What Tony Stark should *really* be doing

[jeneralist]

In the worlds imagined by Marvel and DC, those with special gifts (derived from accidents of birth or lifelong dedicated work) often choose to dress up in special outfits and Fight Evil. Sometimes, they band together in organizations to Fight Evil more effectively

Comments

[shades_of_nyx]

When I was, so briefly, employed at Government funded genius laboratory, I was very often frustrated by exactly this. We had over 1000 of the world's best brains on one campus doing research on problems that weren't even remotely relevant to reality. I spent six months on the issue of homeland defense in the case of a full out nuclear first strike by China. If we retasked that one site for renewable/sustainable/clean energy for a month, the issue would be solved. GAH!

[jeneralist]

Well, actually thinking about what it would take to handle a nuclear attack isn't such a bad thing -- if only to get Certain Folks to realize how much better it would be to prevent it.

Back in my stormative teenage years, I worked as a gofer in the House of Representatives for a summer. One of the Congressional office buildings is shaped like a long scalene triangle. I'd walk past window after window, looking out to the street or in to the courtyard, and then get to the corner of the triangle. The windows stopped, the stone took its place, and a sign was posted: "Fallout Shelter Starts Here."

Um, no. Physics doesn't quite work like that. And if they didn't understand that at the House of Representatives, why were those the folks voting on the budget for the Defense Department?