this post was submitted on 06 Jun 2026
261 points (96.8% liked)
Science Memes
20383 readers
2440 users here now
Welcome to c/science_memes @ Mander.xyz!
A place for majestic STEMLORD peacocking, as well as memes about the realities of working in a lab.
Rules
- Don't throw mud. Behave like an intellectual and remember the human.
- Keep it rooted (on topic).
- No spam.
- Infographics welcome, get schooled.
This is a science community. We use the Dawkins definition of meme.
Research Committee
Other Mander Communities
Science and Research
Biology and Life Sciences
- !abiogenesis@mander.xyz
- !animal-behavior@mander.xyz
- !anthropology@mander.xyz
- !arachnology@mander.xyz
- !balconygardening@slrpnk.net
- !biodiversity@mander.xyz
- !biology@mander.xyz
- !biophysics@mander.xyz
- !botany@mander.xyz
- !ecology@mander.xyz
- !entomology@mander.xyz
- !fermentation@mander.xyz
- !herpetology@mander.xyz
- !houseplants@mander.xyz
- !medicine@mander.xyz
- !microscopy@mander.xyz
- !mycology@mander.xyz
- !nudibranchs@mander.xyz
- !nutrition@mander.xyz
- !palaeoecology@mander.xyz
- !palaeontology@mander.xyz
- !photosynthesis@mander.xyz
- !plantid@mander.xyz
- !plants@mander.xyz
- !reptiles and amphibians@mander.xyz
Physical Sciences
- !astronomy@mander.xyz
- !chemistry@mander.xyz
- !earthscience@mander.xyz
- !geography@mander.xyz
- !geospatial@mander.xyz
- !nuclear@mander.xyz
- !physics@mander.xyz
- !quantum-computing@mander.xyz
- !spectroscopy@mander.xyz
Humanities and Social Sciences
Practical and Applied Sciences
- !exercise-and sports-science@mander.xyz
- !gardening@mander.xyz
- !self sufficiency@mander.xyz
- !soilscience@slrpnk.net
- !terrariums@mander.xyz
- !timelapse@mander.xyz
Memes
Miscellaneous
founded 3 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
I wish I could say I've never came across this sort of muppet. But… *sigh*
Wilful control of reality in this case requires truth to be subjective; and conversely, if truth is subjective you can control reality. You're right they aren't the same thing, but they're clearly tied.
The experience is different because the person in the ISS is simply not close enough to Earth to be subjected to Earth's gravity, in any practical amount. But that doesn't mean gravity stopped existing for them.
It sounds like someone still hasn't played KSP! Play it! It's great. You'll learn a lot, and you'll have fun doing it.
Stuff doesn't stay in orbit because there isn't gravity. It stays there because it's moving sideways while it's falling down, so it doesn't hit the thing it's orbiting. Without gravity it'd be able to just sit in space wherever it wants. Rockets mostly don't go up, they go sideways. There wouldn't be a geosyncronus orbit as all orbits would allow you to just sit above any location you want. A geosyncronus orbit is one that the amount it has to move sideways is, in degrees from the center of earth, the same amount the earth rotates.
Ooh, time for science pedantry! The ISS is plenty close enough to Earth to experience almost the same gravity from the planet as on its surface, which is why it has to be orbiting at such speed - falling sideways fast enough and at the right angle so as not to come crashing down!
Yeah...
Not really....to any of that.
There's no reason gravity control requires a subjective truth.
An unusual level of reality control could exist within an objectively truth based system. It would just have to adhere to the constraints.
Perhaps you mean omnipotence? I'm not sure on that one either, but definitionally it usually implies complete control, im not sure if that's within a fixed system or not.
Reality control and subjectivity can be tied if an example ties them somehow, but it's not a given.
Yep, that's why I went with gravitational experience instead of one having gravity and the other not.
In this case, it does.
Let me put it this way: is the statement "there's a phenomenon called «gravity», experienced by all massive bodies, that accelerates them in relation to other massive bodies" epistemically true?
If truth was subjective, the answer would be "true" or "false" depending on the subject. For those whom the answer is "false", this means they would not experience the phenomenon, even in situations other subjects would; e.g. near Earth. That implies they'd have at least some control over experiencing gravity, because they could simply say "it's now true for me" and fall, or "it's now false for me" and stop falling.
Scientifically, maybe? Because that's what the scientific method is, best approximations given the knowledge we currently have.
But let's assume yes for the purposes of this reply.
And context.
Same subject different circumstances, different gravitational forces.
That's a binary interpretation of a non-binary system.
But again, for the purposes of this reply, sure.
There's a big assumption there that this is a binary.
Gravity control, doesn't have to be binary.
It doesn't even have to be direct, they could achieve the same effect by increasing or decreasing mass.
But let's say it's magic, direct control.
In an objective system where gravity exists it would conceptually be possible to control the level of gravity acting upon yourself without turning it on or off.
In a subjective system where gravity could exist or not depending on subject and context, the same is true.
Which brings me back to:
Emphasis mine.
The fact that people feel different gravitational pull based on where they are doesn't make the concept of gravity different for each of them. You're just using the wrong word to describe the acceleration produced by gravity, rather than gravity itself.
That's why technical definitions (so we speak the same language) and education (si we understand that language) are important!