The most baffling scientific inaccuracy you've seen in fiction?

Past the even horizion, all paths lead to crush.

Or another dimension. ;P

Anyway, in Pacific Rim, they mentioned the "two brains" myth.

I thought you were gonna going on about the idea of their being a left brain right brain separate for the control of the jaegers.

Which is real[1], but doesn't split into the idea of their being logical 'left brained' and artistic 'right brained' people like everyone seems to believe.

Of course everything else in that movie is totally scientifically accurate.

edited 23rd Aug '13 8:03:37 PM by joeyjojo

I noticed that myself, actually. Thought it was rather amusing.

But anyway, this probably isn't the most baffling I have seen, nor is it especially scientific, but there was one error in the Jurassic Park novel that I have always found rather amusing in its inaccuracy. Now bear in mind, it's been some time since I have read the book, and I have the memory capacity of a floppy disk, so forgive me if I recall this wrong.

But anyway, when Muldoon and company are fleeing from the raptors, they end up running into one in a hallway. Muldoon has a rocket launcher (as the novel describes it anyway) and fires at the raptor. Job done, everyone's fine, except the raptor who has been blown to smithereens.

Really, if you fire a rocket launcher like that in an enclosed space, you're asking for a case of tinnitus at best, blown ear drums, disorientation and even suffocation at worst. And considering how narrow the hallway evidently is (this being a situation where the characters can't just get away from the raptor by ducking somewhere else), someone in the group of survivors had to be standing behind him.

Well, that was true when Crichton wrote the original novel. Firing a LAW-66 or a RPG-7 in an confined space will do the damage you said, no doubt about it. But, as my title under my badass Slytherin avatar says, "War ALWAYS changes."

Meet the AT-4 CS

http://www.saabgroup.com/Land/Weapon-Systems/support-weapons/AT4_Anti_Armour_Weapon/AT4_CS_AST_Anti-Structure_Weapon/

Which is designed to be fired from within closed spaces, if the tactical situation demands it. Saw it on Future Weapons a few years ago.

My recollection is that the weapons in the novel were kind of futuristic anyway. I don't remember for sure either but I think some of the weapons they used were made up.

I really should re-read that book...

It's good and good for you.

In Bee Movie, the bees of the world get pissed at us and decide to stop pollinating flowers. Of course, this isn't good for the vegetation. But at the end, when a compromise is struck and the bees start pollinating again, the grey, seemingly dead plants instantly spring back to life and colour when pollen is dropped on them! It's like a dead woman waking up after being splashed in the face with a bucket of - [NUNNERY'D]

If that worked I would of [[RETRACTED]]

I do. Huehuehuehue

Although if you wanna know the honest to god truth, the best way to explain vampirism is either to make them their own unique species which possesses a large degree of regenerative ability, or that vampirism is spread via some kind of parasite.