History Headscratchers / AvatarTheLastAirbenderFailureOfScienceForever

* The oddly inconspicuous lack of any form of firearms. The Fire military's transportation is steamships, airships, and tanks, circa UsefulNotes/WorldWarOne. Their artillery, on the other hand, is arrows, catapults, and spears from TheDungAges. Seems as good an example of SchizoTech as any until you realize that there is in fact evidence of gunpowder in the show. You can see fireworks in "The Deserter" and explosives in "Siege of the North". So what reason would these people have not to be using cannons and muskets and bayonets? All of which predate steamships and tankS, by the way.

*** Actually, lava isn't fire and earth, it's just earth. Really, really, hot earth.

** Basically, as I understand it, Toph can sense the basic shapes of people so long as they're on the ground. So she can sense Katara's basic shape and maybe even the outline of her clothes, but physical details like Katara's eye color or Aang's arrow tattoos, or Zuko's scars will be completely lost on her unless informed of it. She can see through solid earth, even if they're in the air. However, if the earth isn't solid enough (ie, the planks over the water and the sand), Toph is basically blind in every way possible until her feet smacks into solid wood.

* Basically, as I understand it, Toph can sense the basic shapes of people so long as they're on the ground. So she can sense Katara's basic shape and maybe even the outline of her clothes, but physical details like Katara's eye color or Aang's arrow tattoos, or Zuko's scars will be completely lost on her unless informed of it. She can see through solid earth, even if they're in the air. However, if the earth isn't solid enough (ie, the planks over the water and the sand), Toph is basically blind in every way possible until her feet smacks into solid wood.

* The oddly inconspicuous lack of any form of firearms. The Fire military's transportation is steamships, airships, and tanks, circa UsefulNotes/WorldWarOne. Their artillery, on the other hand, is arrows, catapults, and spears from TheDungAges. Seems as good an example of SchizoTech as any until you realize that there is in fact evidence of gunpowder in the show. You can see fireworks in "The Deserter" and explosives in "Siege of the North". So what reason would these people have not to be using cannons and muskets and bayonets? All of which predate steamships and tanks, by the way.

** Traditionally, lightning is a mix between fire and air, like mist is air + water or lava is fire + earth. If you think about it; theoretically, airbenders should be able to lightningbend as well.

** Sugar is a combination of water and Co
both can be found in the air. For the energy source, perhaps photosynthesis (which allows you to store them by keeping it in the dark) or chi (which explains why it works by putting it on people).

** Sugar is a combination of water and Co
, both can be found in the air. For the energy source, perhaps photosynthesis (which allows you to store them by keeping it in the dark) or chi (which explains why it works by putting it on people).

* The oddly inconspicuous lack of any form of firearms. The Fire military's transportation is steamships, airships, and tanks, circa WorldWarOne. Their artillery, on the other hand, is arrows, catapults, and spears from TheDungAges. Seems as good an example of SchizoTech as any until you realize that there is in fact evidence of gunpowder in the show. You can see fireworks in "The Deserter" and explosives in "Siege of the North". So what reason would these people have not to be using cannons and muskets and bayonets? All of which predate steamships and tanks, by the way.

*** Weapons (even the more advanced ones) are not necessarily superior to bending. Also, bending is typically only used for close combat; firearms are long-range weapons so the strengths of the two don't really overlap much.

*** Good point, but this war has been dragging on for a century now. At this point, would they still put personal pride in bending over utilizing the military potential of physical weapons?
*** Weapons (even the more advanced ones) are not necessarily superior to bending. Also, bending is typically only used for close combat; firearms are long-range weapons so the strengths of the to don't overlap much.

*** The world is a bending-based aristocracy. Bending is seen as a gift and a privilege--so those rulers who put themselves above those without Bending aren't going to fund or encourage things that would let "ordinary" people pull off the same kinds of feats they can. It's like in the last book of ''Literature/CodexAlera'', when everyone realizes the catapults and fire orbs are capable of outdoing the High Lords in outright destruction, and that alone is going to severely shift the whole societal paradigm.
**** Good point, but note that this war has been dragging on for a century now. At this point, would they still put personal pride in bending over utilizing the potential all the non-bender soldiers have with physical weapons?

*** That still doesn't cover the non-bender soldiers, the archers, or why the ships have catapults mounted on them as opposed to the smaller and more efficient cannons, though. Moreover, given the Fire Nation's industries guns would be easier to mass-produce than bows, and FireBalls in the show are not shown to be very effective as long-range weapons-- not to mention they are very conspicuous, not extremely fast, and therefore quite easy to dodge. Additionally, Firebending might actually make guns faster to load and fire because then you wouldn't have fumble with a match and fuse.

*** That still doesn't cover the non-bender soldiers, the archers, or why the ships have catapults mounted on them as opposed to the smaller and more efficient cannons, though. Moreover, given the Fire Nation's industries guns would be easier to mass-produce than bows, and FireBalls in the show are not shown to be very effective as long-range weapons. Additionally, Firebending might actually make guns faster to load and fire because then you wouldn't have fumble with a match and fuse.

*** That still doesn't cover the non-bender soldiers, the archers, or why the ships have catapults mounted on them as opposed to the smaller and more efficient cannons, though. Moreover, given the Fire Nation's industries guns would be easier to mass-produce than bows, and FireBalls in the show are not shown to be very effective as long-range weapons. Additionally, Firebending might actually make guns faster to load because then you wouldn't have fumble with a match and fuse.

*** That still doesn't cover the non-bender soldiers, the archers, or why the ships have catapults mounted on them as opposed to the smaller and more efficient cannons, though. Moreover, given the Fire Nation's industries guns would be easier to mass-produce than bows, and FireBalls in the show are not shown to be very effective as long-range weapons.

*** That doesn't cover the non-bender soldiers, the archers, or why the ships have catapults mounted on them as opposed to the more efficient cannons, though. Moreover, guns are less conspicuous than both bows and FireBalls.

** It's been established that Toph can see anything that is touching the earth. Anything that isn't touching the earth, she is unable to see. When she's blocking rocks and stuff, she's not reacting to the rock as much as she's reacting to the person making a throwing motion at her (In most cases, she's blocking earthbending stances, which she knows enough about). It just so happens that those people tend to be ''standing on the ground'' when they do so. How does she block Mai's daggers? Her sense is so refined that she can "see" ants from a good distance away. She can ""see" the knife leaving Mai's sleeve. How does she punch people? She sees their [[http://piandao.org/screencaps/ep26/ep26-470.png whole]] [[http://piandao.org/screencaps/ep26/ep26-1436.png bodies]]. And she could likely dodge a punch so long as the guy's standing on the ground. As for the bugs, she can certainly hear where they are, but by the time she chucks a rock, it moves, and in any possible direction, which she can't predict because it's not touching the ground.

* How exactly can firebenders create lightning? Lightning is just electricity--there's no fire in it. Are firebenders also
electricity benders?
** I myself thought it was because fire, lightning and the sun are all in the same high-energy state of matter, plasma.

electricity benders?