The S.M. Sterling novel, "Dies the fire", starts with the simple premise. All technology based on the flow of electrons and pressurized gases stops working. How this comes about is sort of passed over. With thousands of jet aircraft in the story plunging to the ground during the first few minutes of the change, as the disaster is called in the novels, the point is not a glaring omission. I recommend reading the novels. In fact I highly recommend reading the novels.
With an speculative fiction one can not help but to imagine oneself is a situation similar to that of the characters. If I ignore the fact that I would most probably have been eaten by (Oops, spoiler censored!), I might have found myself in Corvallis, OR. In the story at least, the local university is attempting to rebuild their little corner of civilization with what ever technology they can scrape together.
So this begs the question, exactly what can we do with pre-electronic technology? The answer surprisingly is quite a lot. We would have not where near the economies of scale that we do with the modern PC but mechanical computers would still be part of our technological tool box.
Once I gave my fictional self access to computers once again I realized that the profession of physics was still relevant. In fact it would be more relevant because "The Change," was primarily a change in physical laws. As a physicist I would most likely be concerned with how this new and terrible world works. If the old gas law does not work, then how do gasses work in this new world? The answer is simple, I experiment and figure it out.
Next you put your new found knowledge to work. If gasses are now infinitely compressible, implied in the story, what technological applications does this open up? Air engines become high energy density technologies even if still limited to low power. Is the lift in a dirigible now controllable via the simple re compression of the lifting gases? If so this would release these craft from the limitations of gas supply and ballast.
Sterling's bad guys ride around in Cap-a-pie and on chargers but I would be arming my guys with compressed air powered armored cars and supplying dirigible air cover. Yeah technology is still all about working with in physical laws even in that changed universe.
posted by Y.H.N.
With an speculative fiction one can not help but to imagine oneself is a situation similar to that of the characters. If I ignore the fact that I would most probably have been eaten by (Oops, spoiler censored!), I might have found myself in Corvallis, OR. In the story at least, the local university is attempting to rebuild their little corner of civilization with what ever technology they can scrape together.
So this begs the question, exactly what can we do with pre-electronic technology? The answer surprisingly is quite a lot. We would have not where near the economies of scale that we do with the modern PC but mechanical computers would still be part of our technological tool box.
Once I gave my fictional self access to computers once again I realized that the profession of physics was still relevant. In fact it would be more relevant because "The Change," was primarily a change in physical laws. As a physicist I would most likely be concerned with how this new and terrible world works. If the old gas law does not work, then how do gasses work in this new world? The answer is simple, I experiment and figure it out.
Next you put your new found knowledge to work. If gasses are now infinitely compressible, implied in the story, what technological applications does this open up? Air engines become high energy density technologies even if still limited to low power. Is the lift in a dirigible now controllable via the simple re compression of the lifting gases? If so this would release these craft from the limitations of gas supply and ballast.
Sterling's bad guys ride around in Cap-a-pie and on chargers but I would be arming my guys with compressed air powered armored cars and supplying dirigible air cover. Yeah technology is still all about working with in physical laws even in that changed universe.
posted by Y.H.N.
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