Techno Babble: Difference between revisions

[[File:Technobabble.png|link=Gunnerkrigg Court|frame|<small>[[Blah Blah Blah|Chatter chatter jargon!]]</small> ]]

** In the UK, there was a TV advert making a big deal over "perborate" -- sounds—sounds advanced, but sodium perborate is such a common bleaching agent in detergents it's like making a fuss over caffeine in cola.

* ''[[Mobile Suit Gundam]]'' and its derivative works are known for inventing whole new quasiscientific areas (e.g. [[Minovsky Physics]]) together with corresponding [[Techno Babble]]. Example from ''[[Gundam Seed]]'':

** Episode 13 is probably one of the best sources for this, as it focuses less on the pilots and more on the technicians, [[Bridge Bunnies]], and Ritsuko. During the Angel's first attack sequence, we hear all kinds of [[Techno Babble]], such as in this scene, just as the attack commences:

* ''[[Tenchi Muyo!]]'': Subverted in the infamous "Mihoshi's Fairy Tale" episode of the original [[OVA|OVAs]]s,e in which Mihoshi claims the [[Big Bad]] in her story was stealing "ultra energy matter" for [[Evil Plan|nefarious purposes]]. Scientist Washū demands to know just what the hell "ultra energy matter" is, and Mihoshi nervously [[Hand Wave|handwaves]] it away with a [[Shaped Like Itself]] explanation that leaves Washū fuming.

* ''[[Guilty Crown]]'' takes after ''Evangelion'' in that it uses a lot of biology-themed [[Techno Babble]], most of it misapplied or completely nonsensical (intron-RAM, anyone?). Unlike in ''Evangelion'' it's uncertain if the trope was being subverted or parodied or played entirely straight.

** Weir then uses a convenient piece of (''very attractive'') paper to physically demonstrate folding two points of space together -- oncetogether—once again making us wonder why he didn't just start with that one.

* Legitimate [[Techno Babble]] makes a lot of [[Charles Stross]]'s appeal.

** Further lampshaded in ''One Of Our Thursdays Is Missing'', which reveals that any technological object in the Bookworld more advanced than a toaster is built by [[Techno Babble]] Industries.

** Scripts for ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation]]'' were usually written with "[Tech]" as a placeholder; a second set of writers would come in and replace the placeholders with actual [[Techno Babble]], referring to the right [[Applied Phlebotinum]] for the job.

* Used in ''[[Firefly]]'', usually by Kaylee -- whoseKaylee—whose technobabble is more "mechanic's shop-talk" than "high-end physics."

* Two characters in ''[[Mighty Morphin Power Rangers]]'' were devoted to [[Techno Babble]]. Billy (the Blue Ranger and resident Genius who built a [[Flying Car]] simply because he could) would rattle off big sounding words leaving the rest of the team to wait for him to finish speaking so they could turn Trini, the Yellow Ranger, who used nice bite sized words to explain everything.

* Subverted on ''[[30 Rock|Thirty Rock]]'' when Liz and Pete make their presentation about taking the team to Miami -- LizMiami—Liz just says a few Buzz Words and nothing else while Pete holds up a sign that says "Miami = Synergy." Jack says it's the best presentation he's ever seen.

'''Chiana:''' "Spare me the [[Techno Babble]], Gadget Girl, let's just get on with it." }}

* The Adeptus Mechanicus of ''[[Warhammer 40000]]'' has Lingua Technis, a language devoted to [[Techno Babble]]. It lets them maintain their monopoly on technical knowledge.

* ''[[Spirit of the Century]]'' allows players to make declarations about scientific facts their characters know which can help in whatever situation they find themselves in. Since ''[[Spirit of the Century]]'' runs on the rules of [[Two-Fisted Tales|pulp narrative]], both players and [[Game Master|Game Masters]]s are encouraged to make such situations less about "realistic science" and more about "impressive sounding technobabble."

* Many RPGs have their own set of jargon phrases. Try asking a new ''[[Dungeons and Dragons]]'' player what THAC0 is (even the older players have trouble explaining it).<ref>THAC0: The number required to roll on a d20 To Hit an Armor Class of 0. Way back in Second Edition, a ''lower'' Armor Class was better. And sometimes you had to roll ''under'' target numbers (saving throws, psionic powers, etc.) Third Edition made things a lot simpler (rolling higher is always better). And yet THAC0 was actually a vast simplification from the jargon of first edition.</ref>.

* In ''[[Theater/The Rainmaker|The Rainmaker]]'', Starbuck first tries to explain how he can bring rain in terms of [[Techno Babble]]. Since Lizzie isn't buying it, he quickly changes his approach:

** Tails has been known to rattle off [[Techno Babble]] ever since he was finally given a speaking role that revealed he was the team's resident science geek extraordinaire.

** Keep reading -- areading—a few comics later it culminates nicely with a character exploding due to technobabble overload.

* Alternately played straight and played with in ''[[Teen Titans (animation)|Teen Titans]]''. You have five teenagers living/fighting crime together. Cyborg is a half-robot and thus knows a ''lot'' about computers and machines, despite not finishing high school; Raven grew up meditating and reading ancient magical scrolls; Starfire is an alien with substantial knowledge of science and her own world's culture but will ultimately be stumped if you ask her a question about ''Earth's'' history, culture, and language; Robin is a [[Badass Normal]] raised by [[Batman]] who [[Where Does He Get All Those Wonderful Toys?|makes all of his own toys]]; and Beast Boy, as Raven so artfully put it, learned his history from a cereal box -- andbox—and the rest from TV. Get this group together and you're in for some pretty interesting conversations.

* Essentially every product or idea sold on the basis of the word "quantum", or to put it another way, the entire woo-woo industry. Woo which predates quantum mechanics -- homeopathymechanics—homeopathy, for example -- hasexample—has been retooled to include a lot of convincing-sounding, but utterly nonsensical, jibber-jabber about superposition and parallel dimensions. To make yourself an idea, watch the second half of ''What the <BLEEP> Do We Know''.

* Attempts to use technobabble to lend a veneer of plausibility to pseudoscience often have the opposite effect on people who actually know anything about the scientific disciplines being abused. [http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2006/08/your_friday_dose_of_woo_just_what_your_w.php One hilarious example] -- apparently—apparently the ills of the world are caused by the ''bond angle in water changing''; not only would this not happen without a change in the fundamental constants of the universe, but it's something everyone would notice because it would affect the freezing and boiling points of water. The same people then go on to talk about how boiling water drives off the electrons because its natural state is electrically charged, at which point anyone who hasn't completely forgotten GCSE chemistry and physics should smell the bullshit clearly and anyone who actually has a degree in either subject will be laughing uncontrollably, facepalming or both. Most people don't, which is why it's so popular to use.

* Parodied by the [http://www.dhmo.org/ Dihydrogen Monoxide Research Division], who claim that a compound called "Dihydrogen Monoxide" is a dangerous chemical indirectly responsible for cancer, extremely addicting and deadly when accidentally inhaled among other things. Although all the terminology used is correct and none of the stated information is false, [[Half Truth|the possible dangers are greatly exaggerated or portrayed from an unusual point of view]]. Anyone with basic knowledge in chemistry quickly realizes that "Dihydrogen Monoxide" is actually {{spoiler|water}}. Although clearly a hoax, numerous people unfamiliar with chemistry -- includingchemistry—including [[media:dhmo.gif|no few elected officials]] -- have—have actually advocated a ban of the chemical.