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that's always been an issue in sci-fi. They're all basically either literal ships that do not have a regular uncovered deck and merely mirror the bottom of the

that's always been an issue in sci-fi. They're all basically either literal ships that do not have a regular uncovered deck and merely mirror the bottom of the ship, or airplane/fighter jets, and finally, submarine-type vessels. Once in a while, we throw a sphere in there, that's it. It's really boring, and yeah, you're completely right. If you look at the picture, it's just a bunch of same looking ships aiming right. That's it.

yk 13y ago
The funny thing is, that the Borg cube is quite exceptional. Even though it would be a rather logical ship design.
Tloewald 13y ago
When Iain Banks discusses the appearance of Culture ships he tends to describe them as being very boring -- a cylinder with a flattened area or whatever. This is a little odd because of all the major SF settings, the Culture has the least trouble making spacecraft and could presumably shape them any way it pleases. Arthur C. Clarke's "Discovery" is a shielded sphere joined to nuclear propulsion systems by a long shaft -- seems pretty plausible to me. "Realistic" spacecraft are probably going to look very utilitarian until/if space travel becomes technically easy and safe. The vast majority of aircraft look pretty much alike for similar reasons.
- marssaxman 13y ago
  It depends on what you consider to be the surface of the ship - Culture ships don't have rigid hulls, so the ellipsoid shape is really just the surface of its field envelope; the outline of its atmosphere, more or less. Presumably the physical structure inside is far more complex.
  - Tloewald 13y ago
    Sure, but the ships are still described as having very uninteresting appearances. Now where do i remember your name from?
jonnathanson 13y ago
That's where I give Star Trek a lot of credit. There is an internal consistency of design within that universe, and it doesn't feel totally arbitrary. For example, the "warp nacelle" concept is fundamental to that universe, and at least until the newer series, it was maintained across a lot of different cultures' ships. You could tell that some thought went into the design, as opposed to just "Hey, taking a giant submarine and sticking it in space would look cool!" In fact, Star Trek uses the warp drive as a technological benchmark by which all species and cultures are measured. Are there other methods of hyperspeed travel? Eventually, yes, those are revealed. But they are still compared to the warp theory.

yk 13y ago

The funny thing is, that the Borg cube is quite exceptional. Even though it would be a rather logical ship design.

Tloewald 13y ago

When Iain Banks discusses the appearance of Culture ships he tends to describe them as being very boring -- a cylinder with a flattened area or whatever. This is a little odd because of all the major SF settings, the Culture has the least trouble making spacecraft and could presumably shape them any way it pleases. Arthur C. Clarke's "Discovery" is a shielded sphere joined to nuclear propulsion systems by a long shaft -- seems pretty plausible to me. "Realistic" spacecraft are probably going to look very utilitarian until/if space travel becomes technically easy and safe. The vast majority of aircraft look pretty much alike for similar reasons.

marssaxman 13y ago
It depends on what you consider to be the surface of the ship - Culture ships don't have rigid hulls, so the ellipsoid shape is really just the surface of its field envelope; the outline of its atmosphere, more or less. Presumably the physical structure inside is far more complex.
- Tloewald 13y ago
  Sure, but the ships are still described as having very uninteresting appearances. Now where do i remember your name from?

jonnathanson 13y ago

That's where I give Star Trek a lot of credit. There is an internal consistency of design within that universe, and it doesn't feel totally arbitrary. For example, the "warp nacelle" concept is fundamental to that universe, and at least until the newer series, it was maintained across a lot of different cultures' ships. You could tell that some thought went into the design, as opposed to just "Hey, taking a giant submarine and sticking it in space would look cool!" In fact, Star Trek uses the warp drive as a technological benchmark by which all species and cultures are measured. Are there other methods of hyperspeed travel? Eventually, yes, those are revealed. But they are still compared to the warp theory.