Postby Onasander » 08 May 2010 01:55
The soviets produced a really awesome twopart movie back in the 80s called Kin Dza Dza! The technology was so advanced it looked retarded and broken, but worked well none the less. The gears in the transporter would be a example of a frictionalless gear.... moved for no apparent reason.
Electromagnetic fields attract elements over time- and the elements causes build up- uneven heat distribution, shorts, and on rare occasions non-linear loads when it starts bridging stuff together. All electronics have this issue- however, most electronics we encounter in our everyday life are pretty much throw away- you have it for a few years- then bye bye.
Motors lose their insulation over time for carrying charges, generators must fail eventually once the charge gives out. Electronics are hardly frictionless..... especially when you get into complex environments with a lot of complication possible over a great period of time.
Such a machine would require a significant amount of energy to maintain itself- would have to be non-electronic (it was very, very, very exacting- they spent for the ling term- the engineers will plan for the long term- but it also possessed a unpredictable micro-environment they couldn't really guess what it would do in any given circumstance. Most importantly, it's designed to be used, and abused. A electromagnetic field can be detected very easily- and I notice Dune as a whole has little outward need for electricity (might explain the very late discovery of how to fold space- our electronic gadgets might of prevented it all along)- it's gonna stand out like a sore thumb to any search party with half the mind to look for one- or grandpa with a metal detector looking for some gold coins with a really good detector.)
My figuring is it was powered by kinetic forces from seismology, and was therefore NOT perpetual motion.... but would last seemingly forever none the less. If the gear parts in the machine were balanced just right, and propelled initially- I could conceivably see this being exploited by a very, very knowledgeable society with way too much money to spend to build a most perfect kinetic energy machine that also functioned as a most rudimentary geometric calculator for effecting other such machines- any lost of energy could very well be regained from the vibrations if calibrated to be exact enough. I'm pretty much thinking of a kinetic laser machine- that can calculate all shifts and changes in the local geology, and adapt.... something drastic and the illusion goes bye-bye- but something small and it adjusts. Just gotta keep your eye on the second law of thermodynamics. It being frictionless and still powered- and it's tasking, despite not being a true thinking machine- is a strong indicator it was powered by vibrations- only way I can figure it working not just machine wise- but also function.
two last notes before I go- the no room wouldn't be in a vacuum- why on earth would the harks want a device capable of killing everyone inside of it? I have strong doubts this thing was even airtight- a complex array of primary, secondary, and who knows how many air tunnels perhaps- maybe even the potential for algae based airscrubbers (if they were smart enough to remember to seed it when rushing to it in a oh shit moment of flight).
Second- yes- the microclimate in a kinetic system would attract dust and decay as well- but the machines would be only very slightly effected by it (unless the roof collapsed), and should be able to re-zero as time goes by, adjusting. I am thinking of gears sufficiently far apart never to touch. I also would wonder if they are made of metal..... we have a certain fascination with steel, copper, and aluminum in playing with electricity- for very minute, exacting calculations for seismological balancing acts, and absorbing the force for energy output of some type- they might of went in a direction that would require it to be as non-conductive as possible- so as not to be influenced easily by static electricity or electromagnetic forces in general..... the electromagnetic force isn't the only one out there known even in Frank's time.... we have a wide array- and the basic theory I am talking about isn't much more complex than modern, cutting edge watch making using kinetic energy- though the wrist watch versions never endeavor to be frictionless.
Electricity is bad- shorts happen..... weird crap happens all too often- just ask anyone who's ever worked installing fire alarms- codes from multiple sources, like the NEC or NFPA..... and we still set them off all the time from nothing. They are obvious when they are not working- cause they are loud (or not loud when they really, really need to be). I don't think a endeavor as complex as this Hark Ground Central for Mayhem and Chaos is going to skimp and go the electric route on it's most essential node of defense- hiding long term..... most nuclear silos I've been in (yes, I've been in a few decommissioned ones) had back-up, non electrical.
One last further note- I am guessing a high possibility a considerable part of the facility is partially built like the NSA Headquarters- so no electromagnetic signal, or heat signal gets out in the first place- but then you have to figure in the amount of workmen actually involved in it's construction..... I am certain it was done only partially if even at all..... wouldn't be surprised if it was just bare rock walls carved from the hillside..... they have a need to keep signals from going up- and immediately out near the entrance- so any stray signal someone catches will always be confusing and non-intuitive, and not be easily traced..... how this would effect the No-Rooms functions is a question though- and it might actually prohibit it's range.... and furthermore make it more apparent something was indeed there- I think Leto would of noticed some electromagnetic proof, bunker shells shaped construction going on, even if the No-Room was activated before the rest of the materials were brought in..... this would of been like a signal flair going off to Leto to look here..... thus probably why they found the place in the first place. This is going to be a room of the ultimate paranoia- and in this state of absolute second guessing, compromises MUST be made- I highly suspect they did something really stupid like this that fucked up and caused weaknesses in other systems that could be exploited by a keen predator/observer looking for such signatures.
