Author Topic: EP415: The Nightmare Lights of Mars  (Read 13604 times)

eytanz

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Reply #25 on: November 01, 2013, 06:15:46 PM
I kept having moments in the story where I had to say, "Wait, what?"--like how does a heavily oxygenated zone help plants grow?  They don't breathe O2, they breathe CO2

Plants don't breathe CO2, they breathe O2. They photosynthesize CO2 into O2, which they then breathe (letting out more CO2 in the process). In most places on Earth, there is sufficient sunlight so that overall, plants produce a lot more O2, and consume a lot more CO2, than vice-versa, but they actually are engaged in both processes. Potentially, if there is less sunlight available to plants on Mars, they would need more O2 to be supplied than CO2.

So I think the story's thinking is - in order to achieve a normal growth rate, the plants on Mars need extra O2. That extra O2 then has unintended results on insects.



Unblinking

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Reply #26 on: November 04, 2013, 05:31:32 PM
I kept having moments in the story where I had to say, "Wait, what?"--like how does a heavily oxygenated zone help plants grow?  They don't breathe O2, they breathe CO2

Plants don't breathe CO2, they breathe O2. They photosynthesize CO2 into O2, which they then breathe (letting out more CO2 in the process). In most places on Earth, there is sufficient sunlight so that overall, plants produce a lot more O2, and consume a lot more CO2, than vice-versa, but they actually are engaged in both processes. Potentially, if there is less sunlight available to plants on Mars, they would need more O2 to be supplied than CO2.

So I think the story's thinking is - in order to achieve a normal growth rate, the plants on Mars need extra O2. That extra O2 then has unintended results on insects.

Really?

Huh.  I guess I don't know much about the natural sciences.  My admittedly grade school level of knowledge has failed me.  My understanding was that animals breathe in O2 and exhale CO2 and that plants did the opposite.

So, nevermind on that complaint.



CryptoMe

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Reply #27 on: March 23, 2014, 06:21:06 PM
Not too sure I liked this story. As others have said, the main character was a doormat, so I didn't like that. Then the sudden Psuedopod twist at the end didn't endear the story to me, either. So, I guess I didn't like it.



hardware

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Reply #28 on: March 27, 2014, 09:21:13 AM
OK, now I read multiple instances of complaints that the main character was 'weak' or 'a doormat', and that was a problem for sympathizing ? I tend to sympathize with the weak and abused, but maybe that is just me. But maybe that is just a side effect of needing to identify with a character, I usually don't really need that. Well, that aside, I found quite some things to like about this story, including the wicked ending and the throwback 50 B-movie style monsters.   



Unblinking

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Reply #29 on: March 27, 2014, 01:54:00 PM
OK, now I read multiple instances of complaints that the main character was 'weak' or 'a doormat', and that was a problem for sympathizing ? I tend to sympathize with the weak and abused, but maybe that is just me.  

I don't necessarily have trouble sympathizing with weak or abused characters in general.  The problem comes, to me, when I feel like the person is having no effect to drive their fate, even when they can and should have had some effect on their fate.  At some point they just kind of come off as more of stage dressing than an actor on the stage--like playing an immobile rock in a children's play.



CryptoMe

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Reply #30 on: March 29, 2014, 03:39:40 PM
I wish there was a like button for what Unblinking just said.

Trying out the forum mobile app here, so please forgive my mistakes and I can't figure out how to quote...