Sunday, June 07, 2009

Battlestar Galactica: Science Ahead!

Well, not so much science, really. Space travel expert Kevin Fong explained to New Scientist that there's not much about the space opera one can connect with scientific or engineering reality. Among other things, the Cylon ships could easily outmaneuver the Colonial Vipers because the latter are limited by the G forces their human pilots can handle. Fong notes that any real-life long-distance space voyage in the near future, such as a trip to Mars, is likely to involve people crowded for a long time in a small volume. It does not sound nearly as much fun as crusing through solar systems on a ship with a big crew and lots of room (Although, if NASA is reading this, I, for one, would still volunteer).
According to Fong, the psychology of the show, such as the way humans fray at the edges under relentless Cylon attacks, is where its scientific truth likes.
SEXIST COMMENT: Of course, it also helps that Starbuck is really hot.

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