Techno Babble: Difference between revisions

'''Cooper:''' Fuck "layman's terms", ''do you speak English?!'' }}

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

* The infamous "flux capacitor" from ''[[Back to The Future]]''. A capacitor is a circuit component that maintains a voltage through a charge differential: most simply, two plates of metal seperated at a small distance by an electrical insulator. Flux is the integral of a vector field over a surface. No amount of [[Fan Wank]] could possibly reconcile the two concepts.

** Actually, there's no need for excessive [[Fan Wank]]: doctor Brown works within exotic areas of science and is making up some terms. Flux capacitor is apparently not an electrical capacitor, but a device to somehow accumulate a flux of something, e.g. tachyons (doctor might not know what exactly), and then, like an electrical capacitor, release them in one moment in a purposeful way.

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

** Also subverted in ''Ariel'' - Simon teaches Mal, Zoe and Jayne some scripted medical jargon (with difficulty) to [[Bavarian Fire Drill|get them into a hospital]]. When it turns out they don't need it, Jayne decides to spout it anyway rather than let [[Book Dumb|his efforts go to waste]].

** Averted in a later episode, "Blink", of the famed [[Timey-Wimey Ball]] line, by the same writer as "The Girl in the Fireplace". The Doctor names a machine he builds "the timey-wimey detector" and describes its operation as "goes 'ding' when there's stuff."

** [[Steven Moffat]] expressly hates technobabble, on the basis that only anoraks would enjoy watching it.

"[[Shaped Like Itself|It means that it's bigger inside than out.]]" }}

** Lampshaded also in a number of Third Doctor episodes: Jon Pertwee had trouble dealing with technical talk of any sort, so eventually the writers threw in the towel and had ''everything'' come out "Reverse the polarity" (albeit not '[[Beam Me Up, Scotty|of the neutron flow]]').

** Also this from The Doctor's Wife:

{{quote| "Well actually, it's because the Time Lords discovered that if you take an eleventh-dimensional matrix and fold it into a mechanical then..." *Rory touches two wires together and they spark* "Yes, it's spacey-wacey!"}}

** Baltar had previously used reams of technobabble on Tigh to demonstrate his fake Amazing Cylon Detector. Lucky that his hapless victim turned out to be a real Cylon. Ironically, the equally-technobabbly but functional detector later built by Baltar is currently considered fake.

** Ronald D. Moore has gone on record several times saying that he hates using technobabble. In fact, the avoidance level is so high that it takes four seasons to show the Galactica's engine room. Most of the basic tech remains a [[Black Box]].

** That said, some of BG's aversion to technobabble goes a little bit too far to the point where sometimes you just don't know how anything works, and it ends up becoming more [[A Wizard Did It]]. Especially when it comes to suddenly moving through vast reaches of space with no explanation (and no, I'm not talking about the FTL drive).

** It really came back to bite them when the writers actually came up with a real scientific explanation for why stem cells from the human/Cylon hybrid Hera would cure cancer. Moore was worried that it would just ''sound'' like gibberish, and the final episode largely glosses over why it works (something about some blood cells being square while others are hexagonal, as far as we can tell). And the end result was many viewers upset that such a huge game-changing moment was given no real explanation.

'''Jack:''' Hey! Sometimes a little technobabble is good for the soul. }}

* Anytime Angela's doing her job on ''[[Bones]]'', expect prolific amounts of this. And all of it will be made-up. Which is, itself, an inversion, as she's the artist in a cast of geeks.

* In ''[[The Weird Al Show]],'' The Hooded Avenger uses technobabble to explain why Hanson taking flash photography of giant Harvey will make him go back to his normal size.

{{quote| '''The Hooded Avenger:''' No, no, stop! The flash effect from those cameras may displace neurons in Harvey's radioactive aura, damaging his neo-electrical field resulting in a complete and immediate growth reversal! ''(Harvey shrinks)'' See? Told ya.}}

[[Category:Applied Phlebotinum]]

[[Category:Techno Babble]]