Most Popular
1500 questions
43
votes
15 answers
Mosquito Assassin: What is the most deadly substance that can be injected into someone?
Designing an electronic 'mosquito' among my arsenal of 'bugs'. Some work as remote ears, others as eyes. This mosquito is the assassin. He can fly into a room and when he 'bites' someone can inject a small amount of liquid. What substance could…
bowlturner
- 49,161
- 5
- 104
- 238
43
votes
5 answers
20 years into the future - what would happen if the internet failed semi-permanently?
From 1995 to 2015 we have become heavily reliant on the internet for a lot of our everyday life. Skip ahead another 20 years and under the assumption that our society and technology keep evolving in a similar way to the past 20 years, we are now…
EverythingIsCake
- 449
- 4
- 6
43
votes
21 answers
Why are certain spaceships capable of warp at a moment's notice while others require some preparations?
After seeing an advert on my holo-watch about the latest fleet of interstellar spaceships capable of going into warp at the press of a button, I was both amazed and dumbfounded by it
Conventional warp requires onboard computer to sync with at least…
user6760
- 47,892
- 24
- 180
- 362
43
votes
6 answers
How big can a town get before everyone stops knowing everyone else?
In small towns, people often say that everyone knows everyone. While probably not literally true (for all but the smallest towns), the rate of interaction between members of the town is still high enough to create this perception.
The two main…
WhiskeyHammer
- 531
- 1
- 4
- 6
43
votes
10 answers
How many people are required for a healthy re-population of the Earth (Post-Apocalypse)?
In my particular Earth, much has remained after the human-killing virus, and nature is thriving - even taking over the cities. It's beautiful. But I have separated the healthy populace in orbit until it was safe to return.
In a near-future…
Mikey
- 17,382
- 5
- 44
- 107
43
votes
25 answers
How would travel classes be delimited in a world where teleportation is omnipresent?
The year is [Random number between 2100 and 3000], and Earth is now covered in a tight network of teleporters that have replaced all other modes of planetary travel. Only those wishing to travel to other planets and systems must embark on…
MedwedianPresident
- 6,305
- 4
- 30
- 57
43
votes
14 answers
How would predation work in an empathic universe?
In my world, there is a plane of existence whose laws of reality work differently than ours. In this plane, thoughts are not private. The boundaries between the mind and reality are slim, and thus every living creature’s thoughts are laid bare and…
Cobbington
- 2,723
- 1
- 13
- 28
43
votes
17 answers
Resources to justify long-distance space mining missions
Earth is setting up mining colonies on Tau Ceti e. But how can they justify the enormous cost of sending people there? ...Because during the initial exploratory missions, it was discovered that in addition to being human-habitable, the geology of…
Seth
- 3,745
- 1
- 20
- 35
43
votes
3 answers
How (un)likely is a split of one major river into two others?
I inherited a worldbuilding project, and the former authors liked some things that seem unrealistic. One of them is that one of the world's biggests rivers splits into two other rivers some 300-400 kms before reaching the sea, definitely before area…
Pavel V.
- 2,929
- 2
- 18
- 33
43
votes
9 answers
How much damage would a cupful of neutron star matter do to the Earth?
Suppose we used SCP-261, the vending machine that produces anything, and ask for a cup of neutron star. The machine instantaneously produces this.
Suppose also that the vending machine is located at a normal office building, not some underground…
Quadratic Wizard
- 934
- 8
- 12
43
votes
17 answers
For what reasons would an animal species NOT cross a *horizontal* land bridge?
In my worldbuilding project, 2 continents located on roughly the same latitude are connected by a land bridge. Both sides of the bridge are surrounded by a temperate grassland, and the lack of seasons means the climate is steady year round, so that…
Foosic17
- 1,266
- 9
- 16
43
votes
18 answers
City made of glass in a desert?
My world has a city of glass found along the outskirts of a desert. I decided on this because sand can become glass and so it was a huge resource that could be used for building. However, the concern has come up that it would bake the citizens…
Ril
- 351
- 1
- 3
- 5
43
votes
13 answers
Multiple "keys," multiple "doors". Any "key" fits any "door" but a "key" can only be used once. How could such mechanic be described lore-wise?
I am working on a souls-like game and I would like to have an item that works like Fragrant Branch of Yore from DS2.
I do not want to copy the concept of petrification from DS2 so while the item should work in a similar way I would like it to have…
MadCake - Reinstate Monica
- 1,091
- 2
- 9
- 14
43
votes
12 answers
What could possibly replace beer?
What is the malted liquor,
what makes you drunker quicker
what comes in bottles or in cans?
BEER!
In addition to being delicious, beer is ubiquitous. There is evidence of beer production almost as old as grain cultivation in the Middle East and in…
kingledion
- 85,387
- 29
- 283
- 483
43
votes
16 answers
What would be the pros and cons of a merged military and police?
What would be the pros and cons of a merged military and police?
In the world I am building war is an ongoing issue, and so the culture's military is quite extensive. Also the majority of people carry weapons around with them because it's 'the norm'…
Ajnatorix Zersolar
- 1,241
- 3
- 13
- 23