>> Scary, and sad, and chilling. and also weirdly confusing... <<
Yep.
>> Because now you also have my brain going "wait what?! Their guts would begin being a bit soupy at least internally not from the presence of bacteria but because of the intestinal enzymes and acids related to digestion...peptids, -lases, HCl, and the like are only buffered by the constant work of the mucosal lining producing mucous that keeps those compounds from digesting the tissues they are produced by (the failure or death of those mucous producing cells can be a cause of very painful peptic ulcers in some people) so without the mucous production, eventually those digestive juices would begin the process of breaking down the tissues from the inside.... <<
What I know is that the Sterbenfeld device kills everything within its range and severs the connection between spirit and body. Bodies do not decompose at normal speed. This correlates to some (rather creepy) tests that have been done using various types of radiation to sterilize bodies for preservation. 0_o There is still some mechanical and chemical breakdown of tissues, if they're left long enough, even without recolonization. But it really doesn't look normal, it's obviously creepy -- there's a lingering resonance for a few days that discourages animals or insects from approaching, and humans don't like it either. It doesn't seem harmful but it's about as much fun as wading through a pit of cockroaches. So there may be some effects on other things that usually happen. I don't know if it would actually destroy cell processes or tamper with chemical composition of acids, but I wouldn't rule it out without close examination. The bodies have no visible cause of death, though. They just drop.
*ponder* Ashley's superpowers span venom and Sterbenfeld-like effects. And at point-blank range they do dissolve things and have weird effects on chemistry. So it's not impossible.
>>Unless the Field has the ability to denature enzymes as well as rip the ATP production process apart (nearly every living thing uses ATP processes for cellular energy from blue whales to plants to fungi to single celled bacteria...cut that off at the pass and...well. Dead. Everything Is Dead.) Which is a scarier thought.<<
Possibly?
I've seen an author kill every living thing on Earth -- TWICE -- and keep going without noticing. I can only assume there was a severe need to put beans-on-table as fast as possible. Even if you allow aliens to change the laws of physics, if you 1) make electricity stop working, and 2) make gas expansion/compression stop working, then 3) nerves and lungs don't work anymore, and the whole biosphere is doornail.
>>Because if you've figured out how to halt ATP production or usage in an instant...that is some Serious Shit. <<
That might be a collateral effect. The Sterbenfeld cuts the relation between material and immaterial. So if ATP is one of the universal attachment points, and you yank out the soul, that could get damaged. But there's no obvious physical damage until the bodies start breaking down, either from mechanical or reintroduced biological means. Freshly killed, it looks like they just stopped.
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dancing_serpent
Re: This was interesting
Date: 2016-11-04 04:23 am (UTC)Yep.
>> Because now you also have my brain going "wait what?! Their guts would begin being a bit soupy at least internally not from the presence of bacteria but because of the intestinal enzymes and acids related to digestion...peptids, -lases, HCl, and the like are only buffered by the constant work of the mucosal lining producing mucous that keeps those compounds from digesting the tissues they are produced by (the failure or death of those mucous producing cells can be a cause of very painful peptic ulcers in some people) so without the mucous production, eventually those digestive juices would begin the process of breaking down the tissues from the inside.... <<
What I know is that the Sterbenfeld device kills everything within its range and severs the connection between spirit and body. Bodies do not decompose at normal speed. This correlates to some (rather creepy) tests that have been done using various types of radiation to sterilize bodies for preservation. 0_o There is still some mechanical and chemical breakdown of tissues, if they're left long enough, even without recolonization. But it really doesn't look normal, it's obviously creepy -- there's a lingering resonance for a few days that discourages animals or insects from approaching, and humans don't like it either. It doesn't seem harmful but it's about as much fun as wading through a pit of cockroaches. So there may be some effects on other things that usually happen. I don't know if it would actually destroy cell processes or tamper with chemical composition of acids, but I wouldn't rule it out without close examination. The bodies have no visible cause of death, though. They just drop.
*ponder* Ashley's superpowers span venom and Sterbenfeld-like effects. And at point-blank range they do dissolve things and have weird effects on chemistry. So it's not impossible.
>>Unless the Field has the ability to denature enzymes as well as rip the ATP production process apart (nearly every living thing uses ATP processes for cellular energy from blue whales to plants to fungi to single celled bacteria...cut that off at the pass and...well. Dead. Everything Is Dead.) Which is a scarier thought.<<
Possibly?
I've seen an author kill every living thing on Earth -- TWICE -- and keep going without noticing. I can only assume there was a severe need to put beans-on-table as fast as possible. Even if you allow aliens to change the laws of physics, if you 1) make electricity stop working, and 2) make gas expansion/compression stop working, then 3) nerves and lungs don't work anymore, and the whole biosphere is doornail.
>>Because if you've figured out how to halt ATP production or usage in an instant...that is some Serious Shit. <<
That might be a collateral effect. The Sterbenfeld cuts the relation between material and immaterial. So if ATP is one of the universal attachment points, and you yank out the soul, that could get damaged. But there's no obvious physical damage until the bodies start breaking down, either from mechanical or reintroduced biological means. Freshly killed, it looks like they just stopped.