Re: Metal transport (was: platoon stuff and combat engineers)

on 02.6.26 5:25 PM, Beth.Fulton@csiro.au at Beth.Fulton@csiro.au
scribbleth:
> 
>> They were mentioned in Gear's "Forgotten Borders" trilogy,
>> now that you mention it.
> 
> Can I have the details please? (Another case of "I haven't read enough
scifi
> to know when I'm dreaming up stuff greater people have already
described")

Basically, it was as you described. When impacted the material became
very
hard and could spall. It did not resoften. Troops coming out of combat
often
had armor hardened to the point where mobility was affected. The organic
armor lived off occupant sweat, with (possibly, it wasn't explained
fully)
excrement etc. They did not eat their wearers. It was more of an organic
material than an organism.

The books are, unfortunately, mediocre. Gear sets up a very artificial
universe with all sorts of artificially-imposed restrictions, to make
his
points. A lot of the restrictions get in the way of
suspension-of-disbelief.

BTW.
Here are a few comments from my mother, who was a biochemist/gengineer
for
30 years. May serve to stimulate someone's imagination:

You have to differentiate
between circulating ionic forms of metals and those laid down as
comparatively insoluble salts.	Thus, an oversupply of ferric or ferrous
ion in the blood is deposited as an iron-protein complex, called
hemochromatin, in the liver, where it eventually reaches a mass which
interferes with liver function.  Too much calcium ion in the blood can
interfere with muscle contractility, particularly in the cardiac muscle,
but it can be immobilized as the calcium compounds in bone.  Lead is
poisonous but useless, and can to some extent also be sequestered in
bone.  Lighter metal ions such as sodium and potassium are powerful and
the heart is exquisitely sensitive to their concentrations.  The ancient
Chinese used to kill people by making them eat a lot of salt, and the
occasional serial murder who is a nurse often injects potassium chloride
into the IV tubing.

-- 
Edward Lipsett
Intercom, Ltd.
Fukuoka, Japan
Tel: 092-712-9120
Fax: 092-712-9220
translation@intercomltd.com