I can't bring myself to have any strong feelings for this article one way or another. I don't hate it but I just don't like it. Neutralvote
A Switch and a Conundrum / Discussion
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the incapacitated guard regained consciousness quickly enough to terminate all 3 researchers and Helm.
I'd change this to be immobilization, or sedation or something, because otherwise it doesn't make sense for 4 other people to try again to do it.
other than that: by far best entry. lterally fFUCKING JIZZED TO IT HOLU FU i think it should win by a long mile
>lterally fFUCKING JIZZED TO IT HOLU FU
Explain
Currently my favorite article out of the contest entries I have read so far. I love the conflict generated over a switch that could end the universe, or simply 'flick' and nothing happens.
There are some grammar and formatting issues, and I think the logic could be better.
It's kind of ridiculous to assume this would destroy the whole universe. Similar to vacuum decay, I think it would travel from the origin at the speed of light, meaning it would only get so far before it reaches the bounds of space where space is expanding faster than the speed of light. It would still annihilate Earth instantly but I don't think it would get past the cosmological local group.
Second thing: the infinity force bit is too cartoony for me. It would feel more like a real possibility if it was a ridiculously high number. Hell, you could just say the switch would release a Higgs Boson particle with enough force to bring it to its max equilibrium, triggering vacuum decay. If you want the switch to be cartoony with the infinity thing, then a researcher needs to acknowledge that in the debate with another countering that it's an anomaly and anomalies don't always abide by physical laws.
Minor nitpick but the two Site Directors names starting with R and being about the same length caused me to confuse the two of them once. It might be worth changing one of them.
Another nitpick: It seems really weird that no one tried to stop the dude from pressing the switch right before containment teams arrived.
It seems really weird and unjustified that people were trying to break its containment to flip the switch. Maybe if there was another conversation recording where people debate whether or not they should attempt to break its containment would work well as a lead-up so it doesn't feel so random and out of character for Authority personnel. I could see some personnel from a financial department arguing that the amount of money being funneled into the containment systems was ridiculous, and another believing the funding was cut from the RPC he was working to contain, which posed an actual threat toward the personnel. They would talk about it and feedback loop until risking their jobs to break into the containment doesn't seem like such a crazy stupid idea—it'd be for the greater good and protection of the other personnel, after all.
I think I'm going to neutral-vote for now because the plot is just a bit too cheesy for me per the above criticisms, but I do love the execution of the debate log.
Thanks a lot for the feedback, I'll see what I can do with regards to the true vacuum replacement.
Schrodinger's Doomsday Device™
It's such a simple concept, yet it works so well. This left me wanting to learn more about the mad man who created the damn thing but I guess that would take away from the mystery of it all. +1
Absolutely fucking perfect. Simple idea, simple execution.
Though, I have a question. Did you literally mean CONTAINMENT teams? As in, not ASF?
It would've been fun to see some division politics break out, but even without it, its fucking perfect.
Though, I have a question. Did you literally mean CONTAINMENT teams? As in, not ASF?
Fuck. Those are different, huh. I'll change it to ASF to make more sense.
I heavily appreciate the feedback, glad you liked it
I think this needs a more thorough proofread and edit for tone, but the core idea is interesting enough to make up for that.
Superb execution, but a small nitpick:
Incapacitation of staff would be a better way to deal with approaching attempts, instead of outright killing them (at least for the first two attempts). These two groups probably knew each other, and hearing that they have been killed will definitely deter any further attempts.
Termination could be left as an option, but only as an absolutely necessary one. This will allow to make it more believable that there are still people trying to flip the switch.
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