X-Men universe and mutant powers
Feb. 8th, 2009 09:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
marbleglove
Consider the X-Men universe. Various politicians demand that mutants be identified and registered as such. The various mutants don't want this to happen and tend to have these amazing powers: telepathy, telekinesis, fire, flying, weather control, control of magnetism, etc.
However, assuming that these are actual mutations that work like any other type of mutation, there are a few other things that need to be considered:
(A) The amazing abilities such as the x-men have, would actually be fairly rare in comparison to smaller modifications of the standard human. Thus there should be a lot of people who test positive for the X gene without having a visible or useful mutation (The housewife who can make perfectly round pancakes without any trouble. The guy who can always tell how fast he's going even without looking at a speedometer.) or have an ability that never gets used. (The kid who will never be harmed by fire but learned as an infant not to touch it because that's what parents teach their kids. The guy who could speak with whales or dolphins if he ever came into contact with them but he lives in Iowa and never visited the aquarium.) If the politicians who propose registration ever got it passed, I imagine a significant portion of the population would be in for a surprise.
(B) But while the minor abilities would be more common than the more spectacular ones, even more common would be the ones that are simply not viable. There should be a dangerous increase in miscarriages and still-born children with disturbing birth defects. Some of the politicians would worry about controlling dangerous mutants, sure, but a lot more should be worried about maintaining the population and not have too many grieving would-be parents. There should be movements to find the source of the X gene and eradicate it, not because they hate mutants, but because it's killing off so many babies.
Anyway, this all came up because if I have a mutant power, it may very well be a sort of anti-thickening power. No amount of boiling or cornstarch can withstand the awesome power of the anti-thickener. Thus, my cupcakes will, once more, be glazed rather than frosted. Hmph.
However, assuming that these are actual mutations that work like any other type of mutation, there are a few other things that need to be considered:
(A) The amazing abilities such as the x-men have, would actually be fairly rare in comparison to smaller modifications of the standard human. Thus there should be a lot of people who test positive for the X gene without having a visible or useful mutation (The housewife who can make perfectly round pancakes without any trouble. The guy who can always tell how fast he's going even without looking at a speedometer.) or have an ability that never gets used. (The kid who will never be harmed by fire but learned as an infant not to touch it because that's what parents teach their kids. The guy who could speak with whales or dolphins if he ever came into contact with them but he lives in Iowa and never visited the aquarium.) If the politicians who propose registration ever got it passed, I imagine a significant portion of the population would be in for a surprise.
(B) But while the minor abilities would be more common than the more spectacular ones, even more common would be the ones that are simply not viable. There should be a dangerous increase in miscarriages and still-born children with disturbing birth defects. Some of the politicians would worry about controlling dangerous mutants, sure, but a lot more should be worried about maintaining the population and not have too many grieving would-be parents. There should be movements to find the source of the X gene and eradicate it, not because they hate mutants, but because it's killing off so many babies.
Anyway, this all came up because if I have a mutant power, it may very well be a sort of anti-thickening power. No amount of boiling or cornstarch can withstand the awesome power of the anti-thickener. Thus, my cupcakes will, once more, be glazed rather than frosted. Hmph.
