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star trek - Why does the aluminium need to be transparent?


In Star Trek IV, Scotty gives away the formula to the inventor of transparent aluminium. This aluminium, if my memory serves me, is to house the humpback whale they must procure from the past. Crazy, I know.



But why does the humpback whale need to be in a transparent container? I know it wouldn't be pleasant, but for the short few hours once they'd stolen it, but is that sufficient enough to justify simplifying your time in the past?


I realise from a previous question that Scotty thought he had to give the formula away, as the man they found was the inventor (Marcus Nichols). But until he found him he didn't seem to know he would find him, so that can't be sufficient reasoning to go looking for transparent aluminium.


Why did they need it?



Answer



You recall incorrectly. They needed the large plexiglass panels to make the tank for the whales on the ship. They didn't have any money. But they have knowledge of advanced materials like transparent aluminum, which would be worth a great deal of money to that man and his company. So in exchange for the plexiglass for the whale tank, they provide him with the formula for transparent aluminum.


As far as I know, there's nothing the requires the tank have transparent walls, but given their limited resources, the crew needed some materials to build the tank. So if they didn't choose to use plexiglass, it would have been large metal walls or some other material, which they would have had to procure from someone, and they would have had the same lack of money problem.


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