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It was a necessary point in the world building of Dune. Frank Herbert needed his world to not have AI or human like robots. He explored alternatives: human comp

It was a necessary point in the world building of Dune. Frank Herbert needed his world to not have AI or human like robots. He explored alternatives: human computers via Mentats, and Terminator like infiltrators via facedancers. Dune takes a fantasy like approach to technology. There are no lasers, because they would cause a nuclear reaction. There are no robots, because of their past uprising. This was a neat way to tie loose ends and sustain the universe. Brilliant.

alexjplant 4y ago
> Dune takes a fantasy like approach to technology. This is why I love Dune and how I describe it to people that aren't familiar with it; the world-building splits the difference perfectly.
keyle 4y ago
Yeah there is something in the world building of Frank Herbert that never leaves you when you've read the entire series. I also like that there are implied abuse of the Bulterian bible later in the series... The stuff going on on Ix and the Tleilaxus' interpretation of the code.
paranoidrobot 4y ago
> There are no lasers, It's been a long while since I read the books, but I watched the 2021 movie* more recently. If not lasers, what were the beams emitted by the space ships, and the portable beam weapon the Sardaukar soldiers when attacking the outpost? Or is that something the movie added?
- Slow_Hand 4y ago
  Lasers do exist in the story, but they're not widely used in warfare because when a laser makes contact with a holtzmann shield (the personal shields that all of the characters employ) it causes a nuclear reaction that annihilates both parties and everyone in a large radius. This makes them extremely risky to use. There's a great moment in the book where a character sets a trap by engaging a shield and fleeing the area before an errant enemy laser eventually connects with it and creates a massive explosion to cripple the invading forces. With that in mind the careless use of lasers in the film on two occasions is puzzling considering that it would be an extremely risky and dangerous tactic in the book's universe.
  - euroderf 4y ago
    All this implies that shields and/or "lasers" employ massive amounts of energy. Yet both are man-portable. What gives ?
    - wordyskeleton 4y ago
      big worm on sand planet make spice that give prophetic ability. yet this is not how worms work. what gives?
  - david38 4y ago
    This happens towards the end of Dune. It forces the Sardukar to proceed with extreme caution. Lasers also attract worms with such intensity they cross territorial boundaries. A brilliant way to say “yea, they exist, but not really” like the nuclear weapons of today.
- mecha_ghidorah 4y ago
  Just to expand upon what other people have said not only does it cause a big explosion which usually kills whoever is firing the laser it also looks almost indistinguishable from atomic weapons, which are considered a war crime in the Dune universe. Essentially all the major powers have signed an agreement to all hang up and nuke anyone who nukes anyone. This means lasers aren't even a good suicide attack strategy because it may lead to your entire house being glassed

alexjplant 4y ago

> Dune takes a fantasy like approach to technology. This is why I love Dune and how I describe it to people that aren't familiar with it; the world-building splits the difference perfectly.

keyle 4y ago

Yeah there is something in the world building of Frank Herbert that never leaves you when you've read the entire series. I also like that there are implied abuse of the Bulterian bible later in the series... The stuff going on on Ix and the Tleilaxus' interpretation of the code.

paranoidrobot 4y ago

> There are no lasers, It's been a long while since I read the books, but I watched the 2021 movie* more recently. If not lasers, what were the beams emitted by the space ships, and the portable beam weapon the Sardaukar soldiers when attacking the outpost? Or is that something the movie added?

Slow_Hand 4y ago
Lasers do exist in the story, but they're not widely used in warfare because when a laser makes contact with a holtzmann shield (the personal shields that all of the characters employ) it causes a nuclear reaction that annihilates both parties and everyone in a large radius. This makes them extremely risky to use. There's a great moment in the book where a character sets a trap by engaging a shield and fleeing the area before an errant enemy laser eventually connects with it and creates a massive explosion to cripple the invading forces. With that in mind the careless use of lasers in the film on two occasions is puzzling considering that it would be an extremely risky and dangerous tactic in the book's universe.
- euroderf 4y ago
  All this implies that shields and/or "lasers" employ massive amounts of energy. Yet both are man-portable. What gives ?
  - wordyskeleton 4y ago
    big worm on sand planet make spice that give prophetic ability. yet this is not how worms work. what gives?
- david38 4y ago
  This happens towards the end of Dune. It forces the Sardukar to proceed with extreme caution. Lasers also attract worms with such intensity they cross territorial boundaries. A brilliant way to say “yea, they exist, but not really” like the nuclear weapons of today.
mecha_ghidorah 4y ago
Just to expand upon what other people have said not only does it cause a big explosion which usually kills whoever is firing the laser it also looks almost indistinguishable from atomic weapons, which are considered a war crime in the Dune universe. Essentially all the major powers have signed an agreement to all hang up and nuke anyone who nukes anyone. This means lasers aren't even a good suicide attack strategy because it may lead to your entire house being glassed