Hidden Maintenance Costs

Alistair Young

Apr 6, 2020 — 1 min read

“This year’s work list at Planetary Management: Redirect an estimated dozen hurricanes. Lance a supervolcano. Perform injection lubrication of five fault lines for controlled tectonic stress release. Reinforce the bedrock of a major regional aquifer. And orchestrate a thousand-year river channel shift.”

“Why are you even reading that?”

“Reminding my mother-in-law that while space may be trying to kill us all the time, at least it doesn’t do so by surprise.”

– overheard on Sulavé Station, Istelrith (High Verge)

(Because when talking about the maintenance needed to prevent your space colony from killing people in droves, no-one talks about that needed to stop your planet from doing the same. Status quo bias much.

Speaking of maintenance, incidentally, my 3D printer still needs some, by which I mean replacement. Help a broke author out?)

planetary management, Sulavé Station, Istelrith (High Verge), spacer

← The Calmiríë Chthonic Railway | Every Story Involving Fully Mature Ontotechnology, a Collection in One Part →

Shipshape

I saw this picture today, via an Astral Codex Ten post on distinguishing human art from AI art, but that is not the context in which I reference it: Instead, I merely point out that it would be an accurate representation of what the Royal Alatian (later Imperial) Navy would

My To-Fu Is Stronger Than Yours

Pressed bean curds are a common item in many Eliéran cuisines, in recipes both savory and sweet. I refer to them using this long description since, despite being identical in many ways and produced from the same small group of plants, they are one of the very few foodstuffs to

Crazy Eddie

As a brief cultural note, today, I happened to be looking something up on the Atomic Rockets Future Mythology page, and was reminded of Crazy Eddie. (The one from Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle's The Mote in God's Eye, obviously. Even if, sad to say, that

Plumbing the Depths (2)

The DEEP STAR PROGRAM WANTS YOU To Make A New Life Around A New Star! Following the successful launches of our first three interstellar colony ships, we are preparing two more for launch in 3036, and we are still recruiting both colonists and crew for Destiny Ascendant. Destiny Ascendant is

Read more

Shipshape

My To-Fu Is Stronger Than Yours

Crazy Eddie

Plumbing the Depths (2)