Posted on 03/18/2019 11:59:35 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
For use on earth, I agree.
For use in space, the materials have the huge advantage of already being there.
This particular planet would have enormous gravity, but iron would not be the prize. Heavier elements should also be present -- gold, uranium, platinum, etc.
I’m reminded of the TIME LIFE book EARLY MAN from the 1960s. First chapter, they show the many layers in the earth, and poo-poo the Bible believers saying the earth, before man, went through many catastrophies, creating the layers.
Then the scientists claimed the layers were put down naturally, and the word Naturalism was coined.
You believed in Naturalism OR ELSE you would be given a poor grade in science class.
Then came the astronomy findings of light “Phase shifts” of galaxies (far far away) giving rise to a new idea on how the world...The Big Bang, CATASTROPHISM, and a violent earth formed the layers!
Natural Catastrophism forming the earth is now “IN’.
Now where have I heard that word before...back when it was a “bad” word in science class...
Maybe, but I think Tabby's Star is a just a giant litterbox that has been constructed and used by our future extraterrestrial cat overlords.
I've often considered that he should have titled it "Worlds In Rendezvous".
1000^3... yeah, time to build Ringworld.
What’s the total mass of iron?
Then work backwards to get the mass of hydrogen which must’ve fused to create it; then can we get an estimate of the mass of the star which originally created that planet?
Where's Nicholas van Rijn?
So Velikovsky was right, just had the wrong solar system.
:^) Different gig, right solar system.
I read the Wiki summary. That's quite a story.
The author, Larry Niven, liked the idea so much he wrote EIGHT more books about it!
I think I only read the first two, "Ringworld" and "Ringworld Engineers". The second one was in part inspired by an anecdote Niven cited, some engineering convention, a bunch of engineers started chanting, "the Ringworld is Unstable". :^) Geeks. The rest of the novels may be related the Kzin, the ferocious sentient (well, half-sentient) species of cats. His original ringworld concept grew out of the notion of Dyson's Sphere.
Whoa, that's a pretty good Wikipedia page! I've rarely read fiction since, well, since reading those first two Ringworld novels (I read the first one in 1984, borrowing it from a brother-in-law). If you opt to read 'em, you're in for a treat, they're really quite funny, and I have fond memories of the quite imaginary Teela Brown, and "the luck of Teela Brown!" Niven had a knack for making the ridiculous made-up crap common to sci-fi seem plausible via misdirection and humor.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.