#sfth fact checking

[je-lurk]

It’s time for another sfth fact check! This time concerning the Cardboard Stegosaurus.

Pierre has blocked the Eurotunnel with two blocks of granite.

Some facts about granite:

Granite has a hardness from 6 to 8 on the Mohs scale (depending on the source). It’s very resistant but far from unbreakable (diamond is at 10 on the scale).

Granite’s density apparently varies between 2,63 and 2,75. For the calculations we’ll use 2,7 meaning granite weighs 2700 kilograms by cubic meter.

Some facts about the Eurotunnel:

The Eurotunnel is 50 km long, with a 38 km section under the sea. For those who don’t know this is a train tunnel. It’s actually two tunnels, each with one train track.

The tunnels have a 7,6m diameter, so a 180 m^2 section (rounded down to account for the sidewalk, track and catenary, but still an overshot imo).

The tunnels are connected in two places to allow train redirection (if necessary).

To block all trains, Pierre would have likely chosen this spot, nearest to France:

Assuming this intersection is at one fourth of way underwater, this would place it ¼*37+3,7(the French underground section) = 12,95 km from the French side. The actual distance doesn’t matter that much in regard to literally everything else but it’s nice to get an order of magnitude.

The varying width of the tunnel on the graph (specifically at the intersections) could let us think there are two tracks (and two catenaries) in here. So do we double the section?

I haven’t found easily accessible information on it so let’s say yes.

Now, what thickness do we think the slabs are? I originally wanted to say 50 cm but let’s be gracious and say they’re 20 cm thick.

Each slab would be composed of 72 m^3 of granite and weigh nearly 200 tonnes (194,4), or 200000 kilograms each (about apparently 33 stegosauruses).

There are still a lot of logistical questions I do not want to think about, such as how can this man move 200t with each arm over 12 kms (probably more, we don’t know where he got them from), without damaging the tunnels (catenaries, sidewalks and all the other stuff) (I mean maybe sideways? But how to put them properly afterwards, and have it all be airtight at that?), without being stopped before entering the tunnel or apparently being noticed by, let’s say an eighth (half of a fourth) of the 36000 sensors inside the tunnels, so 4500 sensors.

They mentioned air would be running out. Somehow, I don’t think there wouldn’t be a service tunnel exit at an intersection? Imagine they’re all being like "oh no I’m dying :(" and a door opens and someone goes "what is going on in here?"

And Cliff and Chip? They, what, ran almost 40 km with drills in hand? In the service tunnel in the best case scenario? Why weren’t they picked up by the sensors?

What the fuck is this bullshit security?

[je-lurk]

I gave omgitaj a(nother) rewatch and noticed… something. When French chariot-driver Sam meets Jean-Luc, he says they’re in Bordeaux. Let’s say near, to give them all a bit of grace (They can’t actually be in Bordeaux for reasons. Also where would you raise chickens there).

(Sam also later corrects Tom by saying "les coqs" which is 1) wrong, because in this context "coq" is singular, so it would be "le coq", and 2) wrong, because in this context "coq" is indefinite and it would be "des coqs", which, as stated in the first point, is also wrong, since it should be a singular, finally giving us "un coq". Which is stupid, because Tom already used the, albeit English (although it does sound like the French), singular indefinite article. Sam, with all due respect, you know nothing, stfu.)

Anyway, back to Bordeaux, it means that Jean-Luc ran all the way from (supposedly) near Berlin without meeting anyone nor realising he crossed the border (and probably without taking a break).

Bordeaux is here:

LOOK! Bro ran at the very least 700 km in 1942 France territory. And that’s being nice! The shortest distance between Berlin and Bordeaux is 1300 km.

Let’s do some unrealistic maths. I know someone who has been running marathons for a long time. For his last run, his speed varied between 8 and 10 km/h (well it was mostly between 10 and 11 but that’s not the point).

Assuming Jean-Luc, a trained spy and soldier, ran all the way without stopping to eat, drink or sleep, at a sustained 8 km/h speed, he made the 1300 km in 6 days and 18 (and a half!) hours. A WHOLE WEEK. That’s 3 days and 16 (and a half!!) hours FULLY IN FRANCE. How did he not notice we’ll never know.

Anyway, props for Sam for at least choosing a city that was actually occupied (I’m not entirely sure he knew, tbh, he might have just said the first thing that came to his mind). It does raise an issue, which is the number of borders Jean-Luc went through without noticing.

Below is a map of France in 1942. The blue (as well as the green-striped) part is the free territory, the light orange the occupied territory, the red, the forbidden zone, and the bright orange, the annexed one.

Notice how Bordeaux is in the forbidden zone? That’s the reason I evoked earlier.

Let’s be kind and say they were indeed fully outside Bordeaux, this makes a whopping 4 borders Jean-Luc crossed, again, while running without meeting anybody, you know the drill by now.

To break down the numbers, Jean-Luc ran:

150 km (18h45 min) in the forbidden zone,

225 km (1d4h) in occupied territory,

225 km (1d4h) in the free territory,

and another 75 km (9h30min) in occupied territory.

When you see how much work was done by the Résistance to smuggle Jews to the free territory, this is crazy.

There’s no real point to this post except making you all aware of the additional absurdity of this play and maybe let’s change Jean-Luc’s assignment? He would work miracles