[MINGLE] Just don't touch the puffball

[markwatney]

WHO: Mark Watney
WHERE: 6I Town Hall
WHEN: 7 June, after lunch
OPEN TO: ALL - MINGLE
WARNINGS: n/a
NOTES: Please note in your subject line if a top-level is to Mark (or whoever)

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I have to be honest, as a botanist, there's a lot about this new, expanded world to be excited about. It seems like almost every time I go out to collect samples, I find something I haven't seen before, and nearly every minute I'm not working in the fields or greenhouse, I've been in Ravi's lab doing tests and compiling observations. Some of the specimens are pretty spectacular, but for a lot of them, the things that make them impressive are also things that could be a problem for the average villager.

Which is why I'm here now, in the town hall, lining up a variety of plants on a long table at the front of the room, some dried, some placed carefully under glass, many seeded in whatever I could find to use as a pot: Sauce pans, old boxes, tea cups.

Early this morning, I left a message on the blackboard in the Inn in big chalk letters:

Seminar on new native plants
TODAY - TOWN HALL - AFTER LUNCH
IMPORTANT INFO!!

In the old place, I used to take folks out one at a time and give them a crash course on what was edible and what was poisonous, but that's just not going to cut it now.

As I wait for folks to arrive (As I wait, hoping folks will arrive), I lay out labels in front of each plant listing what I've been calling it, whether it's dangerous, and any known properties. Once I'm done running my mouth, people can come up and get a good look.

Comments

[iron_beneath_beauty]

He a sort of wonder and delight that she has never really seen anyone before. Despite his youth, he reminded her of Maester Luwin, pleased and excited by the simple things in life. It made him seem far younger than he was, which was strange to see, knowing that they were not far apart in years.

Despite herself, she leans closer to look at the blue lily as well, careful to keep from touching it. Tesla coil, voltage, all of these flew over her head, but she wasn't in the sort of mood to ask. She was already learning about plants, learning about technology from his world would be a bit overwhelming.

"I think others have only accidentally touched it. No one has really tried to use it for...AC?" She said, hesitating over the word, making certain she had heard him correctly.

[fwips]

Still crouched beside the table, Peter looks up at Lyanna and smiles. "Hey, you're back." She's probably been back for awhile, he realizes, and he's been too much of an idiot to notice, but at least he's noticing now?

"AC is alternating current," he explains, and pushes himself back to his feet. "Electrical current. It changes direction back and forth, as opposed to DC, which is direct current and only goes the one way. AC is used for the electricity in the houses, like the lights and stuff— Do you know what electricity is?"

In this place, it's so hard to tell, and Lyanna seems really old-timey. Like knights and ladies old-timey.

[iron_beneath_beauty]

"I am." It's a half hearted smile she gives him, her early delight strained and weathered away, first by the long trek and then the loss she suffered when she returned. As like before, Peter manages to make her feel more at ease. His energy and spirit were imbued with a warmth she had never seen in her life. Being around him lifted the weight on her shoulders and made her feel as young as she was supposed to be.

"Electricity, that is what lights some of the houses?" She wasn't certain about the name, but she understood that much at least, even if she disliked the concept as a whole. The unfamiliar wasn't pleasing to her. "What is DC?"

There were times when these sorts of conversations made her feel slow and dim. Her cheeks turned red, embarrassed to admit her handicap with these concepts.

[fwips]

"Direct current," Peter repeats, and motions forward with his hands, probably unnecessarily. "It doesn't switch back and forth, it just goes the one way. And yeah, electricity is what lights the houses. It also makes things work like the stove and the refridgerator at the inn, I don't know if you've seen those. Like the stove doesn't need wood or coal or whatever, and the fridge doesn't need ice to stay cold."

Which really begs the question of where that electricity is coming from. He's wondered in an idle sense before, but felt like he had bigger fish to fry. But if he can find the source of the electricity, maybe he can find some clues about how to get back home.

[iron_beneath_beauty]

"And AC is what moves back and forth?" It made a little bit of sense, enough that she could follow him and he still had her attention. "I have, but I don't use them. I'm not much of a cook." Give her a fire and a slab of meat and she could manage, but using a stove was a bit beyond her.

"You seem to know a bit about this. Did you study it in your world?" Others were familiar with electricity, but they didn't explain it this well. He was like Mark in that sense, and from what little she knew, he was similar to a maester. Peter was young, but it wouldn't be a shock to learn that he was the same as Mark.

[fwips]

"Right. Alternating," Peter answers with a quick little nod. If Lyanna's from some kind of medieval place, he figures it's good enough if she can understand even the most simple electrical concepts.

"And yeah, I did," he adds of studying, "but like, science more broadly." He spreads his hands out. "Not just electricity. Especially robotics and chemistry... which is, um. Kind of like potions, I guess? Or alchemy? Alchemy is probably closer."

[iron_beneath_beauty]

"Do you know how it is that electricity can start and stop by a switch?" It was a random question during this lesson and probably didn't matter, but it was something she had been curious about for awhile. "Is it safe to touch those switches? Every time I am about to, I worry that there will be a spark." Which was a bit embarrassing to admit. Her cheeks turned crimson as she looked down at the ground.

"So you are like a maester...I mean, a scholar?" That word didn't seem to mean very much to others, scholar was as close as she could describe it in other terms. "Are you studying to be a healer or an alchemist?"

[fwips]

"Yeah— I mean, yes, I know how it works. You shouldn't have to worry about touching a light switch. Just don't touch any of the wires inside." The infrastructure here is a really old style, but Peter hasn't seen anything yet that seemed dangerous to the casual user.

"Sort of?" he answers of her last question. "I'm in high school, which is like... a secondary school? My school has an emphasis on technical stuff, but we learn all kinds of subjects. Where I come from, most people go to school for general subjects until they're about eighteen, and then they decide if they want more schooling in something more specialized or to just start working or whatever."

[iron_beneath_beauty]

"What keeps those wires from sending shocks through the switch? It doesn't seem like a very sturdy shield?" She somehow doubted that she would feel comfortable either way. It was a bit too much for her to wrap her head around. He at least could explain it to her in a way that was clear. No one else had been able to do that much beyond simply saying, 'this is what it is.'

"School?" No, it wasn't a word that she had heard before. "Eighteen? That is rather old to continue studying unless you were intending to take vows as a maester. You have no land to manage or wife?" It wasn't uncommon for a boy his age to be married, but it wouldn't be surprising to her if he was.

[fwips]

The functions of simple household electricity is, Peter realizes now, a lot more complicated than he might have imagined. "To simplify it a bunch, there are certain methods and materials that keep the electricity from shocking you. But mostly, think of it maybe like this: The switch is you sending a signal to the electricity. It's not the electricity sending one to you. One way."

Which might be confusing with the AC/DC distinction they talked about earlier, but he hopes she gets the gist enough to not be scared to turn on the lights.

He laughs a little at her last question, and shakes his head. "No, I don't have any land or a wife. People don't really do that where I come from anymore— I mean, some do, farmers and stuff, but sixteen is still considered a kid."