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[Fwoosh]

I have recently been given the assignment to do a research project on any topic. Normally this would not be a good thing, but it has given me a wonderful idea for doing the project in DF. The only constraints are that I need a strict procedure and that the experiment must be done with the scientific method. I also must have definite results and trackable variables involved in the testing. Right now my main ideas include testing the effects of water at slowing down dwarves thrown from different hights, possibly including how those results change when vampires and werecreatures are included in the subject list. Anyone else got any awesome dwarven !!science!! ideas?

[Scelly9]

Comparation of spread pattern of limbs from different heights.

[Trif]

Right now my main ideas include testing the effects of water at slowing down dwarves thrown from different hights, possibly including how those results change when vampires and werecreatures are included in the subject list.

I like this idea! Bonus points if you never change the water and if you test the slowing effects of magma on goblins and elves.

[Mr S]

Be sure to edit RAWS to have a standard [SIZE] dwarf, not a variable size.  Alternately, make [SIZE] one of the variables.

Track the messages screen to see what part "collided with an obstacle" too.  Make sure you run this at least several dozens of time for each test permutation (i.e. sample size) so you can get a solid range curve with a well established standard deviation.

Also, change homeotherm of the water and see if that changes anything in the game engine, short of change of physical state, i.e. ice, water, steam.

Try with various items on the Z-level below the water surface: trees, beds, boulders, grass, stacks of cloth, gem piles, KITTEHZ!!

Test with various liquids, not just the "red water".  See if you can fill a channel with gutter brew, or frog eye ichor.

[HiEv]

Test with various liquids, not just the "red water".  See if you can fill a channel with gutter brew, or frog eye ichor.

You can't.  Only magma/lava and the various flavors of water (stagnant, salty, murky, contaminated, and pure) can fill channels.

[Nil Eyeglazed]

If you feel like cheating, you can just use research I did on build order (here)-- if it's something that interests you, you could even try to replicate my experiments, which I tried to explain well enough so that anyone could, and it's all about scientific method for me, defining my hypothesis, experiment, and predictions before doing the experiment.

Wasn't there just a thread about this?  I think I said something like, "Research what happens when werebeasts bite merchants and you don't let the merchants leave the map."  I think that would be interesting too, and I don't think I'll get a chance to test it in my current fort.

[Pokon]

See if animals react to vampire/werebeast/necromancers/ect differently than to run of the mill creatures, and see if you can set up a system on how to identify such dwarves by how far animals stay away from them/how much dwarves avoid them.

[Caprealis]

Build a vertical pipe from the surface attached to a river that is directly above magma/lava 100's of stories down.
See what happens