RE: SPS/Pulsars

Another possibility, is that instead of ships (you don't really need a
big regular drive, just and FTL drive) you have ummanned pods that hop
back and forth every so often (once a day, hourly or more frequent.)
Depending on how cheap you can make FTL drives, this might be a viable
option.  It would put communication rates back to what it was at the
turn of the 20th century across the Atlantic - most mail would be sent
by steamer ship, but some high priority stuff could be sent by
short-range wireless from station to station or ship to ship.

--Binhan

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Flak Magnet [mailto:flakmagnet72@yahoo.com]
> Sent: Monday, February 25, 2002 11:04 AM
> To: gzg-l@csua.berkeley.edu
> Subject: RE: SPS/Pulsars
> 
> 
> Sort of like an internet, but the the "packets" of data are 
> real ships,
> with all the problems that such a system would entail.
> 
> Icky, but if it's the best you've got... 
> 
> On Mon, 2002-02-25 at 12:43, B Lin wrote:
> > For Pseudo-FTl communication you can use FTL couriers to 
> get to the system, then beam the communication across to the 
> next courier who then jumps to the next system (a la Pony 
> Express.)  I believe that Niven used this method in "The Mote 
> in God's Eye" series.  This has the downside that you can 
> only use it in areas where you have a good courier network 
> setup.  Communication to the out of the way places would 
> still be intermittent or take a long time.
> > 
> > --Binhan
> > 
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: Tim Gray [mailto:tgray@adacplastics.com]
> > > Sent: Monday, February 25, 2002 10:17 AM
> > > To: gzg-l@csua.berkeley.edu
> > > Subject: Re: SPS/Pulsars
> > > 
> > > 
> > > I pulled the idea from the ONE book I read from the Honor 
> Harrington
> > > series by and author named *mumbles something*.
> > > 
> > > If you really want beacons in your universe, the 
> underlying "fabric"
> > > doesn't have to be gravity... it can be anything, really.
> > > 
> > >	
> > > 
> > > On Mon, 2002-02-25 at 12:00, Randy W. Wolfmeyer wrote:
> > > > 
> > > > On 25 Feb 2002, Flak Magnet wrote:
> > > > 
> > > > > Then there's the concept of gravitic propagation being 
> > > instantaneous
> > > > > that could be used for FTL transmission:
> > > > >
> > > > > The theory being something along the lines of gravitic 
> > > fields being like
> > > > > a fabric, if you tug on one thread, all the other 
> threads react
> > > > > instantly.  If you say that it really works that way in 
> > > _your_ universe,
> > > > > then setting up a beacon with a medium power would be as 
> > > "simple" as a
> > > > > purposely mis-aligned gravitic drive (set to remain 
> > > stationary) pulsing
> > > > > with specifically-timed bursts to make it unique.  Very 
> > > much like the
> > > > > lights used to navigate lakes by boats and to denote 
> > > towers to aircraft.
> > > > >
> > > > > --Flak
> > > > >
> > > > 
> > > > As a grad student in General Relativity, I can say with 
> > > near certainty
> > > > that gravitational effects propagate at the speed of light. 
> > >  At least in
> > > > the universe as we currently know it.  However, if you 
> > > assume FTL jump
> > > > drives, a misaligned jump drive might generate the same 
> > > type of signal
> > > > that could propagate FTL.  But even then the concept of 
> > > instantaneous
> > > > transmission is going to depend on relativistic frame 
> (how fast the
> > > > observer is moving relative to the source), not to mention 
> > > the frequency
> > > > of the signal.
> > > > 
> > > > Please note that I do accept that you can setup thing in 
> > > whatever way you
> > > > want in your own fictional universe.
> > > > 
> > > > Randy Wolfmeyer
> > > 
> 
> -- 
> 
> --Flak Magnet
> Hive Fleet Jaegernaught
> http://www.geocities.com/flakmagnet72
> 
> 
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