tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770861767173688889.post5932336836728150005..comments2023-04-26T00:55:44.495-07:00Comments on Fantastic Worlds: How Superpowered People Would Change the WorldJordan179http://www.blogger.com/profile/04175992431854812417noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770861767173688889.post-21798396983043391962012-04-24T01:43:27.252-07:002012-04-24T01:43:27.252-07:00Heh ... for that matter, in real history, Nikolai ...Heh ... for that matter, in <i>real</i> history, <i>Nikolai Tesla</i> set up as an independent Mad Scientist because <i>Thomas Edison</i> welched on a promised million-dollar bonus for Tesla's work on power generation and transmission systems. Tesla then proceeded to find other sources of funding and come up with <i>new improved</i> power transmission systems, resulting in the "Current Wars" which Tesla and his partners <i>won</i>. (Tesla then cheated <i>himself</i> out of most of the winnings, but that's a more complex story).<br /><br />Between them, Edison and Tesla were responsible for a lot of the cliches regarding pulp and comic book Gadgeteers! :)Jordan179https://www.blogger.com/profile/04175992431854812417noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770861767173688889.post-17931754064747849272011-03-23T08:54:52.780-07:002011-03-23T08:54:52.780-07:00At least one supervillain went that way because hi...At least one supervillain went that way because his employers ripped him off on his inventions.<br /><br />And some of them will dream that they can get rich <i>quick</i> this way.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770861767173688889.post-21891695518412755332011-03-22T12:34:51.870-07:002011-03-22T12:34:51.870-07:00What you won't see much of is super-villainy. ...<i> What you won't see much of is super-villainy. Except for the truly insane and/or extraordinarily motivated, going legit is going to be far more lucrative.</i><br /><br />I totally agree with you that, unless society outright collapses, there will be few traditional super-villains. (If society collapses, what you'll have will be more along the line of super-warlords and super-brigands than "supervillains" in the classic sense).<br /><br />I <i>do</i> think that there might still be metahumans in combat, even against one another, but the metahumans would be in the service of various nations or non-governmental organizations, rather than merely being patrolling randomly or attempting independent actions. The closest that one would come to the typical comic-book battle would be when police or other law enforcement agency metahumans encountered metahumans who chose to work as criminal enforcers.<br /><br /><i>Tech advancement through super-inventors will be slow but significant. You won't see much right away but after 10 years it would be significant. It just needs time to work its way through the private sector.</i><br /><br />Yep. When metahuman powers first appeared, the world would be very much like ours save for the chaos induced by the appearance of metahumans (some of whom would be crazy); but as the years passed, there would be significant technological change.<br /><br />One <i>big</i> career choice for metahumans with Life Support and various Damage Resistance powers might be <i>exploration</i>. A metahuman with the right powers could safely spelunk, walk on the ocean floor, or wander the Moon's surface without a space suit. Exploration can have a big social and economic impact because explorers can make important discoveries. A metahuman universe might have be significantly more advanced than ours in terms of oceanic exploitation and space colonization, for that reason.Jordan179https://www.blogger.com/profile/04175992431854812417noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770861767173688889.post-47645219410480477102011-03-21T19:05:20.963-07:002011-03-21T19:05:20.963-07:00fuck sake apparently if I log in with livejournal ...fuck sake apparently if I log in with livejournal I can only post bitty, twitter-sized responses.<br /><br />Aberrant did a good job of presenting a believable setting where people started suddenly showing up with powers.<br /><br />Most of them will just continue having normal lives, but perhaps with certain perks like being able to live far away from work or not having to wear much protective gear on the job. Fewer will feel the need to use their gifts for the benefit of society, but there may be enough for a few traditional 'super teams'. What you won't see much of is super-villainy. Except for the truly insane and/or extraordinarily motivated, going legit is going to be far more lucrative. Not to say that there won't be plenty of self-serving assholes among the super-powered, but I think that just comes with anything that produces fame and fortune, and it's clear that government, military, and private companies will pay fantastic salaries to secure people with the right powers and skills.<br />Tech advancement through super-inventors will be slow but significant. You won't see much right away but after 10 years it would be significant. It just needs time to work its way through the private sector.Sianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06655912281333502460noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770861767173688889.post-45484346223808072612011-03-21T17:43:25.815-07:002011-03-21T17:43:25.815-07:00of course there are careers other than military, l...of course there are careers other than military, law enforcement and inventing. . . a number of them would be affected by superhumans.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770861767173688889.post-43360916794982621722011-03-21T16:39:33.846-07:002011-03-21T16:39:33.846-07:00One of the plotlines in Iron Man right now is that...One of the plotlines in Iron Man right now is that tony Stark is trying to develop a repulsor-driven car... and getting into all the various legalities and problems inherent in trying to put a superior technology to work, while people are trying to kill him like they always do.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com