Questions tagged [physics]
For questions regarding the physics relevant to fictitious worlds. General physics may be off-topic.
2,057 questions
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Assuming that production isn't a problem, what would be the easiest antimatter element to store and contain?
Basically my spacefaring civilization finds a relic left behind by a sufficiently advanced alien civilization, called the Inverter. No one knows how it works and I'm not even going to bother ...
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Could a universe be governed by curvature emerging from electrostatic tension rather than spacetime fabric —and just what would such a law then imply? [closed]
In standard physics, curvature is defined as the bending of spacetime caused by mass-energy. But suppose a different framework existed in which curvature is not a geometric deformation of spacetime ...
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Energy released by the sudden appearance of an alien obelisk?
In the not-too distant future, mysterious obelisks made of unobtainium begin to materialise around the world. They do not fall from space, but appear suddenly; teleporting into seemingly random ...
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Does human biochemistry change enough to cause death in higher-fundamental-causality-speed space?
Imagine a future scenario if you will, through ancient aliens, transapient minds, or phenomia humans have learned how to cause but we don't understand, a bubble of space is created between star x and ...
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Consequences of a no i quantum mechanics+3d time universe on human technology [closed]
I would like to start writing writing, and write in the same sort of framework as a variety of Greg Egan stories, that is, internally consistent frameworks of physics that probably aren't true but ...
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At what speed does the Cosmic Microwave Background radiation become lethal
Background
Far future humanity has set its sight on widespread inter-galactic colonization. Due to advancements in a variety of technologies, the ability to move at an arbitrarily high fraction of the ...
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Hard sci-fi: Could a Dyson sphere's thermal effects cause Earth's gravity to increase?
I'm writing a hard science fiction story set in the 30th century. I want the physics to be internally consistent even if speculative.
The Scenario:
Humanity builds a Dyson sphere that concentrates ...
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Teleport spell boom [closed]
So there is this teleportation spell. You cast it and disappear from one place and mostly immediately appear in a different place. Now what would the secondary environmental effects of such ...
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How would a Callan-Rubakov based drive work?
I'm trying to write a pulp-style hard(ish, I consider highly theoretical stuff fair game, so...) science fiction story, and I got so ticked off with the Coloumb barrier that I decided to skip right ...
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How to Calculate Habitable Area of an Infinite Plane
If you have an infinite plane with a star (assume the Sun but if you can generalise for any star that would be great) at a height H above the plane (don't worry how it stays there), how would you ...
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What Is the Maximum Negative Curvature a Hyperbolic Space Can Have While Remaining Physiologically Safe for Humans?
In my fictional setting, I’ve created a “hyperbolic universe” — a realm fundamentally distinct from our own. This universe is modeled as a hyperbolic space with constant negative curvature at nearly ...
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Is it physically possible for a noise to sound like it's coming from somewhere else?
My protagonist of my urban fantasy story has the ability to make almost any noise he wants. He can replicate any noise he's ever heard, speak using the voice of any person he's heard talk, and with ...
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Naturally formed portals between different (similar to Earth but no Earth) planets (no magic)
I started thinking about a fictional universe (different from ours) with different worlds linked by naturally appearing portals. There is no magic in this universe.
I imagine those portals surrounded ...
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What applications does a vacuum-generating substance have other than making near-vacuum airships?
So I think airships are cool and my world already has a source for crazy physics-breaking materials, and I thought, why not add another one to make airships slightly better? (Which based off other ...
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What mass does my space vehicle need to be, to leave a city in ruins by dropping it from orbit?
In my world, there is a civil war between two factions of a large country.
One faction has managed to take control of an interstellar space vessel in orbit, and is threatening to destroy the capital ...
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