CARROLL%USC-ISIB@sri-unix.UUCP (12/12/83)
The use of the word parsec in ANH could be explained like this: There is a famous, well-traveled trade route between point A and point B. Along this "run" are many hazardous obstacles, perhaps asteroids, black holes, radiation fields, or boogey men. Most pilots avoid the worst of these and take a relatively safe course. Some intrepid spacers, though, plow right through the center of these dangers, which makes for a shorter (and therefore faster) run. The motivation for this is a handsome bonus for the pilot if he survives and delivers his cargo ahead of schedule. Solo, possessing greed instead of sense, is one of the few to have made the more dangerous but shorter trip. His claim to Ben elicited a condescending look not because he had used incorrect terminology, but because it was just too incredible to believe. The trade route in question was measured in distance, not time. ***** But why bother worrying about such things? Scriptwriters use terms that "sound" scientific, but may be all wrong. ***But who says they ARE wrong? Maybe in the SW universe the word parsec DOES refer to time, and maybe in the Battlestar Galactica colonial language, the micron is a measure of time as well.*** True, scientific correctness is nice, but little things like these don't bother me, if the film isn't serious anyway, and especially if they can be explained, as above. Steve (carroll@isib) -------