Animorphs scenery

Fan theories are something that frequently abound in works of fiction. They are the readers attempt to rationalise the fridge logic or plot holes found within many stories. With regards to the Animorphs series by Katherine Applegate (the 3rd most successful adolescent novels of all time), one frequently asked question was where the Animorphs home town was. All we knew is that they lived in south California, in a medium sized city near the coast. Anything more explicit than that was left to the readers imagination. In a previous post, I determined that the geography of Ventura county was an almost perfect match for where the books events took place. Along with the citys generic infrastructure (a downtown area with high rises, and large suburbs), there were a number of mountains, valleys, rivers, lakes, and islands that served as the backdrop. My goal is to match the geographical features described in the books with what is actually found in south California. Circumventing the 'city of adventure' trope is no mean feat, however, and in order to prove that Ventura was the actual city in question, I'll take a look at the land marks which featured in the books and see if they have a real world analogue. If they do, that counts as a win for my little theory.

 Home to all of the crazy stories 

that consumed our adolescence

Channel islands: The islands appeared in book 4 when the Animorphs traveled out to the ocean to rescue ax. They were also the setting for book 15 when they had to infiltrate an underwater Yeerk base. In book 22, David was exiled to the islands after he tried to betray the kids. Santa Cruz and Santa Rosa are the largest islands, and are also the closest to the main land, so they are an obvious match

Ship harbor: When the kids find out that an Andalite is trapped beneath the ocean in his ships dome, they fly out to a busy shipping lane and stowaway aboard a container ship. This location is obviously port Hueneme, the only deep water harbor between Los Angeles and San Francisco. (Nothing else can berth a ship of that size) It also made an appearance in the Visser chronicles, when Visser one faked her death in a staged boating accident.

Mountain range #1: In book 3, the Animorphs travel up to a mountain range where a giant Yeerk ship has been loitering. It took them more than an hour to get there, even while running in wolf morph. The distance is consistent with Hines peak, which broadens out to include the Topatopa mountain range. There is a problem with my theory, though: The mountain in book 3 had a lake, while Hines peak does not. [1]

National forest: This forest sweeps down from the mountains all the way to the edge of town, near the wildlife clinic owned by Cassies parents. It features prominently in many of the books, and is home to some of the animals which the kids eventually morph into. Los padres national forest is a good fit, although its located about 7 or 8 miles north of the city (so there is some artistic license). The terrain is quite hilly, with hiking trails and forestry roads.
 
Hidden valley: In book 13, the kids help a pair of free Hork-Bajir escape from Yeerk captivity. They spend all night and most of the day heading north towards the mountains, being pursued by controllers who track them on the ground and from the air. Since the Animorphs themselves speculate that the Ellimist may have created the valley, we don't actually need to put it in the map. However, all indications are that its located north of the Topatopa mountains. [2]
  
Large river: A river was mentioned in book 4, which ran through the city and out into the ocean. In book 16, Joe Bob Fenestres mansion (which was far inland) had a boat house out on the river front. In book 17, a huge skyscraper and a planet hollywood were located near the river. While the buildings are non-existent fantasy, everything else indicates that this is Santa Clara river. It is somewhat dry and swampy for most of the year, but is prone to flash flooding.
 
Mountain range #2: In book 30, the Animorphs manage to lure Visser one onto a mountain top where she is ambushed by Visser three. The Yeerk leaders (who are hostile to each other) engage in battle, as do their troops and ships. This mountain was obviously not Hines peak, but some other range a good distance away. [3] Pine mountain would fit the bill nicely, although its really far away from Ventura.

Air base: In book 46, the Animorphs were forced to sneak into a ANG (air national guard) base and hijack an F-16 fighter, in order to fly out to the pacific ocean and stop the Yeerks from instigating WW3. Ventura county is home to the Channel islands ANG station, which has a runway and control tower, although it only operates C-130 transports and the like (not fighters).


Notes

[1] The closest body of water is lake Piru, about 10 miles away from the Topatopa mountain range. Interestingly, it has a creek which runs through the national forest, and connects to the Santa Clara river. This is a word for word description of a creek where Cassie almost drowned in book 19.

[2] They managed to fake the Hork-Bajirs deaths within a ravine that was near the mountain. The Yeerks started a forest fire to the north, while also sending controllers up from the south. After the fire burned out, the kids traveled north through the burnt forest, where they found the valley.

[3] Obviously, the Animorphs wouldn't have picked anything too close to the hidden valley, as that would compromise the Hork-Bajir colonys security. But it wasn't so far away that Toby and her people couldn't get there on foot and act as reinforcements.

Phaser vs turbolaser

(Under construction)

The versus subculture in science fiction can be difficult to explain to the uniniate. It basically involves fans of two different franchises engaging in a debate about who would beat who in a fight. To most peoples senses, arguing about which fictional character or spaceship would defeat the other would seem a trivial waste of time. But the fact is, some of these topics require a degree of physics and math skill in order to successfully make your case: If you want to prove how powerful a phaser or turbolaser is, you need to observe instances when they were fired at objects, judge the collateral damage, and estimate how much energy was expended. In doing so, a debater can not only demonstrate his knowledge for all to see, but also gain new insights into how their fictional world operates. Following basic scientific principles can lead to some pretty surprising conclusions (such as the endor holocaust), and the versus trope is no exception to this. Lets take 'star wars vs star trek' as an example.

 Good times

Followers from both sides are able to dream up an astonishing variety of lethal encounters, like han solo vs captain kirk, warf vs chewie, red shirt vs stormtrooper, and (most popular of all) an imperator class ship vs a galaxy class ship. Even though the star trek universe takes a more egalitarian and pacifist stance than star wars, that doesn't seem to stop its fans from bickering about who would kick whose ass. Capital ship match ups are the most common, but there is alot of uncertainty with regards to things like firepower, shielding, acceleration, sensors, etc. To someone who is an admirer of both franchises, theres a certain appeal in knowing the specifications of each vessel. Matching separate ships against each other in a space battle definitely appeals to the nerd in all of us. Quite a few websites attempt to draw up hard numbers for the ships of both star wars and star trek. Here is one of the more popular ones.

 Beware of strawmen

It is immediately obvious that some of the figures posted are flat out inaccurate. Take a look at both sides of the table chart:
-For the acclamator class, power output is stated to be 8.36E20 watts (or 200 gigatons of TNT) for a heavy gun. *
-For the galaxy class, power output is stated to be 1.02E9 watts (or less than 1 ton of TNT) for a primary phaser array.

The problem with both of these estimates is that neither of them are based on direct observation of the on-screen evidence. Both are sourced from qausi-canon books that contradict on-screen feats. Lets try to reconcile these figures with visual analysis.

-For the acclamator class, power output is stated to be 8.36E20 watts for a heavy gun. On this page, however, that same type of gun was observed to melt or vaporise a 20 meter wide asteroid, a feat requiring only 4.5E14 to 3.75E15 watts.
-For the galaxy class, power output is stated to be 1.02E9 watts for a primary phaser array. On this page, however, that same array was acknowledged to have vaporised 1250 cubic meters of rock, a feat which would require around 4.8E12 watts.


*The so called 'heavy guns' which have a claimed output of 200 gigatons are actually XV7 light turbolasers. These twin barreled weapons fire 50 meter long bolts, and are mounted on 8-10 meter wide turrets. They are found on numerous classes of ship (including the acclamator and imperator), and were used during the infamous chase in the hoth asteroid field.

Animorphs revisited

Animorphs is a science fiction series which details the infiltration of earth by a parasitic alien species called the yeerks. They are opposed by a group of human teenagers (along with an alien named ax) who form a small but stubborn guerilla movement. They don't have access to military hardware or even weapons: What they do have is alien technology which allows them to turn into animals, sneak into guarded buildings, and spy on or attack the invaders. The fight scenes are quite gory and explicit, more like 'when animals attack' than anything else. Yeerk contollers and animorphs are frequently maimed in stunning displays of martial force and savagery. I used to read these books quite often while still in elementary school, when I was 11 to 13 years old. And when I was in high school, I would revisit books I had been unable to read (like the megamorphs). I read them mostly for the cool fights, and didn't absorb the deeper themes until I was older. Which is not altogether surprising, because these books have alot of post modern ideas that can go right over the heads of a young audience.
 
According to one review: 'As a whole, however, the series did not focus so much on the superficial elements of the plot, but on how their war affects and changes them. These effects and changes are what separate this series from other 'childrens' books and series. Childrens is used loosely because while the series was marketed to children, the story was far more mature than an average 9-12 year old, the target demographic, could handle, a point clearly demonstrated by the majority of reviews at Amazon.com.' This has only become clear to me now, as I have been re-reading the main sequence books (along with the chronicles) for the past year. The incredible story told in animorphs is able to hold my attention just as firmly now as it did while I was in elementary school. In all my years of reading science fiction, I've never come across a single series that is as thought provoking, entertaining, and altogether well rounded as this one. It really is a testament to sturgeons law: Most of what passes for sci fi is enough to make you gag.

It makes me sad to think of what todays kids are missing out on, a sentiment which is echoed by many other bloggers. I recently learned that a small community of ex-fans continue to talk about the animorphs books, and how their themes are still relevant today. Personally, I feel that the series was succesful enough to be used as a template for other works of science fiction. So as a result, I am going to jump into this sub-genre with both feet and add my voice to the discussion. During my read throughs, I noticed that some important questions in the books went unanswered, which has left former (and current) readers scratching their heads. Some of these questions are peripheral to the situation on earth, but still relevant to the plot at large: After all, finding an alien race to menace earth is more complicated than it sounds. Luckily though, I have intimated rational explanations for these plot holes. Rather than keeping them to myself, I will share my insights in the hopes that they can bring on a catharsis.

Elfangors last stand against visser 3

What city did the animorphs live in?

We know that they live in south california, in a medium sized city near the coast. We know that it had a river, was bordered with national forrests, and a couple of mountains and valleys. Some have suggested their home town was santa barbara, but thats not realistic. For one, it doesn't have a core downtown area with high rises, nor does it have large suburban areas with 2 story houses. For another, santa barbara lacks a deep water harbor, coast guard station, and air national guard station. But there are two citys which have all that, and are located directly next to each other: Oxnard and ventura. The local geography is a perfect match, and so is almost everything else. [1] These citys may not have 60 story skyscrapers, a sea world, or underground trains, but remember, this is an alternate reality! The yeerks discovered earth in the early 90s, and have been interfering with the normal progression of history. Minor discrepancies in the layout of cities and such are to be expected.

Was oxnard and/or ventura the only city occupied by the yeerks?

Probably not. Although its never explicitly stated in the books, there was very likely a yeerk presence beyond just one city. When the series began in early 1996, they had already been on earth for a number of years. Depending on fast the yeerks were infesting people, they could have quickly grown to a large population. When the war ended 3 years later, most of the people in the animorphs home town had been made into controllers. The yeerks would have needed to expand into neighbouring citys just to keep things on schedule. Their civilisation was powerful enough to cross the vast distances between stars, so infiltrating a couple more citys wouldn't have been a problem. Another point in favor of this is how the animorphs were reluctant to disclose their last names, as well as what city they lived in. [2] The books themselves are implied to be their private journals, which were not meant to go public and fall into the hands of a controller. But if the yeerks had only ever infested that one city, then why would the animorphs keep their citys name a secret (even as a safety precaution)? This only makes sense if the yeerks were occupying multiple citys.

Why did the yeerks launch their infiltration in south california?

There would be many considerations for the yeerks to take into account. The requirement to take over and infest large population centers was paramount, but so too was the need for secrecy. The area around L.A.  is known for weird people and events, so the occasional explosion or UFO sighting would not arouse any suspicion. California is also the media and entertainment center of america, with many large military bases and technology centers. Subverting these to their control would allow the yeerks to rapidly spread throughout america, and then the world at large. [3] Coastal citys were preferable, since space ships could reenter the atmosphere out in the ocean where few people would notice. (This explains all the underwater bases, too) They also needed citys where massive construction projects could go unnoticed. Even yeerk pools don't exist entirely below ground, after all: They need entrance ways to the surface, where they can bring in steel beams and remove pulverised rock. Los angeles is also where visser 1 originally landed and began her infiltration, so its only natural that when yeerks began showing up in numbers, L.A. would be the staging point.

How advanced were the yeerks before being contacted by prince seerow?

Many are of the opinion that the yeerk empire was originally at a tech level equal to the industrial age, or perhaps even more primitive. This is a totally ridiculous idea. If the steam engine and coke blast furnace were the most advanced technologys possessed by the yeerks, they would never have been able to escape their homeworld and aggressively colonise the galaxy. They would instead have needed to work their way up to a higher level. With direct help from the andalites (like an academy where yeerk scientists could study at), their rate of technological progress would have accelerated. Given 2 or 3 decades, the yeerks could develop internal combustion engines, electric motors and batterys, analogue electronics, the bayer and haber processes, etc. And given 2 or 3 more decades, they could have moved on to propeller aircraft, analogue computers, composite materials, and even nuclear fission. But thats just it: Even after 40-60 years of direct assistance from seerow, the yeerks would only be at a development index equal to the atomic age! Their weapons would still be crude, their industrial base would still be crude, and their ability to travel through space almost non-existent. In order for the yeerks to have posed the threat they did (running rampant within 3 years of being contacted by the andalites), they must have been at a higher tech level from the start. Much higher, in fact. Something like the RDA government from avatar, or the lysian alliance from star trek TNG. Realistically speaking, by the time prince seerow showed up, the yeerks must have had everything except for zero-space engines and communications, advanced materials and power generation.

How large were the yeerk and andalite empires?

Not as big as most people would think. The yeerks had at least two star systems under their control, the hork-bajir system, and the taxxon system. There were a number of other species whose worlds they had conquered, as well as enclaves they set up in abandoned systems (like olgin base). The hork-bajir planet was stated to be 200 light years from the andalites homeworld, a distance which took 2 months to cross by ship. Meanwhile, the andalite homeworld was stated to be just 82 light years from earth. With that, we can conclude that most of the andalite-yeerk war had taken place inside the local bubble. That gives a good baseline on the size of both their territorys. As for population, it was implied in numerous books that conquering earth would greatly increase the yeerks numbers. Given these background details, its fair to assume the yeerks had colonised a dozen star systems, and had a billion or more personnel in their military. Thats not including the huge number of yeerks who didn't have hosts, and thus weren't fit for service. The andalites would probably be in a similar predicament, with only a fraction of their population actually serving in the military. This makes their empires far smaller than the united federation of planets. But compared to the human race, they were still huge and menacing.


[1] This will actually be a good topic for a future post: Finding locations described in the books (like the mountains or valleys), and seeing where they fit on an actual map. Theres quite a bit of geography to overview.

[2] Heres a line from book #3: "I can't tell you my last name. Or the name of the city where I live." And another from book #7: "You might be a Controller. So I won't tell you my last name. Or where I live."

[3] The yeerks needed to infest a few million humans before they could abandon the infiltration, in favor of an open invasion. A force of that size could effortlessly defeat the U.S military, and whatever task force the andalites sent.

Reinforcing the human body 2

Ambitious approach

We have seen the things that can be done with somatic engineering. Impressive though they are, the scope of things that can be done with germline engineering is greater still. The nature of the body systems themselves can be changed to suit human desires. Unfortunately, such alterations cannot be made to adult subjects: They can only be made during conception. The procedure would require a packet of micro-chromosomes to be inserted into human embryos: The instructions contained within will alter the cells programming, and change the course of prenatal development. As an example of this, consider vasculogenesis. This is the process through which a developing fetus gains a heart and major blood vessels. Genetecists could alter the growth factors and signalling pathways within the cells (such as VEGF and Tie), and cause vasculogenesis to proceed in a different manner. After being injected with the gene packet, a fetus will go on to develop an altered set of blood vessels in its legs, arms, and neck. Uniquely, its arteries will branch off into two separate blood vessels, in a process called bifurcation. This will make the vasculatory system as a whole less vulnerable to cuts and lacerations. Similar alterations will be made to the signalling pathways which regulate the formation of bones, muscles, nerves, and skin in a fetus. Taken together, these changes result in a genotype that is completely different from a normal human, different enough that the individuals could be termed a separate species.

The ability to execute such a daring program could only be enabled by three things. The first was the human genome project, which created a database of all the genes present in the human genome. The second was the advent of gene editing techniques like CRISPR, which enable the removal and insertion of genes as desired. The third will be supercomputers which can simulate the phenotype that would arise from a given genotype. [1] In other words, they can predict how an embryo will develop, what it will look like as an adult, and determine whether or not it would suffer from deformitys. Such simulations would remove alot of the guess work involved in making a designer baby. Eventually, it will become feasible to create individuals with increased strength, durability, speed, and other attributes that would make them at home on the battlefield. A soldier fit for the 21st century. As franz uhle wettler said of warfare in the 20th century: 'Weapons have become more dangerous, but men have remained just as vulnerable.' This century will likely be no exception. As war machines become more and more capable, ordinary humans continue to lag behind as the weak link in the chain. This trend can be halted by creating a force of metahumans with the attributes needed to thrive on the battlefield. Moreover, their genomes can be updated with each generation, which would help insure that they never become obsolete.

The development of blood vessels

Muscular system: Metahumans have an archaic musculo-skeletal system granting them enormous physical strength, sufficient to deadlift approximately 2000 lbs, and military press well over 800 lbs. They can also exceed 30 mph in a sprint. There are three main factors behind this. Two of these are seen naturally (albeit rarely) in humans: Hypertrophied muscles, and lengthened tendons. [2] The third is unique, dealing with how the muscle fibers themselves are recruited. Skeletal muscles are controlled by the peripheral nervous system, which interact through motor units. These are neurons which branch off from a nerve (like, say, the musculo-cutaneous nerve) and hook up to a muscle fiber. Motor units come in two varietys, large and small. A large motor unit connects to many muscle fibers and causes all of them to contract at once. A small motor unit connects to only a few muscle fibers, so that finer control of movement is possible. Compared to all other animals, humans have an abundance of small motor units, and a deficiency of large motor units. This gives us excellent fine motor control, but low muscle recruitment (and hence, low force output). By increasing the number of large motor neurons which branch off each nerve, metahumans will be capable of much greater muscle recruitment.
 
As noted, some of their muscle groups have different attachment points and better innervation, which allows for improved function. This is especially evident with the extrinsic muscles of the ear, which can flare and contour the whole ear and locate the direction of a sound faster. Another example is the fingers, wherein the forearm muscles attach by four slips rather than three. More important than any of that is a metahumans sheer athleticism: From an early age, they can do hand stand pushups, planches, pistol squats, v-ups, and human flagpoles. Standing en pointe is easy for them, as are kick ups (jumping from the back onto the feet), arabesques, limbos, and other gymnastic maneuvers. They can rapidly march over long distances with heavy packs, making them excellent foot soldiers. Metahumans are strong enough to use muscle powered gliders for recreation, although the constant effort required may tire them out after a few miles. They also ride bicycles with abnormally stiff gears, allowing them to reach 50 mph on level road. However, their power-to-weight ratio is not as high as it could be, because of the dead weight represented by their thick skin and abdominal carapace.

 A motor neuron connecting to a muscle fiber

 
Circulatory system: This is the system through which red blood cells (and hence, oxygen) are distributed throughout the body. Arteries carry the oxygenated blood away from the heart to the body, while veins carry the deoxygenated blood away from the body to the heart. The continued functioning of the circulatory system is vital to survival, but unfortunately, it is seriously lacking in redundancy. There is generally only one blood vessel supplying each plane of the body, and if it stops pumping, bad things happen. A severed artery is much more serious than a severed vein, because arterys have high blood pressure and can lead to exsanguination, whereas veins have much lower blood pressure. Metahumans have a more redundant circulatory system, and this is particularly evident in the arteries of their arms, legs, and neck. The femoral artery bifurcates around the head of the femur, splitting into two distinct arterys that run down opposite sides of the same bone, making it impossible to sever both with a single cut.

The axillary artery is altered in the same way, bifurcating around the head of the humerus. As for the carotid arteries, they bifurcate just above the collar bone: Although the internal carotid takes the same path, the external carotid takes a longer path behind the vertebral column (more specifically, behind its transverse process). This leaves the major arteries much less exposed to danger, but the differences don't end there. Arterioles also branch off from the main artery at regular intervals, and some will reconnect with the artery further down the line. So if the artery is ever cut, it can safely close itself off, while capillaries continue pumping blood around the clot. It functions like a highway with side roads, or a river with tributary streams. [3] The only way that blood flow can be cut off is with a wide cut, which severs not just the artery itself, but the dozens of capillaries radiating out from it. Finally, their blood is able to form clots much faster than normal, which ensures that it won't be sent spilling uselessly through a severed artery.

The delicate network of arteries and veins

[1] This is already being done on a limited and primitive level: By performing an amniocentesis on an unborn baby, genetecists can not only carry out a screening test for congenital diseases, but can also predict its gender, eye colour, skin pigment, etc. In one respect, this is already resulting in designer babys, because any fetuses that are undesired by the couple can simply be aborted.

[2] The amount of force a muscle can exert is determined by its cross sectional area, while the amount of leverage a tendon can exert depends on its distance from a joint. If the size of a muscle fiber is doubled, its surface area (and hence the force output) will increase by a factor of four. And if the tendon from a bicep muscle connects 4 inchs away from the elbow, it will have 100% more leverage than a tendon which connects just 2 inchs away.

[3] Though again, these tributary branchs only occur along the axillary/brachial artery, the femoral/popliteal artery, and the carotid arteries. They aren't seen in the blood vessels of the body core (I.E, torso), because the blood pressure there is too high. Branches formed from the descending aorta would rupture the small diameter arteriolles.

Reinforcing the human body 1

In the previous article, we saw a potential need for super soldiers to fight in high intensity conflicts and replace baseline humans, who may not be physically or psychologically capable of dealing with such stresses. Some discussion was given to the adaptations that humans could benefit from in future conflicts, at such a time when genetic engineering proves to be viable. There are two different approachs to this, which involve somatic and germline engineering. The former can be made to adults, while the latter can only be made to embryos. Thus, either approach has a problem inherent to it. While somatic engineering doesn't have a time delay, it can only make limited changes to an adult subject. Germline engineering can change every aspect of the unborn subjects physiology, but it takes 18 years before they can grow to adulthood! When the time for this discussion comes, different nations will take different stances on it. Some will find germline engineering to be ethically challenging, while others nations could care less about the moral implications. Another question would be whether the possibilitys of germline engineering are too extensive, beyond what is needed for a super soldier. Without a firm understanding of the possibilitys and limits of less radical approachs, this viewpoint would hold a dominant frame. Therefore, the rest of this article will deal with exploring the realm of somatic engineering.

Minimalist approach

One of the biggest detriments to unit performance is the pareto principle, a phenomenon whereby 20% of the men contribute 80% of the combat results. This has to do with the psychometric profiles of individual soldiers: Some personality types are inherently more aggressive and daring than others. They are responsible for a disproportionate number of results within the unit. The assumption of every man being equal is a common one, but it couldn't be more wrong. Hollywood war movies which depict every soldier being an active participant in a battle are highly unrealistic: In practise, most of the men will be hiding behind cover, or fiddling with equipment and trying to look busy. Anything to help alleviate the intense stress that comes with people trying to murder each other in hot blood. The average soldier can march just fine during a movement to contact, but once ordered to partake in an actual attack (where they are exposed to weapons fire), getting them up and moving is a formidable challenge. Sometimes, the men cannot even be relied upon to provide covering fire for the few brave soldiers in the platoon who decide to go on the attack.

The 80/20 phenomenon results in a wasteful employment of personnel, which is most prevalent amongst infantry (particularly over the course of long campaigns). Since the soldiers who take all the risks inevitably wind up KIA given enough time, the unit is eventually left only with the average men who are not capable of serious action. Because of the rarity of such aggressive and daring soldiers, it is simply not possible to allocate them in all the places they are needed: Many posts must be filled with ordinary men instead. Jim storr elaborated upon this concept in his book, with figures drawn from the second world war. In the western desert, the top 15 fighter pilots in the luftwaffe (from a total of over 200) accounted for 44% of all allied aircraft destroyed, which is an average of over 44 kills for each pilot. There was a similar (but less pronounced) trend among american submarine captains, with 8.5% of the boats scoring 39% of the kills. This brings up an interesting question: What if all the men within a unit could be aces? Would its combat effectiveness as a whole dramatically increase?

Its a tantalising possibility that could be realised with somatic engineering. Studys show that certain genes, such as MAOA and TPH1, can influence an individuals level of aggression and risk adversity. Mutations in these genes could very well be responsible for the daring men who win most of the units battles. If true, then militarys may decide that it would be highly beneficial for their troops to undergo therapy, so that they could all benefit from increased performance. And even that is only scratching the surface of possibilitys. In metal gear solid, a major plot point is the existence of 'soldier genes', which regulate certain abilitys relevant to combat performance. For instance, one set of genes might govern strategic thinking, while another set might be responsible for the killer instinct. Although these individual genes were widespread amongst the human population, what was unique was that all of them were found in the genome of one man, the greatest warrior of the 21st century: Big boss. This gave him the full range of abilitys needed to thrive as a soldier.

Metal gear solid: Briefing files

There are many different ways that an ordinary soldiers performance can be increased without necessarily making them superhuman. For example, they can be given a battery of injections which would grant them enhanced reflexes, learning abilitys, and working memory. (This would be especially important for officers and NCOs, enabling them to control subordinate units like the fingers on their hand) Soldiers can also become more resistant to mental trauma stress, pain, and sleep deprivation. For instance, the hDEC2 gene results in people feeling energized on just 4-5 hours of sleep every night. If such changes were made to an armys personnel, the benefits could be tremendous: When normal human limitations are bypassed, the nature of the military instrument itself is transformed. Without the restraints and risks imposed by traumatised, exhausted, and stressed team mates, the organisation as a whole becomes more effective in all aspects. At a minimum, they would be able to avoid burnout after four days of mobile warfare.
 
These are basic enhancements that can be made available to all members of a military hierarchy, for support troops as well as combat personnel. But for those employed in the most dangerous branch of all (the poor bloody infantry), something more will be desired. Given the rigors of their job, they might require alterations such as denser bones and stronger muscles. The former can be unlocked by tampering with the LRP5 gene, while the latter can be achieved by manipulating the NCOR1 and MSTN gene. This would allow them to carry great weights with ease, scale treacherous landscapes, and remain uninjured by falls or collisions. Foot mobile infantry could regain a place in the army, rather than being the butt of so many bad jokes. Super soldiers wouldn't need to abide by the risk adverse policys that were adopted after WW1, in order to prevent themselves being bled white. They could take on daring missions without relying on the support of other branchs, which would lead to a more independent infantry force.


* More provocatively, some men can even be made colour blind, allowing them to more easily spot camouflage and prevent their comrades from walking into an ambush.

Armor factoids

5.56mm to 7.62mm AP

There is quite alot of misinformation regarding the difference in penetrating power between old and new models of armor piercing rounds. In the former, we have the M2 AP (30-06 caliber). In the latter, we have the M995 AP (5.56x45mm caliber) and M993 AP (7.62x51mm caliber). On military forums, the popular opinion is that the M995 AP can outperform the M2 AP. Such a view is at odds with a test done 2 years ago by Brass Fetchers. The film makers fired M2 AP rounds against a 12.7mm thick plate of MIL–A 12560 steel. While the exact hardness of this alloy is unknown, its suspected to be in the region of 381-442 brinell! Another source puts it at a more conservative 390 brinell. Striking at a velocity of just 793 mt/s, the M2 AP round succeeded in penetrating the MIL–A 12560 plate.

Brass Fetchers

793 mt/s is about the velocity that an M2 AP would have at 100 meters. With that in mind, we can compare its score to the M995 and M993 rounds. According to nammo, the M995 AP can pierce 12mm of steel at 100 meters, while the M993 AP can pierce 18mm of steel at 100 meters. Both of these plates are of 300 brinell hardness, which compares poorly to the 381-442 brinell plates the M2 AP was fired against. Given that even a small difference in plate hardness (as small as 50 brinell) can have a significant influence in whether or not a round penetrates, this should speak volumes about the power of a 30-06. Even without a tungsten core, it is superior to the M995, and not far behind the M993. [1] The fact that ceramic armors can withstand even one shot from these projectiles is impressive.
 
 
ESAPI plates

This was a test done 4 years ago by On Target Tactical. It involved a government-issue level IV plate (supposedly an ESAPI) being shot three times by an M1 garand from 10 yards. This is in accordance with military testing standards, and with the contract description for ESAPI. [2] But instead of the 168 grain M2 AP rounds that are typically used in level IV tests, the analysts used remington 165 grain core-lokt rounds. This is a soft point bullet with less penetrating power than an FMJ, never mind armor piercing. Of the three rounds fired at the ESAPI plate, one made a full penetration, which is a fairly shocking result. This test seemingly confirms the ESAPIs poor tolerance for multiple hits, especially if they strike in a tight grouping.

On Target Tactical

Some critics have attempted to claim that the plate was inserted backwards into the vest, but this is patently false. The front of the plate shows evidence of three hits, while the back shows evidence of just one, and thats the shot that perforated through both sides. Others have pointed out that ESAPIs are not stand alone capable, and must be used in conjunction with level IIIA soft armor. This is a valid point, and its not quite clear whether the vest in question (TPC tactical plate carrier from pantac usa) has kevlar panels built into it. But since the analysts weren't even using armor piercing rounds, it wouldn't make a major difference anyways. Clearly, ESAPI plates can be defeated with a full power rifle by using a double tap.

 Army plates are tested with a minimum spacing of 6 inchs.

If the rounds strike any closer together, the plate will crack

[1] Compared to the M995, it can penetrate the same thickness of harder steel at the same distance. Compared to the M993, it can penetrate a lesser thickness of harder steel at the same distance.

[2] According to wikipedia: “Military testing calls for survivability of three hits from the round marked on the plate - for standard SAPI, of a caliber up to 7.62×51mm NATO...” “Additionally, two ceramic plates may be added to the front and back of the vest, with each capable of stopping up to three hits from the round marked on the plate.”

Zionists behind the migrant crisis

This is a pretty simple formula, but alot of people can't seem to grasp it. Israel (and its american puppet) are destabilising countrys in the middle east with their military interventions, and the inhabitants of those nations must then flee in order to survive. The zionists then use their moles inside the UN and EU to promote open border policys, allowing millions of ethnic minoritys to flood into racially pure european countrys. The middle eastern refugees have a completely different belief system, and despise the white people native to the countrys they take shelter in. They refuse to integrate with the rest of the community, setting up religious and racially based enclaves.

 Be afraid... Be very afraid

 
These quasi-legal immigrants preach hatred against the people whose welfare they live off, and institute a take over by baby boom (outbreeding the europeans). We are already seeing them overtake the natives of sweden, and the terrible consequences this has. But most europeans are too liberal or socialist minded to speak out against these travestys, and do mental gymnastics to avoid rationally looking at the consequences. Unless they stop these open border policys which are demographic suicide, then at some time in the future, there is going to be a race war and ethnic cleansings. Multi-cultrualism is a zionist agenda which has already failed the lithmus test, its just a question of how long before the common man realises it.


Relevant links
http://www.realjewnews.com/?p=567
http://wakeupfromyourslumber.com/islamization-zionist-diversion/


Edit: The massacres that occured in paris just 6 days after this post underscores just how unfeasible multi-culturalism is. The french people should have demanded an end to the open borders policy, and began deporting all middle-easterners without proper documentation (which is most of them). Instead, they are holding vigils and waving the #$%ing flag, like that willdo anything. They already had warning signs with the charlie hebdo killings, and now the truth is plainly apparent. If the french people do not begin punishing those politicians responsible for enabling the paris attacks, then they have no future. If france falls to the muslim hoardes, it will soon be followed by the rest of europe.