Oct 17, 2014 at 12:21 AM
Senior Member
"This is the greatest handgun ever made! You have to ask yourself, do I feel lucky?"
Join Date: Sep 11, 2014
Location: Out of Nowhere
Posts: 95
It seems like a lot of people would wonder about this, but I haven't seen anyone (except half-life213) try and figure out how they actually work. Here's what I think:
The Polar Star, Machine Gun, and Spur all use the same technology, they just differ in how they use it. As stated by hl213 on the "When?" discussion ([http://www.cavestory.org/forums/threads/5023/] Go read his post and then go to page 3 to see my theory as to when Cave Story takes place.) the properties of the shots fired by these guns can't be light because if they were, the shots would continue in a straight line until it hits something, while these gun's shots will eventually stop.
He also said (Side Note: You're welcome for the free promoting I'm giving you) that he thinks that they are rail guns, which use magnets to shoot metal projectiles at high speeds. I like the idea, but for the simple fact that if it worked like that it would run out of ammo, I'll have to disagree. The most logical way it would work and not run out of ammo is with electricity (Lasers?!?!). Maybe to them being lasers, but that still wouldn't explain how the lasers are being generated. And this is where my theory kicks in. I think they might be using cathodes.
Well, let me know what you think and ask me questions if you need/want to.
The Polar Star, Machine Gun, and Spur all use the same technology, they just differ in how they use it. As stated by hl213 on the "When?" discussion ([http://www.cavestory.org/forums/threads/5023/] Go read his post and then go to page 3 to see my theory as to when Cave Story takes place.) the properties of the shots fired by these guns can't be light because if they were, the shots would continue in a straight line until it hits something, while these gun's shots will eventually stop.
He also said (Side Note: You're welcome for the free promoting I'm giving you) that he thinks that they are rail guns, which use magnets to shoot metal projectiles at high speeds. I like the idea, but for the simple fact that if it worked like that it would run out of ammo, I'll have to disagree. The most logical way it would work and not run out of ammo is with electricity (Lasers?!?!). Maybe to them being lasers, but that still wouldn't explain how the lasers are being generated. And this is where my theory kicks in. I think they might be using cathodes.
Does that sound familiar? Cathodes as in cathode ray tubes (CRTs)? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathode_ray_tube ? Old televisions. The CRTs were originally released sometime in the 1930's and were only black-and-white for a few decades. This technology was discontinued in the 2000's when LCD and Plasma technology hit the scene. Suprisingly enough, the CRT is still superior to its successors in a few ways. But how are these relevant to how my Polar-Machine-Spur works?
For the few of you who actually went to the Wikipedia page, gave it at least a 1 out of 100 on your trust scale, and made it down to the part about health concerns, you might know where this is going. But I'll assume most of you didn't so I'll explain. The CRTs were heavy for a reason: the cathode (cathodes if it's a color CRT) was extremely dangerous and reqired thick, lead plating to protect people from it's harmful effects. Two are notable, one of which contains a route to progress.
1. The cathode emitted small amounts of X-ray. While not lethal in small doses (as proven in the medical field), over time the radiation can have harmful effects. But it's the next effect that gets us somewhere. It wasn't even listed on the Wiki page.
2. CRTs require immense amounts of electricity to function, and electrical charge can be built up in the CRT.
Don't belive me? Find a CRT and touch the glass after it's been running for a few minutes. You may be able to feel the electricity lurking behind the glass. If that doesn't work, if you have any arm hair (or any kind of hair really), bringing it close enough to the television should result in the hair pointing toward the TV.
So with that in mind, it would seem likely that reverse-engineering a CRT into a gun would be possible (especially if you could get it to use EVEN MORE electricity), but where does that infinite ammo come from? Easy to say, but difficult to actually make happen: an infinite supply of electricity. So we simply use process of elimination to figure out what it could be. Starting with whether or not the source is infinite.
Gasoline or other type of fossil fuel: Not Infinite
Wind: Infinite-ish
Solar: Infinite-ish
Nuclear: Infinite-ish
Heat (Yes, it's a thing): Infinite-ish
So we have five options and we just took it down to four. Let's do that again. This time with whether it's portable or not.
Wind: Not portable
Solar: Portable
Nuclear: Portable(?)
Heat: Portable
Down to three. But let's think of it this way: if it was designed for use in a cave, where would you get solar energy? You wouldn't. And then there were two. Thermoelectricity (That's what it's called) could generate electricity off human body heat. Heat would seem like it would work... for humans. If Quote and Curly can use them, they probably don't use heat. Therefore, the only real solution we're left with is Nuclear power.
So the Polar Star, Machine Gun, and Spur are all (theoretically) Nuclear powered cathodes put into the form of a gun. That's going to leave marks. Lots and lots of marks. So here's how they (theoretically) work:
The Polar Star would generate a decent sized shot in less than a second and then fire it on a trigger pull.
The Machine Gun would be like the Polar Star on steroids, but would eventually deplete the available electricity stored within an integrated battery.
And the Spur, well, did you ignore the second reason why cathodes are lethal? "... and ELECTRICAL CHARGE can be built up in the CRT? Emphesis on the word "charge."
For the few of you who actually went to the Wikipedia page, gave it at least a 1 out of 100 on your trust scale, and made it down to the part about health concerns, you might know where this is going. But I'll assume most of you didn't so I'll explain. The CRTs were heavy for a reason: the cathode (cathodes if it's a color CRT) was extremely dangerous and reqired thick, lead plating to protect people from it's harmful effects. Two are notable, one of which contains a route to progress.
1. The cathode emitted small amounts of X-ray. While not lethal in small doses (as proven in the medical field), over time the radiation can have harmful effects. But it's the next effect that gets us somewhere. It wasn't even listed on the Wiki page.
2. CRTs require immense amounts of electricity to function, and electrical charge can be built up in the CRT.
Don't belive me? Find a CRT and touch the glass after it's been running for a few minutes. You may be able to feel the electricity lurking behind the glass. If that doesn't work, if you have any arm hair (or any kind of hair really), bringing it close enough to the television should result in the hair pointing toward the TV.
So with that in mind, it would seem likely that reverse-engineering a CRT into a gun would be possible (especially if you could get it to use EVEN MORE electricity), but where does that infinite ammo come from? Easy to say, but difficult to actually make happen: an infinite supply of electricity. So we simply use process of elimination to figure out what it could be. Starting with whether or not the source is infinite.
Gasoline or other type of fossil fuel: Not Infinite
Wind: Infinite-ish
Solar: Infinite-ish
Nuclear: Infinite-ish
Heat (Yes, it's a thing): Infinite-ish
So we have five options and we just took it down to four. Let's do that again. This time with whether it's portable or not.
Wind: Not portable
Solar: Portable
Nuclear: Portable(?)
Heat: Portable
Down to three. But let's think of it this way: if it was designed for use in a cave, where would you get solar energy? You wouldn't. And then there were two. Thermoelectricity (That's what it's called) could generate electricity off human body heat. Heat would seem like it would work... for humans. If Quote and Curly can use them, they probably don't use heat. Therefore, the only real solution we're left with is Nuclear power.
So the Polar Star, Machine Gun, and Spur are all (theoretically) Nuclear powered cathodes put into the form of a gun. That's going to leave marks. Lots and lots of marks. So here's how they (theoretically) work:
The Polar Star would generate a decent sized shot in less than a second and then fire it on a trigger pull.
The Machine Gun would be like the Polar Star on steroids, but would eventually deplete the available electricity stored within an integrated battery.
And the Spur, well, did you ignore the second reason why cathodes are lethal? "... and ELECTRICAL CHARGE can be built up in the CRT? Emphesis on the word "charge."
Well, let me know what you think and ask me questions if you need/want to.