Actually I was talking more about at 6.00+ and then from the start of the second vid:
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He isn't even bleeding afterwards.
Originally posted by truejedi
In damage dealth to a hand when slammed into it? I gotta say the damage of that axe and the damage of a lightsaber in the same situation are going to just about the same. (hand gets cut off)More kinetic energy behind an axe anyway.
I was rather thinking that an axe, made by metal, a weapon that can be stopped by an armor or a brick wall, is not in the same league as a lightsaber, a beam of pure plasma that cuts through virtually everything.
I’m not sure how Neo is going to defend himself from freaking energy beam that cuts almost everything.
Also, I don’t think kinetic energy is that important regarding lightsabers.
Oh yeah, forgot about RotS describing Anakin’s victory via more kinetic energy.
Though, I think we should change approach a little, not focusing too much on sheer kinetic energy.
Say, an axe wielded with the same kinetic force as lightsaber will not do the same damage. Hitting a brick wall with it, would not be very successful, while a lightsaber will cut right through it.
Maybe the key issue here is the cutting power of a lightsaber?
tj, I disagree with the idea that lightsabers do not have Kinetic Energy (abbreviated KE). You admit that KE "would seem to be important" based on the RotS novel, but then go on to suggest a conflict with the real world physics of "light and plasma." I generally support the idea that Star Wars physics are not significantly different from those of the real world, and this is the prime example of that idea. If we accept that the technical limitations of creating a contained bar of plasma can be overcome, then lightsabers behave much as conventional physics would suggest.The "properties of light and plasma" are entirely supportive of this position.
Lightsabers are contained bars of plasma, so it is the properties of plasma in relation to KE that we need to investigate. Plasma is a "fourth state of matter" wherein the much of the gas has been ionized--that is, many of the atoms have picked up a charge. Essentially, Plasma is the name for gaseous ions. Although there is a tendency to romanticize (or fantasize) plasma, it does not have any magical abilities. It has mass. It has volume. It even reacts to magnetic and electric fields.
Given that plasma is not some sort of exotic matter found only for fractions of a second at the LHC in Switzerland, we can apply most of the basic equations of physics to objects composed of such material. Kinetic Energy is equal to one half the mass multiplied by the velocity squared:
KE=.5mv^2
Mass can be determined by simply weighing the lightsaber. Velocity can be measured by tracking distance traveled with respect to time, or with an accelerometer attached to the user's wrist. I can see no obstacle to determining the kinetic energy of a swing of a lightsaber, given that the first challenge--that of creating a containment field--has been dealt with. I declare your "paradox" dispelled.
I just read this on beloved Wookiee:
"Once focused by the crystals, the plasma was sent through a series of field energizers and modulation circuitry within the emitter matrix that further focused it, making it into a coherent beam of energy that was projected from the emitter.The blade typically extended about a meter before being arced by the blade containment field back to a negatively charged fissure ringing the emitter, where it was channeled back to the power cell by a superconductor, completing the circuit."
LOLcats?
Yeah, I've always felt extra foolish discussing the application real-world psychics to Star Wars. Especially the transference of kinetic energy through limited beams of plasma-turned-energy emitted through a high-powered focusing lens and originating from a crystal imbued with a magical essence.
Very foolish indeed.
RN, so you think Plasma has a concentrated enough mass to transfer kinetic energy in an effective way? If so, that's fine, I just had never thought of it that way.
I guess whatever creates the barrier would also create the illusion of mass as well... That could settle the problem without even checking the properties of plasma. though it is, as yet, unknown what the barrier is.