Infrequently Used Units of Measurement.
Millihelen: the amount of beauty required to launch one ship. Superceded in 1983 when ANSI introduced the 10-point "Hot or Not" units of measurement. The conversion from Millihelens to Hot-or-Not is given by the following equation:
Hotness=ln(Mh+h1) + h2
Where h1 and h2 are the hotness conversions constants,
h1 ≈ 0.045402 and
h2 ≈ 3.0922
Under the new standard, one Millihelen is approximately equal to 3.1366 on the Standard Hotness scale.
Kilobreadbox: Unit of volume approximately equivalent to 670 bushels. Used when attempting to deduce an unknown object by its size.
e.g. Is it bigger than a kilobreadbox?
Yea: unit of length. Initially conceived in 1910 as an alternative to the cubit, the yea increases in length by several centiyeas annually and is currently approximately 3.8 feet in length. Most commonly used by fisherman when estimating the size of a catch.
I caught a fish yea long.
Parsec:
1) Unit of distance. 1 Parsec is the distance a hypothetical object would have to be from the earth to create a parallax angle of one arcsecond. Approximately equal to 3.2616 ly.
e.g. Alpha Centauri has a parallax of .77233 arcseconds, meaning it is 1.295 parsecs from Earth.
2) Unit of scientific knowledge of a director/writer. Indicates how much of a grasp on scientific terminology a filmmaker has. Inverse grade in that higher positive numbers indicate less grasp, and lower, negative numbers indicate more understanding.
e.g. George Lucas knows about 12 parsecs worth of science.
3) Unit of fan rationalization. Indicates the willingness of a fan to explain away obvious scientific errors with complex after-the-fact explanations.
e.g. See, the Kessel Run isn't a set course or distance. You actually have to navigate a twisting path through a region of space filled with black holes. The closer you get to the black holes, the straighter your path, and the shorter the distance. So when Han Solo said that he made the Kessel Run in under 12 parsecs, he meant that he navigated a very short (comparatively) distance, indicating he was a very skilled pilot. See? It all makes perfect sense. Kevin J. Anderson explained it in the Jedi Academy Trilogy.
I feel obliged to point out that George Lucas in his commentary on the Episode IV DVD claims that "less than 12 parsecs" was always intended to indicate the power of the ship's computer to calculate a shorter route, since hyperspace was the same speed for everybody. Take it as you will.
ReplyDeleteI see George Lucas has been reading his own fan's fiction.
ReplyDeleteWorst. Fan Fiction. Ever.
Didn't he toss a line into Episode 2 attempting to use parsec in a "proper" way?
ReplyDelete-thebluefox
Actually, parsec would be correct, in the Navy sense of using "knot" (nautical mile) as a unit of speed. As in "the destroyer could make 23 knots". No sailor ever said "knots per hour", which is understood. Han Solo just had experience with the Imperial Navy.
ReplyDelete- Jedi Archivist aka Dad
That would work except he said "less than 12 parsecs" which in that context would imply a lower speed. If he said "at more than 12 parsecs" then you might have something.
ReplyDelete