Amph Ringworld

Hm. I don't think that I understood any of that.

 

Yah wow... that was technical.

 

That big golfball-like dome that is the Epcott Center for Disney World is an example of a tenesgrity, as well as any geodesic sphere.

[image=http://mayhem-chaos.net/photoblog/images/DCP_3706.JPG]

[image=http://www.uci.net/~parti/images/dome.jpg]

[image=http://encyclopedia.laborlawtalk.com/wiki/images/thumb/5/5f/180px-Mtl-biosphere.jpg]

So basically it is this idea that supports the possibility that megastructures which would normally fall under the term "unobtainium" can be created, Ringworlds, Halos, Dyson Spheres(Swarms) etc.

On topic of the book, I always wished Niven would do a novel about Seeker featuring stories of his life as he walked the Ringworld before he met Teela.

 

What else has he written in that universe? I know that there are four Ringworld novels, but are there other, similar ones?

 

Nothing else on Ringworld, but most of his books are under the heding of Known Space which is what Ringworld falls into as well. Protector was my first intro and for anyone who has never read Ringworld I recommend reading Protector first. There is also a short story collection called Tales of Known Space which features a Louis Wu story just before he celebrates his 200th birthday before the events in Ringworld. And the Man-Kzin Wars are all Known Space stories.

Protector is my favorite Niven book.

 

Ah, so there are other stories in the universe. Interesting. I know that there were some spinoffs on teh war, but not by him.

 

JT are you asking about other books in the "Known Space" Universe?

 

Yep

 

Pick Protector, Tales of Known Space, any Man/Kzin War books, and of course the Ringworld books, and you've got the best of Known Space.

Known Space

There is a complete list of both novels and short stories as well as a small overview of Known Space.

 

Yeah read that list, there are LOADS of books in Known Space. Most of Niven's work is in Known Space.

 

Anyone know of a chronology for the Known Space books?

 

This goes into way more depth than one can imagine... LOL!

 

I looked through that chronology to see if Seeker's age is given and it's not. I'm looking through google for hints but found a page of general comments in the meantime.

"The Ringworld has a simplicity of its own: the math is that of a suspension bridge with no endpoints. The Ringworld's engineers used robust and simple technology -- the Soviet space program. Everything I have written about the Ringworld since that first tale has touched on four simple, basic ideas:
One was to run a ribbon of strong material in an Earthlike orbit around a Sol-type sun, spin it for gravity, and terraform the inner surface.
The second was to introduce Teela Brown, the enigmatic woman bred for luck.
The third was to offer the notion that every symptom of aging in a human being is an aborted sign of a juvenile's attempt to reach its adult form: to become the Protector.
The fourth was to depict the human urge to play God"
- Larry Niven

Niven suggests that the impression of a Ringworld inhabitant would be that they are standing on a flat earth, with an arch rising overhead, and the sun supported beneath the apex of the arch. The apex of the arch would have an apparent width of 1/2 as wide as the sun, it being of the same width but twice as far away. The horizon would not curve significantly, and the actual curve would be upward, so you would be able to see very far (to the limits imposed by atmospheric haze). If you got up on a mountain you would be above most of that.

calculates that the energy involved in getting the Ringworld spin up to 770 miles per second is "1.6*1039 joules of kinetic energy. This is equal to the entire energy output of a Sunlike star for 130,000 years"

I would note here, that much energy is also 10 times the energy output of the galaxy in one second. If a Ringworld were built it would be put in motion as it went along, not built without any movement and then spun up once complete. At Earth's distance anything going along an Earth orbit is going to be moving at 18.5 miles per second along that orbit around a Sun-like star. You still have to spend an incredible amount of energy over thousands of years but having a giant jupiter-plus sized world at the right distance is helpful. Halos and Orbitals are more likely than Ringworlds.

 

The two Foundation sequels are actually very good. I recomend them.
I haven't read any of the prequels or the continuing stories, just the original trilogy, so I can't comment on those.

 

I actually have them, and just haven't gotten around to picking them up yet.

 

One of these days I will get around to reading the third and fourth Ringworld books.

 

In all honesty you could skip the third one. I'd say you could find yourself a detailed spoiler review and that would be enough if you think you might miss something.

 

Heh I never listen when people say that about books or albums or films. I like to make up my own mind.

 

Well that's never a bad idea.

Looking at the thread again I see a few pics went to red X's. Grrrrrrr. I really should get into imageshack or something.

 

I really wish that SciFi would get moving and start work on the miniseries that they're supposed to be working on.

 

I'd rather have a film.

 

The Scifi channel and a Ringworld miniseries. I don't think I like that unless it gets a tv quality as good as BSG.

 

I think that a film would be too short.

The SciFi channel has a decent record with miniseries events - BSG, the miniseries, Taken, Children of Dune, heck, even Earthsea had it's moments. I'd much rather see a miniseries, on the level of BSG, from the SciFi channel.

 

Even if I had a much larger tv I still would want to see Ringworld on the big screen. They are outdorrs most of the time, the view would be incredible. Not to mention the shots as they firt approach the Ringworld.

 

Naturally, Zoic (Battlestar, Firefly) should be incharge of the CGI.