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Ragnarok:
I figure, with the diverse types and sheer number of people on this forum, that we are collectively knowledgeable in just about everything. So, why not put it to good use?

This thread is intended to offer answers to questions about characters, physics, events, historical problems, math, etc., etc., that might come up as questions during your writing of a work of fiction. As Forumites, we can provide answers, especially in subjects where Google fails to deliver.

As this thread (hopefully) grows, I will modify this post with questions that have already been answered, spoilered by category.

Threads devoted to writing:
SSSS Scriptorium
A Redtail's Dream Scriptorium
Forum Scriptorium
Writer's Corner

If you have resources to contribute, please post stating them...

Spoiler: users and knowledgeable types • showSpoiler: Ragnarok • show
I have moderate knowledge of medieval and Renaissance-era tactics, gunpowder weaponry, WWII-era history, as well as in-depth knowledge of Roman Republican and early-Imperial history. Plus basic understandings in genetics and biological sciences. For fanon and canon, I know quite a bit about the following franchises: One Piece, Fullmetal Alchemist, ASoIaF, the Walking Dead (comics only), SSSS fanon (mostly speculative surviving communities in the Alps and Russia), Worm, Mass Effect, Halo, and Fallout.
Spoiler: Lazy8 • show
The resources I have to contribute are expertise in physics in general and astrophysics in particular (Ph.D.), and martial arts (3rd degree black belt TKD, no weapons training though). Watching anime with me can be either hilarious or excruciating, depending on your disposition.
Spoiler: Roisin • show
I can probably help with questions about food and cooking, folklore, wilderness and wilderness craft, wild food and foraging, archery and sword work. And maybe a bit with poetry.

Spoiler: MR_PLINKETT • show
I'm the local survivalist and weapons expert. Need any questions about that kind of stuff and I'm your man.

Spoiler: Luth Nightbreeze • show
As far as fanfic resources go, I have a railway and road map of Denmark and a map of notable sights in Copenhagen from an old book if anybody needs them. (They're pretty high resolution, so you can zoom in on them if you need) Also, a possibly useful article on pagan Finnish mythology/religion.
Spoiler: Maps • show
 

Spoiler: Links to larger versions of the maps • show
The Copenhagen Sights map
The Road & Railway map




We ask that you consult the already-answered questions beforehand.
Spoiler: answered questions • showSpoiler: real life • show
Q: Chemical composition of stab-proof vest?
A: Provided by JoB

There is no such thing as a stab- or bullet-proof vest. The material of choice is still Kevlar, because of its main characteristic, "its high tensile strength-to-weight ratio", as Wikipedia puts it. The projectile starts to push the Kevlar into the soft target a.k.a. human body, the Kevlar fibers' tensile strength prevents them from ripping, so Kevlar outside the projectile's path is pulled to press into the target. Net result: The projectile's kinetic energy gets distributed over a much larger area of the body's surface, which (hopefully) prevents the whole mess from puncturing the body.

Q: Does advanced armor exist now (or of the 20 minutes into the future variety) that could stop swords and arrows while being lighter than plate armor?
A: Provided by JoB
The ways for a firearm, or, more precisely, its projectile, to overcome a Kevlar vest are a) smaller caliber / tip and/or higher kinetic energy, and b) - to an extent - coatings that facilitate the projectile's slipping through the mesh of Kevlar fibers. (Don't put too much money on the latter. Oh, and I guess c) explosive charges are officially a viable method, too.) At some point, deflecting such a "brute force" bullet will need so many layers of Kevlar as to make the "vest" fail as clothing, or it just fails to distribute the projectile's energy over enough of an area to make the impact sufficiently harmless.
Swords and arrows are much slower but weigh more than most bullets, so, for them, a Kevlar vest's failure mode is typically the equivalent of b), the projectile slipping through between the Kevlar fibers.
As you can see, in both cases, it's not the primary property of Kevlar, its tensile strength, coming to a limit, but some secondary property. Which makes it debatable whether it's the very material that's the cause of failure, or whether discovering some stuff with (say) 10% more tensile strength per volume/weight would promise to yield a 10% improvement of protection.


Spoiler: SSSS • show
Q: How much ammo did the crew pack?
A: Provided by JoB
Unknown. Their official equipment was already in crates etc. and most of those already loaded into the tank when we first saw it, and apart from the candle crate and the two crates delivered by Túnfiskurinn, we never saw them being opened. There were several large upright cylinders of Emil-glee, supposedly containing flamethrower fuel, but otherwise, no information beyond "well, it did fit into the tank".

LooNEY_DAC:
So, why not have links to the three Scriptoria, the Writer's Corner, and/or a few others in the first post?

Ragnarok:

--- Quote from: LooNEY_DAC on December 04, 2016, 06:03:55 PM ---So, why not have links to the three Scriptoria, the Writer's Corner, and/or a few others in the first post?

--- End quote ---

Three? I know of only two...hrrm.

LooNEY_DAC:

--- Quote from: Ragnarok on December 04, 2016, 07:01:48 PM ---Three? I know of only two...hrrm.

--- End quote ---
There's one on the aRTD Board.

Ragnarok:

--- Quote from: LooNEY_DAC on December 04, 2016, 07:03:22 PM ---There's one on the aRTD Board.

--- End quote ---

*dope slaps self*

All linked now.

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