Furscape MUCK

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====== How to Explain Hyperspace to a Six-Year-Old... ====== 

Gwyneth says, "Oh allright ... it looks a bit abstract ... I hope they don't get lost in space!"
 
Hagalaz nods. "The easiest way to think of hyperspace is like this..."  He pulls out a pen and picks up a sheet of paper, and draws two circles on it, one around the other.
 
Hagalaz rumbles, "The outer circle is realspace, and the inner circle is hyperspace as we currently know it.  Every point in realspace corresponds to one in hyperspace.  If we draw a line from the center of the circles to the outside, that represents a jumpgate into hyperspace.  Basically, what happens is you go from one point in realspace to it's matching point in hyperspace.  You travel along hyperspace like this."  He darkens in part of the inside circle's perimeter.  "When you return to realspace, you move back out to this circle."  He draws a second line from the center of the circles to the outside, and darkens in the segment between the inner circle and the outer circle."
 
Hagalaz rumbles, "Now, notice how the arc of the inner circle, if we were to straighten it out, is much smaller than the arc of the outer circle, if we straighten that one out?"
 
Gwyneth follows the lines with a pawtip and tries to understand
 
Hagalaz scritches Gwyneth's ears. "It's ok.  Someday you'll learn all about it in science class.  The important thing is that hyperspace is... compressed, so we can travel much more quickly."
 
Gwyneth says, "yes, but how hard is it to get into hyperspace?"
 
Hagalaz rumbles, "It takes a lot of energy.  So much energy, in fact, that we can't build ships that can perform the jump on their own.  Here's the other interesting thing.  Theoretically, there are multiple levels of hyperspace.  The 'deeper' this line goes," he taps a claw on the line extending from the center of the circle to the perimeter of the outer circle, "the more energy it takes to get into hyperspace.  But, the 'deeper' the hyperspace layer is, the shorter the trip time is."
 
Gwyneth says, "And have anyone ever been to second, or third layer of hyperspace?"
 
Hagalaz rumbles, "I don't think anyone has.  It would require us to somehow tune the jumpgates, which no one has tried before."