What tropes in science fiction annoy you?

[Mudd]

Military space fleets.

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

Military space fleets.

Why would that be an issue?

 

[Mudd]

Why would that be an issue?

Why wouldn't it?

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

Why wouldn't it?

It's a sci-fi trope but why's it a problem?

 

[Mudd]

It's repetitive, predictable, senseless and worn-out. Writers have been pretending that space travel is European colonial warfare since at least the 1920s. The Universe is not an ocean. There will never be sailing vessels or battleships plying the "space lanes."

 

[Artoo Atari]

This has probably been mentioned before, but it mildly annoys me when characters within a story inexplicably display abilities that may be related to their role yet are beyond their skill set.

Examples (not from any specific stories necessarily):

• The pilot enters a craft of unknown alien engineering from a species with a completely alien evolution, and after a couple of obligatory lines like, "Okay, this must be the helm control," they're ready to fly simply because they are The Pilot. (Ok, so this one actually does appear in at least several Trek episodes).
• The infectious disease specialist steps up and successfully performs emergency surgery to save the life of an injured crewmember because they are The Medic/Doctor.
• The science officer, who specializes in... I dunno, say.... alien marine invertebrates, suddenly knows how to fix the shield generator because they are The Scientist.

 

[B.J.]

or they just don't have names.

that would be awkward

About that, see #32 and on: https://shinesolutions.com/2018/01/08/falsehoods-programmers-believe-about-names-with-examples/
I also saw one IRL example mentioned (can't find where it was!) where a culture only referred to each other in reference to others. Like "He's her husband's cousin's son" or something like that.

• The science officer, who specializes in... I dunno, say.... alien marine invertebrates, suddenly knows how to fix the shield generator because they are The Scientist.

This one gets me with Dr Bill Lee on Stargate. Whenever they need another "smart person" that isn't Carter or McKay, they usually bring him in. Is he a research scientist, an engineer, a biologist, or what? Apparently the answer is "yes"! I actually like the character and the way the actor portrays him, but it would be nice to be consistent.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

https://shinesolutions.com/2018/01/08/falsehoods-programmers-believe-about-names-with-examples/

That shows the need for all Name Fields to become "Incredibly Flexible" to fit all the needs of every person, every culture, every language, every written style, every naming convention on Earth.

 

[JD]

About that, see #32 and on: https://shinesolutions.com/2018/01/08/falsehoods-programmers-believe-about-names-with-examples/
I also saw one IRL example mentioned (can't find where it was!) where a culture only referred to each other in reference to others. Like "He's her husband's cousin's son" or something like that.


This one gets me with Dr Bill Lee on Stargate. Whenever they need another "smart person" that isn't Carter or McKay, they usually bring him in. Is he a research scientist, an engineer, a biologist, or what? Apparently the answer is "yes"! I actually like the character and the way the actor portrays him, but it would be nice to be consistent.

Yeah, I think some writers think that ever scientist is automatically an expert in every field, when that is far from the case. Your average biologist probably isn't going to know much more about quantum physics than the average person.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

Which type of scientist is most likely to know a little about a lot of things? Perhaps a science columnist for a magazine, or a school teacher.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Which type of scientist is most likely to know a little about a lot of things? Perhaps a science columnist for a magazine, or a school teacher.

The Professor from Gilligan's Island.

 

[fireproof78]

The Professor from Gilligan's Island.

And my high school chemistry teacher. He was an old bull rider and bartender.

He had a vast array of scientific knowledge.

 

[JLA]

And my high school chemistry teacher. He was an old bull rider and bartender.

He had a vast array of scientific knowledge.

I got on well with teachers like yours. Lots of curiosity, love of learning for its own sake, not afraid to try different things.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

Which type of scientist is most likely to know a little about a lot of things? Perhaps a science columnist for a magazine, or a school teacher.

People who are specialized in Science Communication like many modern Science YouTubers & Science TV personalities.

Also General Science Teachers who are very widely studied.

 

[nightwind1]

Back when I was in the USN there was Judicial Punishment (Court Martial) for all ranks and Non-Judicial Punishment for enlisted (for non-serious less than felony offenses). If you were enlisted you could request judicial punishment instead.

Judicial Punishment had two forms, one with a JAG judge and no jury, or one with a JAG judge and a jury of other sailors. There were JAG lawyers for prosecution and defense, although the accused could retain civilian counsel. It was recommended if you were accused to not have a jury trial, the judge only, would be your best bet.

Non-Judicial punishment in the Navy was called Captain's Mast, presided over by the C.O.- maximum punishment would be any combination of loss of some pay, extra duty & restriction to the command, up to 30 days confinement in the brig and loss of rank (confinement (for those below the rank of noncommissioned officer) and loss of rank only applied to anyone below the rank of chief); or Executive Officer's (X.O.) Mast (held by the department head with limited punishment, usually extra duty, also called extra military instruction (EMI)). Since it was non-judicial, there weren't lawyers or judges, or anything like evidence.

The way it worked was if you were written up for some offense it would go through your chain-of-command. The Division Officer would handle it or give the write-up to the Department Head. The Department Head would either have XO's Mast and handle it with EMI, or give it to the Legal Department (JAG lawyer assigned to the ship). The Legal Department would decide if it should go to Captain's Mast (Enlisted only), or Court Martial (all ranks). Commissioned Officers might get a letter of reprimand, instead of a Court Martial, for less serious offenses that would get an enlisted man a Captain's Mast.

Same with the US Coast Guard.

Semper Paratus
USCG 1988-1993

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

Phsyics Girl....... She's a scientist good youtube channel poor thing has been dealing with ill health though.

 

[Set Harth]

The Professor from Gilligan's Island.

too bad he didn't know how to fix a hole in a boat

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I have heard it suggested that the Professor DID know how to fix the hole in the boat, but chose not to, since the whole experience was his idea from the beginning, as a sort of sociological experiment.

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

I have heard it suggested that the Professor DID know how to fix the hole in the boat, but chose not to, since the whole experience was his idea from the beginning, as a sort of sociological experiment.

If only people in the era the show was made had that much forethought....

What was odd was the island had so many visitors, even I think astronauts that nobody ever told the authorities where they were.

 

[Nerys Myk]

I have heard it suggested that the Professor DID know how to fix the hole in the boat, but chose not to, since the whole experience was his idea from the beginning, as a sort of sociological experiment.

Don’t they loose the entire boat at one point because of a patch job how wrong. (Gilligan!!!!)