Total Cyborg, Life Support System, and how GURPS deal whith it

[Gedrin]

I'd think you could design whatever systems are suitable for your campaign. Some variations:

The brain must be submerged in an oxygenated liquid medium and provided with nutrients that can be sprinkled into the medium. The Body runs on moon dust power and is free to maintain while on Luna or other moon.

The brain is supported intravenously with transfused blood at a hideous cost. Additionally, support staff must treat the vessel holding the brain frequently to avoid surface scaring and infection. The body must be tethered or will power down in five minutes.

The brain and body both run off organic matter. A molecular dis/assembler contained in the cyborg digests food into components and assembles them into the required nutrients and fuel. Some models allow the excretion of compounds, restricted by CR, as needed.

I'm pretty sure it works however you want it to.

[Flyndaran]

You could say that to nearly any question though.
There should be certain assumptions to allow discussion at all.
These should probably be based on stated genre.
I would suggest that, baring contrary specifics, we should assume as realistic a setting as possible given the initial question.

A Total Cyborg then would be a brain/CNS attached to synthetic organs that may function better than, equal to, or even less than natural ones.
Some may function differently too such as lungs that operate on continual aeration rather than our primitive mammalian pumps. Same for cardiovascular systems.

[Gedrin]

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

You could say that to nearly any question though.
There should be certain assumptions to allow discussion at all.
These should probably be based on stated genre.
I would suggest that, baring contrary specifics, we should assume as realistic a setting as possible given the initial question.

A Total Cyborg then would be a brain/CNS attached to synthetic organs that may function better than, equal to, or even less than natural ones.
Some may function differently too such as lungs that operate on continual aeration rather than our primitive mammalian pumps. Same for cardiovascular systems.

Yeh, but that could mean bio support paste and a separate fuel cell supply, or using nanos to dis/assemble regular food into the needed compounds. Heck, the support paste might double as fuel for the fuel cells. With synthetic senses, the paste wouldn't need to have a positive flavor. You could have a solid block of minerals or enzyme compounds that will last a year combined with mechanical means of maintaining the rest, fueling the system could be nuclear, solar.

Those are all fairly realistic setups, all within the scope of typical cyborg TL's for GURPS. Given TL8-TL10...you could have all kinds of different setups. The type of tech base you want has more to do with the type of cyborgs that can be in it. The more mature the tech, the lower the maintenance costs. If you don't have molecular assemblers, certain options are off the table. If you don't have long duration bateries, other options are out. Nuke power is prohibited? No nuke cells. Require deep space or undersea endurance? Can't depend on solar.

Heck, I can't even say where food paste would fall in the support options. Is "Government Lab Cyborg Food Paste" the only option, or can drones deliver "Francisco's Status 2 Cyborg Delicacies (human digestion compatible)"? The first is probably a dependency, scarce, expensive, and a lever for contro. The second is a world where food paste is just part of the normal cost of living no more significant than being a strict vegetarian.

[Flyndaran]

Human bodies use only around 100 Watts on average throughout the day. If your tech can't over power that, then you're not anywhere near advanced enough to start building a total cyborg.

Some of your suggestions skew toward the rubber science end, but where one draws the line is very subjective.

[The_Ryujin]

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

Human bodies use only around 100 Watts on average throughout the day. If your tech can't over power that, then you're not anywhere near advanced enough to start building a total cyborg.

Some of your suggestions skew toward the rubber science end, but where one draws the line is very subjective.

I could of sworn we output that as waste heat a second, not per day. since on average it takes 2000 calories to fuel the average human, that would translate to a little over 8.3 megajoules (!)
per day.

[SRoach]

How about mixing in biotech? Use a genetweaked organ to convert waste in the bloodstream back into simple sugars and oxygen, when exposed to strong light or possibly even an electric current. Just top off the water and vitamins once every couple years or so to offset any losses.
Basically an everything organ to close the loop with the brain. You'd still need a mechanical pump, but you wouldn't even need free oxygen.

I remember hearing they found a new plant at Chernobyl. One that used melanin to "photosynthesize" radiation.

Found it. Not exactly a plant.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiotrophic_fungus
Mind you, you'd probably not want to put a radioisotope source strong enough to power the human brain in anything like a normally scaled full cyborg.

Also a possibility for powering a partial cyborg.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_organ

[Gedrin]

Originally Posted by The_Ryujin

I could of sworn we output that as waste heat a second, not per day. since on average it takes 2000 calories to fuel the average human, that would translate to a little over 8.3 megajoules (!)
per day.

We really don't know about the work the cyborg body is expected to do, or the efficiency of the machinery involved. Office worker? Dock worker? Athlete? Combat cyborg with Gatling laser for an arm? These bodies could all be in the same setting and still have different power supplies. Office worker uses a straight capacitor and can plug in anywhere. Dock worker and athlete use the civilian capacitor system, but both have different power cells for high performance tasks. Combat bodies might want extended duration and peak performance. Does that mean bulk, increased battle load, or a different way to get the power? Setting plays a big role in what the available answers are, and purpose tells what requirements are attempted from those available answers.

Energy needed to support the brain is probably straightforward to calculate, but raw energy isn't the problem there, it's providing that fuel in a form the brain can use, without the rest of the normal organs.

[scc]

Unless the character has trouble finding 'food' you shouldn't be giving them points for it.

[Gedrin]

We don't know if that's the case or not. It could be dependency, maintenance, restricted diet, quirk or feature. It could even be an advantage. Depends largely on the state of cyborgs in the setting.

[Flyndaran]

Originally Posted by The_Ryujin

I could of sworn we output that as waste heat a second, not per day. since on average it takes 2000 calories to fuel the average human, that would translate to a little over 8.3 megajoules (!)
per day.

Our output varies from 90% basal when sleeping up to a kilowatt for explosive jumps. Overall it averages/equates to a continual 100 Watts.

2000 Calories times 4184 Joules is close to 8.3 megajoules. But turn that into continual power and you get close to 96 Watts.