Traveller-digest      Tuesday, August 10 1999      Volume 1999 : Number 934



(R)1996. Traveller is a registered trademark of FarFuture Enterprises.
All rights reserved.

The following topics are covered in this digest:

Re: PRB
Re: Effects of stats on skill rolls
Re: Any Newton users?
A really good program for the Web.
Re: PRB
Re: PRB
Real Life Traveller Humor
Re MT Tasks
Re: Effects of Stats on Skill Rolls
Re CT/MT/Striker
Atmospheres #3 : Carbon compounds, allergens, pathogens, &c.(long)
Re: Explain to me how radios work
Re: PRB

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: Mon, 9 Aug 1999 22:46:39 -0700 (PDT)
From: Jetrock <jetrock@emrl.com>
Subject: Re: PRB

On Mon, 9 Aug 1999, Kiri Aradia Morgan wrote:

> >>>> From: "Keven R. Pittsinger" <jamstar@accesstoledo.com>
> >
> >>>> What, no TMLers in the PRB???
> >>>That would be me, comrade.
> >>Oh, NOW I get it...People's Republic of Berkley...but that's not the right
> spelling is it? ;->
> >No, it should be "People's Republic of Berzerkley".  Or maybe "Free
> People's..."
> 
> You guys don't get over to Berkeley that often, or you'd know there's very
> little about Berkeley that's "Free".  I've yet to eat lunch there for under
> eight dollars.
> 
Try Food Not Bombs in People's Park, they're free. The place
kitty-cornered from Noah's on Telegraph is fairly cheap, as is the Indian
fast food place on Shattuck near University. And then there's a Chinese
place on University between Shattuck and the college, I forget the name,
that serves a lunch twice the size of God, with tea and fortune cookies,
for under five bucks. 
	Of course, a lot of my East Bay g-punx pals would get "free" food
by table-diving the leftovers of people's eight-dollar lunches.

ObTrav: Any standard fast-food restaurants in your Traveller universe? My
preferred characters' dining spot is Arg's Groat Burger, a Vargr-owned and
loosely-based franchise (with widely varying menus based on local tastes
and law levels) which I first invented for an illustration for an article
on food in Traveller I did for a fanzine. Arg's soon became a running gag,
especially stumbling across empty Arg's styrene containers while looking
for some misplaced device in a closet...

- --Rev. Jetrock, founder of UBERKUNST, Freelance Digital Appliance Healer
http://emrl.com/~jetrock for UBERKUNST and MONSTER ATTACK information!

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 00:47:30 -0500 (CDT)
From: trentfs@ix.netcom.com
Subject: Re: Effects of stats on skill rolls

	I just happened to come across a couple of people advocating the 
following range of stat-based DMs:

>1-2: -2
>3-5: -1
>6-8: +0
>9-B: +1
>C-E: +2
>F  : +3

which happens to be the exact system I came up with independently for my 
personal Traveller-kludge system (combined with MT mechanics and T4.1 task 
descriptions*).  I've found this system to work quite well.  Perhaps if I 
had more experience with the low-end stats I'd be less sure, but with that 
slight reservation I think it works as well, if not better, than any other 
published system (MT didn't allow for enough differentiation between high 
and low stats, T4 weighted the stat too heavily and had that stupid half-
die thing, KBv2.2 involved too many calculations).

*as published on the T4 Referee Screen; it simplifies a lot of the 
complicated special-case rules from MT without sacrificing the versatility 
and flavor of the general task format

Anyhow, just thought I'd throw in my Cr0.02,

Trent
 

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 01:50:45 EDT
From: GypsyComet@aol.com
Subject: Re: Any Newton users?

 As the Digital Millenium approached, "--M" <mitch@sirius.com> did
command an infinite number of monkeys to type:

>Any Newton users?
>
>    I just recently converted Double adventure 02 into a newton book. 
>If anyone would be interested in checking it I could Email it to you.  I
>compiled the book to fit the Newton 2000 screen.  Each adventure
>and world map is a seperate book and the ATV section is another.
> I have no idea what drives me to do these things, I think I need to get
>out of the house more often.
>
>- --M

 Yes indeed. Mine's an old 110, so if you want to test your compile
on obsolete revolutionary hardware, please send a copy to:
gypsycomet@aol.com

If it will recompile easily that would be nice too...

GC

------------------------------

Date: Mon, 9 Aug 1999 23:37:38 -0700
From: "Legate Legion" <legate@futureone.com>
Subject: A really good program for the Web.

    I cannot say enough about this program.  It lets me find cool web-sites,
search, translate, etc, etc, etc.  You really have to get it.  I really do
not know how I surfed the web with out it.  http://www.esgear.com/web/

Legate Legion
ICQ # 8973001
legate@futureone.com

"A man may fight for many things; his country, his principles, his friends,
the glistening tear on the cheek of a golden child. But personally, I'd
mudwrestle my own mother for a ton of cash, an amusing clock, and a stack of
French porn." - Edmund Blackadder

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 00:34:54 -0700
From: "Kiri Aradia Morgan" <tiamat@tsoft.com>
Subject: Re: PRB

>> You guys don't get over to Berkeley that often, or you'd know there's
very little about Berkeley that's "Free".  I've yet to eat lunch there for
under eight dollars.
>>
>Try Food Not Bombs in People's Park, they're free.
>
Oh yeah... but I always felt I shouldn't take stuff like that from people
who REALLY need it.

> The place kitty-cornered from Noah's on Telegraph is fairly cheap, as is
the Indian fast food place on Shattuck near University. And then there's a
Chinese place on University between Shattuck and the college, I forget the
name, that serves a lunch twice the size of God, with tea and fortune
cookies, for under five bucks.
>
Cool!

> Of course, a lot of my East Bay g-punx pals would get "free" food by
table-diving the leftovers of people's eight-dollar lunches.
>
I don't usually leave leftovers.  Sorry.

>ObTrav: Any standard fast-food restaurants in your Traveller universe? My
preferred characters' dining spot is Arg's Groat Burger, a Vargr-owned and
loosely-based franchise (with widely varying menus based on local tastes and
law levels) which I first invented for an illustration for an article on
food in Traveller I did for a fanzine. Arg's soon became a running gag,
especially stumbling across empty Arg's styrene containers while looking for
some misplaced device in a closet...
>
Wow...  never thought o'that.  Our characters were either eating high on the
hog or eating rations.  I think this is very cool though.

I like the idea of the menu varying by law level.  Did you ever see some of
the menus in the later Arduin gamebooks?  Gross, but funny.  Of course as
much as I like Vargr I have to remember that low law levels could be
problematic for them... "3-6" is still a common menu item in parts of China
today and some people may not be too particular about whether the "3-6"
walked on 4 legs or 2.

(The word for dog sounds like the word for nine in Cantonese, so "3-6" is a
code word for eating dog... it's now illegal, but people go to Kowloon to do
it anyway.  My ex from HK used to occasionally look at the neighborhood
strays rather oddly.)

So... you're a goth and you play Traveller and you live in Berkeley?  I'm
also known as Mistress Tiamat and I occasionally poke my head in at Shrine
of Lilith when I don't think my ex will be there.  Do a lot of goths play
Traveller???  ::blinkblink::  I figured I'm the only one, most of the folx I
knew all liked LARPing better...

Kiri

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 00:52:35 -0700
From: "Legate Legion" <legate@futureone.com>
Subject: Re: PRB

From: Kiri Aradia Morgan <tiamat@tsoft.com>
Subject: Re: PRB


>So... you're a goth and you play Traveller and you live in Berkeley?  I'm
>also known as Mistress Tiamat and I occasionally poke my head in at Shrine
>of Lilith when I don't think my ex will be there.  Do a lot of goths play
>Traveller???  ::blinkblink::  I figured I'm the only one, most of the folx
I
>knew all liked LARPing better...
>
>Kiri


    To say that Traveller is not Goth, is like saying baseball, apple pie, &
hot dogs are not american.  They have whole fleets of vampires in TNE.
*weg*  That is how I got my then GF, who is now my wife, Amber, who is a
Gothy-Girl, into playing Traveller.

Legate Legion
ICQ # 8973001
legate@futureone.com

"A man may fight for many things; his country, his principles, his friends,
the glistening tear on the cheek of a golden child. But personally, I'd
mudwrestle my own mother for a ton of cash, an amusing clock, and a stack of
French porn." - Edmund Blackadder

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 06:10:37 -0400 (EDT)
From: "William F. Hostman" <aramis@gci.net>
Subject: Real Life Traveller Humor

a friend of mine, a long time Traveller (CT/MT/TNE) Player/Ref who moved to
El Cajon, California, told me a funny bit that happened to him recently.

He was sitting down with a new player who had just written up a character,
about to start the game, and flipped open his books to the travel formulae
to prepare the travel times for the game. The new player saw the game book,
the formulae, then pointed at them and asked "What are you doing?"

Rick replied dryly (think brittish stereotypical mannerisms with a Valley
Accent) "Rocket science, my good man, rocket science!"

At which point, the player immediately left in math-terror.

William F. Hostman  |  "Smith & Wesson: THe original Point and Click
interface!"
Aramis 0602 C55A364-C S kk+ as+ hi+ dr+ va++(--) so+ zh++ vi+ da++ sy- ge-
533
Mailto:aramis@gci.net http://home.gci.net/~aramis http://www.alaska.net/~mhaa
ICQ:14640742          AIM:AKAramis	ARM 1.0: 3 R H++ P+
IMTU 1.0: tc tm++ tn- t4-- tt+ to- tg-- ru+ ge 3i+ c+ jt-() au+ st- ls
pi+() ta+ he+(-) kk+ as+ hi+ dr+ va++(--) so+ zh++ vi+ da++ sy- ge- pi+

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 06:11:45 -0400 (EDT)
From: "William F. Hostman" <aramis@gci.net>
Subject: Re MT Tasks

>Hey dudes, I was wondering what you various TMLers felt about the influence
>of stats on traveller task rolls?
>
>Personally, I hated the T4 and TNE's approach (too much emphasis on the
>stats IMO and not enough on skill) and like some felt that CT and MT didn't
>have enough influence (I think MT's stat DMs were +1 if an applicable stat
>was 5-9, +2 if A-D and +3 if F?).
>

I use Att/3.
0-2 = +0
3-5 = +1
6-8 = +2
9-11 = +3
12-14 = +4
15-17 = +6 (note: K'Kree can get this high on Str, and Aslan, Vargr,
Virushi, etc can also reach 16 or 17 in one or two stats each.)

I have found that if it needs a table, My players won't use it.

William F. Hostman  |  "Smith & Wesson: THe original Point and Click
interface!"
Aramis 0602 C55A364-C S kk+ as+ hi+ dr+ va++(--) so+ zh++ vi+ da++ sy- ge-
533
Mailto:aramis@gci.net http://home.gci.net/~aramis http://www.alaska.net/~mhaa
ICQ:14640742          AIM:AKAramis	ARM 1.0: 3 R H++ P+
IMTU 1.0: tc tm++ tn- t4-- tt+ to- tg-- ru+ ge 3i+ c+ jt-() au+ st- ls
pi+() ta+ he+(-) kk+ as+ hi+ dr+ va++(--) so+ zh++ vi+ da++ sy- ge- pi+

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 06:11:45 -0400 (EDT)
From: "William F. Hostman" <aramis@gci.net>
Subject: Re: Effects of Stats on Skill Rolls

>[snip]
>
>>1-2: -2 [Poor]
>>3-5: -1 [Mediocre]
>>6-8: +0 [Fair]
>>9-B: +1 [Good]
>>C-E: +2 [Great]
>>F  : +3 [Superb]
>
>Ahh ha ha haa! FUDGE will come to rule the world!!!
>
>Ahem. Sorry.
>
>Ciao,
>
>Joseph R. Dietrich

Just gave me the evil idea of running Trav under Castle Falkenstein's
Mechanics...

Speaking of which, at one point I had put up on a web-site a set of
conversions for using the Vampire/World Of Darkness rules to run Trav... I
lost the site AND the backups... if someone has a local copy of them, could
you please email me with them?

William F. Hostman  |  "Smith & Wesson: THe original Point and Click
interface!"
Aramis 0602 C55A364-C S kk+ as+ hi+ dr+ va++(--) so+ zh++ vi+ da++ sy- ge-
533
Mailto:aramis@gci.net http://home.gci.net/~aramis http://www.alaska.net/~mhaa
ICQ:14640742          AIM:AKAramis	ARM 1.0: 3 R H++ P+
IMTU 1.0: tc tm++ tn- t4-- tt+ to- tg-- ru+ ge 3i+ c+ jt-() au+ st- ls
pi+() ta+ he+(-) kk+ as+ hi+ dr+ va++(--) so+ zh++ vi+ da++ sy- ge- pi+

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 06:13:20 -0400 (EDT)
From: "William F. Hostman" <aramis@gci.net>
Subject: Re CT/MT/Striker

>"William F. Hostman" wrote:
>>
><snipped>
>> And yes, I've been playing and running trav since the LBB days... I still
>> prefer the integration of MT... even tho it is little more than strikerized
>> CT with the DGP task system.
>>
>
>And the problems with this are....?
<drumroll>

They didn't finish the job.<cymble crash>

Seriously, tho, there are several bits of striker missing from MT,
specifically the weapons design sequences, and the conversions for figuring
the Damage stat (pens are almost always unchaged) and attenuations. Striker
also included armor volume.

William F. Hostman  |  "Smith & Wesson: THe original Point and Click
interface!"
Aramis 0602 C55A364-C S kk+ as+ hi+ dr+ va++(--) so+ zh++ vi+ da++ sy- ge-
533
Mailto:aramis@gci.net http://home.gci.net/~aramis http://www.alaska.net/~mhaa
ICQ:14640742          AIM:AKAramis	ARM 1.0: 3 R H++ P+
IMTU 1.0: tc tm++ tn- t4-- tt+ to- tg-- ru+ ge 3i+ c+ jt-() au+ st- ls
pi+() ta+ he+(-) kk+ as+ hi+ dr+ va++(--) so+ zh++ vi+ da++ sy- ge- pi+

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 20:40:48 +1000
From: "Robert O'Connor" <robocon@ozemail.com.au>
Subject: Atmospheres #3 : Carbon compounds, allergens, pathogens, &c.(long)

The enormous variety of possible carbon compounds offers some
interesting taints for the creative world builder.

* Carbon dioxide (CO2)
Data :- mp -57C (at 5.5 atm), bp -78C (turns from solid to gas at this
temperature at 1 atm pressure), critical temperature 31C. A 'simple
asphyxiant'.

Given the abundance of carbon and oxygen in the universe, there is going
to be a lot of CO2 around - or opportunities for its formation.

On Earth, the carbon dioxide produced by living things is variously
dissolved in the oceans (it is one of the most water soluble gases),
converted by plants into sugars or locked up in the form of mineral
carbonates. The atmosphere now contains an average of 340ppm CO2, up
from 280ppm in the 1850s.

It is conjectured that atmospheric CO2 levels were much higher early in
the Earth's history. The advent of photosynthesis and oxidative
(aerobic) respiration changed all that.

Carbon dioxide is a potent greenhouse gas, trapping solar infrared
radiation within the atmosphere. In one climatological model (exploring
the 'frozen pre-Cambrian Earth' theory), it was calculated that CO2
levels of 0.15 atm would have been sufficient to melt ice sheets
covering the entire globe.  

So worlds with atmospheres containing large amounts of CO2 will either
be 'pre-' or 'post-aerobic' in the main. There may be intriguing worlds
where the high levels of CO2 are enough to act as a powerful stimulus to
plant growth - then the plants produce enough oxygen to incinerate
themselves, and the cycle starts anew.

Other transient sources of CO2 may include warming or agitation of a
body of water [or other solvent] - leading to a violent outgassing e.g.
the lakes in Cameroon where several nearby villages had their
populations asphyxiated.

- - Toxicity
Carbon dioxide is one of the waste products of the oxidation of sugars,
proteins and fats. While the human body lacks oxygen stores, the
solubility of CO2 and its rate of production enables the accumulation of
the equivalent of three litres of gas (1 atm pressure, 25 C) per
kilogram of tissue.
	Carbon dioxide reacts with water to form carbonic acid ; this is mostly
temporarily converted to bicarbonate to limit the adverse effects of
increased acidity on cellular function.
	The only way to eliminate carbon dioxide is to breathe it out.
	So an increase in the blood (tissue) levels of carbon dioxide is a
powerful stimulus to ventilation.
	The minute volume doubles (product of respiratory rate and tidal
volume) for each 0.03 atm increment in the partial pressure of CO2. 	
Breathing gas mixtures high in CO2 'flattens out' the tissue to lung
pressure gradient, leading to retention of the gas.
	Eventually the ability of the body to limit the increase in acidity is
lost ; this results initially in a rise in blood pressure and cardiac
output (in a futile attempt to deliver more CO2 to the lung for
elimination). The worsening acidosis depresses heart and brain function,
leading ultimately to unconsciousness and death from cardiovascular
collapse.
	
Initial symptoms include headache, dizziness, shortness of
breath, muscular weakness, drowsiness or agitation, ringing in the ears
and an acid taste in the mouth or a burning sensation in the nose, mouth
and throat.
	Gas mixtures containing more than 0.06 atm of CO2 cannot be breathed
for more than five to ten minutes - collapse ensues from respiratory
muscle fatigue.
	General anaesthesia ensues from the inhalation of 0.15 atm CO2.	
	Death will ensue in a few hours with levels above 0.25 atm.        


* Carbon monoxide (CO)
Data mp -205, bp -190. A potent chemical asphyxiant.

The most obvious source for CO is the incomplete combustion of organic
material e.g. cigarette smoke (1%), automotive exhausts (10% CO by
volume) and 'coal gas' and house fires (up to 20% CO).

Carbon monoxide may also be produced by the hepatic metabolism of
dichloromethane (methylene chloride, CH2Cl2), or the decomposition of
phosgene (COCl2) in water (e.g. the moist air in one's lung).
Physiologically, CO is produced by the degradation of the porphyrin ring
of haemoglobin, mediated by the enzyme haem oxidase.
	Perhaps some lifeforms could produce CO as a defensive or offensive
mechanism.
	Like nitric oxide, carbon monoxide has also been found to be a
neurotransmitter substance. This may explain some of the
neuropsychiatric sequelae seen in some survivors of carbon monoxide
poisoning.

- - Toxicity
CO has great affinity for Fe2+ and binds avidly to haemoglobin (240X
better than O2) rendering it useless for oxygen carriage. Reduction in
the oxygen carrying capacity of blood is profound :-

Inspired concentration	%carboxyhaemoglobin (COHb)
0.01%			14
0.05%			44
0.1%			60

	Firefighters not using face masks and engaged in strenuous activity can
have COHb levels of 75% in less than 1 minute.
	Interestingly, severity of poisoning doesn't correlate with the level
of carboxyhaemoglobin. Tissue load is obviously very important, but
cannot be measured in living organisms.
	Mild intoxication is usual with COHb over 20% ; severe symptoms and
signs are usually evident with COHb above 50%
	The heart and brain, being the most metabolically active tissues, are
first to suffer the effects of hypoxia.
	Headache, drowsiness, confusion are early symptoms, with the eventual
onset of coma. Heart muscle commonly infarcts (dies) in the face of
decreased oxygen supply and increased work (reflexes lead initially to
hyperventilation and increased cardiac output in an attempt to get more
oxygen to the tissues!).

The first line treatment is using high concentrations of oxygen to
displace CO off haemoglobin (exploiting the law of Mass Action).

Roughly, the half life of COHb is :-
3-5 hours in air
30-120 minutes with 1.0 atm oxygen
20-30 minutes with hyperbaric oxygen


* Methane and the Hydrocarbons
Data
Substance	mp	bp	crit temp	flash point
Methane (CH4) 	-183C	-162C	-82.25C		-188C
Butane (C4H10)	-138.4C	-0.5C	153.2C		-60 C
Pentane (C5H12)	-130C	36.1C	?		-49 C

	Melting and boiling points increase with increasing chain length.
Compounds less than 5 carbons long are gases at 15 C ; compounds less
than 16 carbons long are liquids at this temperature.
	Hydrocarbons are common compounds. Significant deposits may be found on
worlds in the outer zone of a star system (e.g. Titan with its tholin
deposits and ethane lakes) or in certain rock formations of Earthlike
worlds.	
	In oxygen based ecospheres, methane is a product of the anaerobic (no
oxygen) decomposition of organic material. It is the main compound found
in natural gas and has a wide range of industrial uses.
	Apart from the fire hazard associated with these compounds, the smaller
hydrocarbons are simple asphyxiants.

Occupational health and safety limits :- 
Compound	Occupational exposure limit	
Methane		1000ppm - 8 hour
Butane		800ppm - 8 hour
Pentane		610ppm for 15 minutes

At levels ranging from 5 to 10X the above limits, general anaesthesia
ensues. The hydrocarbons as a group are irritant to the heart and
readily provoke abnormal rhythmicity. They are also corrosive to lung
and gut tissue.


* Halogenated Hydrocarbons
Substitution of halides (chlorine, fluorine, bromine, iodine) for
hydrogen leads to compounds with varying physical properties but similar
toxicological problems.

Some Methyl Halides
Compound	Formula		mp	bp	Exposure limits
chloromethane	CH3Cl		-97	-24.2	100ppm/8 hours
dichloromethane	CH2Cl2		-95.1	39.8	250ppm/8 hours
chloroform	CHCl3		-63.5	61.2	2ppm/hour
carbon 		CCl4		-23	76.7	2ppm/hour
tetrachloride

bromomethane	CH3Br		-93	3.56	zero

iodomethane	CH3I		-66.5	42.4	2ppm/day (contact)

Exposure limits are those set by U.S. federal regulatory agencies.

Methyl halides are produced by various bacteria and algae in order to
limit competition.

Toxicity is via the production of methyl and halogen radicals which
indiscriminately bind to various intracellular sites.
	Liver, kidney and central nervous system toxicity predominates.
Symptoms include : nausea, vomitting, headache, sensory disturbances,
abdominal pain and eventual anaesthesia, then death.
	Dichloromethane has also been mentioned above due to its transformation
to carbon monoxide.

Chloroform
The odour threshold in man is 400ppm.
Concentrations of 0.47 atm cause general anaesthesia.

Carbon tetrachloride
Odor threshold (lower): 21.4 ppm
Concentrations on the order of 1000 to 1500 ppm are sufficient to
cause symptoms if exposure continues for several hours.

Bromomethane
Fatal poisoning has always resulted from exposure to relatively high
concentrations of methyl bromide vapors (from 8,600 to 60,000ppm). 
Nonfatal poisoning has resulted from exposure to concentrations as
low as 100-500 ppm.

* Alcohols
Data :-		mp	bp
Methanol	-98	65
Ethanol		-114	78
Hexanol		-45	157
Octanol		-15	195

Everyone is familar with the effects of ethanol (C2H5OH) in one way or
another.
	Methanol (CH3OH) is toxic, leading to blindness, liver and kidney
toxicity.
	Alcohols with chain lengths > 6 are potent inhalational anaesthetic
agents, just like the hydrocarbons, and exhibit similar toxicity.

* Cyanides
Data
Hydrogen cyanide (HCN) mp -14, bp 26
Cyanogen (C2N2) mp -27, bp -20

Cyanide salts are used widely in metallurgy and the electronics
industry. They may also be encountered in stone fruits and some other
plants e.g. cassava. 
Chronic low level exposure may lead to a contact dermatitis.
Hydrogen cyanide is readily liberated when acids (and water) react with
cyanide salts.

Occupational exposure limit :-
5 mg(CN)/m3 air/10 minutes

Lethal ingested dose is typically 200mg cyanide for an adult human.

The cyanide ion has a great affinity for Fe3+. The reactive centres of
the cytochrome enzymes that drive aerobic respiration contain Fe3+.
Cyanide prevents cells from utilising oxygen. This leads to accumulation
of lactic acid, as anaerobic catabolic pathways are used in an attempt
to maintain cellular homeostasis. Acidosis leads to the problems
mentioned above in the discussion of carbon dioxide toxicity.
	Cardiovascular and central nervous system collapse ensue within
minutes. Fitting is common initially.

Treatment aims to displace cyanide from the cytochrome iron atoms by
reducing haemoglobin's iron (Fe2+ -> Fe3+) to mop up cyanide and to
enhance the activity of the liver rhodanese system which converts
cyanide to the slightly less toxic thiocyanate.  

* Carbon disulphide (CS2)
Data mp -111.5C, bp 46.5C, critical temp 280C, flash point -30C

This substance is a potent pesticide and is used as a solvent and
intermediate for the synthesis of various chemicals. It reacts
explosively with most oxidants.

It is a potent neurotoxin, causing depressed levels of consciousness and
ultimately anaesthesia.
	In chronic low level poisoning, the effect on the nervous system is one
of central and peripheral damage which may be permanent if the damage
has been severe.

Recommended exposure limit to this compound in air:
1 ppm/10 hours ; Ceiling Limit 10 ppm/15 minutes every 10 hours

* Biological materials
This is a big group made up of :-
- - macromolecules - typically borne in water droplets
- - gametes - pollen, spores
- - organisms - viral particles and bacteria, small parasites
- - detritus - decomposing matter
[combinations of the above]

Entry into the aerodigestive tract is a function of size (as per any
particulate material).

Detection of intruders by the immune system may lead to appropriate or
inappropriate responses.

i. Appropriate
- - Identification - antibodies or complement proteins are bound to the
foreign substance
- - Confinement - capillaries become leaky, causing localised oedema which
slows egress from the tissue ; proteins are released into the
circulation to limit the access of the intruder to various resources
e.g. transferrin levels increase, leading to a decreased availability of
iron.
- - Mobilisation - phagocytic cells multiply and move into the area ;
fever is produced which enhances immune cell function.
- - Elimination - the intruder is either eaten or destroyed by the immune
cells. Sometimes this is not achievable and the intruder is confined but
at the cost of ongoing inflammation - e.g. tuberculosis and parasite
infections.

ii. Inappropriate
* Tolerance - the immune system is fooled into ignoring the intruder.
* Immunosuppression e.g. HIV infection
* Anaphylaxis - antibody release leads to inappropriate activation of
signalling cells called mast cells. 
	Mediators released from the mast cells cause blood vessels to dilate
and become 'leaky' and contraction of the muscle lining the larger
airways in the lung.
	Tissue swelling, bronchoconstriction and marked reduction in blood
pressure ensue which can be fatal within minutes.  
* Allergy - similar mechanism to anaphylaxis but on a much less
threatening scale.

Next post :- sulphur and phosphorus compounds


Robert O'Connor
Medico, Gamer

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 11:44:05 +0100
From: "Derrick Jones" <dojones.whitestar@btinternet.com>
Subject: Re: Explain to me how radios work

Matt Clonfero <Matt-C@aetherem.demon.co.uk> wrote:

>Note: A 10km range portable radio will tend to be a line-of-sight
>transmitter; unless the EW team is within line-of-sight they will not be
>able to intercept the transmissions.

I would say, using modern military comms as a basis, that portable
radios would NOT be line of sight. Battlefield man-pack radios require
that the user be able to operate it without having to change facing...
(keep your eyes towards the enemy!). Radio comms at section- battallion
strength will most definitely be omni directional, with limited frequency
range
to negate the necessity of Antenna Matching Tuning units (TUAAMs IIRC)
It is when these signals get 'patched' onto a backbone signal network.
or it's feeders, (SCRA Centrals in UK Mil speak) that line of sight comms
comes in. Moving people and vehicles just could not have the reflectorised
antenna pointing at the optimum direction constantly. Imagine having an old
portable telly with the loop arial on top. Imagine fiddling with it until
you get a
good picture - brings back memories? Now pick it up, and walk around with
it!
what's your picture like now?)

Fixed installations provide LOS, mobile use OmniDirectional.

From an EW point of view, (using MT task as a guide)
                           Omni-D   LOS  Power   DF on Target?
Manpack                 yes      no      low        formidable
Vehicle                    yes      no       med      difficult
SCRA Cent              yes     yes     high       routine
Trunk Comms           No      yes     high       formidable

As you can see, SCRA Centrals have a very limited lifespan on the
battlefield. (Lucky me, being in my ERV at a Trunk node!!!)

Things might change at higher tech levels, but I would personally stick
with the premis made before, even at TL13+ for manpack, maybe not
for vehicle mounted mobile installations.


Cheers

Derrick

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 04:25:22
From: "Douglas E. Berry" <dberry@hooked.net>
Subject: Re: PRB

At 11:16 PM 8/9/99 -0400, you wrote:

>My first trip to SF, my brother took to Haight Street for a beer.
>I got out of the truck and there were hippies in dirty ponchos.  It was 
>like I never left New Paltz. :-)

They're still here.  Every year, we get a new influx of teenagers who've
run away from home and seem to assume that it's still 1967 and they can
come out to the Haight and someone will feed and clothe them while they
live lives of utter freedom.  ha.  what happens is within a year most of
them are living in the park as drug addicts.  For a very long time couldn't
walk down Haight without being aggressively panhandled every five steps.

ObTrav: A world of region has gained a reputation as the place to be for
slackers.  A group of young people have scraped up the fares for the PC's
to transport them to this place.  Upon arrival, they find that the party
ended years ago, and demand free transport back home.  If the PCs refuse,
they learn later that one of the kids has a very powerful parent...
- -- 

Douglas E. Berry   Templar Agent at Large.
dberry@hooked.net  http://jump.to/SyleaDownport

TravGeekCode: 
tc+ tm+ !tn- t4@ ?tg+ tt@ to(CORPS)++ ru@ $ge++ 3i
ii+ au st+ ls+ pi kk+ so(++) va++ dr+ zh+ sw++ ?da
         

------------------------------

End of Traveller-digest V1999 #934
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