Wookey, and McGovern thought it would be a funny in-joke to include his friend's name in the soundtrack for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vulcan (Star Trek)
Vulcans, sometimes referred to as Vulcanians, are a fictional extraterrestrial humanoid species in the ''Star Trek'' media franchise. They are noted for their strict adherence to logic and reason and suppression of emotion. Known for their pronounced eyebrows and pointed ears, they originate from the fictional planet Vulcan. In the ''Star Trek'' universe, they were the first extraterrestrial species to make contact with humans. The most notable Vulcan character is Spock, first played by actor Leonard Nimoy in '' Star Trek: The Original Series'' (1966–1969). Some aspects of this fictional alien race that have entered popular culture are their pointy ears, the Vulcan salute, the Vulcan nerve pinch, and their adherence to logical thinking and disdain for emotion. A 2019 journal article, ''Science Fiction and the Abolition of Man'' argued that many science fiction characters such as Vulcans of ''Star Trek'' are based on the ideas of '' The Abolition of Man'' by C. S. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
