One of the things that bothers me about every science fiction show involving travel to other worlds, star systems and galaxies is this: Why doesn't a visit to another world result in massive epidemics and die-offs for both the visitors and the visited?
The settlement (or invasion) of the Americas by Europeans resulted in deadly disease exchanges. Syphilis went from the New World to the Old World and smallpox went from the Old World to the New World. Larger species also crossed oceans, from plants such as tobacco and potatoes to earthworms, honeybees, and domesticated animals. All resulted in effects far more significant than the importers suspected. Starlings, Asian longhorn beetles, fire ants, Africanized honeybees, snakehead fish, rabbits, zebra mussels, kudzu, pythons, the list goes on and on of species from one part of the planet which have found fertile territory in other parts of the planet were there are few natural enemies.
So what happens when explorers with a slight cold land on another world? What is a minor and unremarked illness to us could devastate the creatures of another planet, and it could easily work the other way.
If humans ever meet another intelligent species, both sides may be strongly advised to limit contact to electronic contact by radio links. Wireless may be the only way to go.
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Maybe that's why they call it science fiction?
More seriously, I'm driven bats with sound effects in a vacuum, and spaceships that stop when thrust is terminated. And so-called science programs that refer to the far side of the moon as 'the dark side'.
O yes Dennis and "there is no dark side of the moon, really".
There are ways to go here, either alien biology is so alien there is no infection risk ( DNA? What's DNA? )
... or, panspermia, there is a local group biology and we should be nervous about infection. I don't know. Maybe caution is in order.
*cough*
*cough
Ok, I'd read rebuttals to the alien infection debate, took a while to track one down.
Look here
http://impearls.blogspot.com/2003_06_29_archive.html#105716636110173485
Dennis
Sarah
Not sure you got my 'dark side of the moon' complaint. Yes, there's a dark side, but it's on the side away from the sun, not necessarily the side away from earth.
An early episode of Stargate SG-1 mentioned the idea. It was called One False Step.
Since the Stargate series was set in contemporary times, it often had story elements that involved infection of Earth by alien bugs or vice versa.
As for movies, you'd have to go back quite a few years to find a science fiction movie that paid the slightest attention to scientific realities. I think it was Contact, but there may have been one more recently that's slipped my mind.
An alien's DNA will be even less compatible with human DNA than a salamander's. I am not aware of any diseases that have managed to leap from salamanders to human beings or vice versa.
As for the notion that the film Contact paid attention to scientific realities, while it did pay attention to the mental realities of scientists and what makes them tick, the actual science of the movie was purest handwavium.
- Badtux the Scientific Penguin
I can only think of one SF film that didn't have sounds in a vacuum: 2001, a Space Odyssey.
@Dennis: Of course I understand your "dark side of the moon" complaint. Did you get my Pink Floyd reference? :)
What's interesting to me is the panspermia aspect of viral infection. Virusessesss (you pluralize it!) are weird non-cellular bits - already quite alien - that I can imagine drifting across interstellar space. To wreak havok quite accidentally with completely foreign biologies.
SciFi in movies is usually quite bad, with of course the exception of the best ever made, "2001". "Contact" was nice & cosmic and had Jodie Foster going for it so I liked it.
Speaking of 2001 ... I still remember my first viewing in 1968 at the Cooper. It was incredible. They had quite the sound system too, which is required for this film.
I'd pay good money and go a long way to see a 70mm Cinerama showing. For old times sake. Sigh. Nostalgia ain't what it used to be.
Sarah,
You got me on the Pink Floyd ref, shame on me.
My dad took me to see It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World in Cinerama. I still can't pass up watching that film.
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