"Thomas de Groot" <t.d### [at] internlnet> wrote:
> measurements of Fist-of-God on the Ringworld map in Ringworld Engineers), I
> come to the conclusion that the mountain should have the shape of a shield
> volcano, i.e. very flat.
Yes, I would agree with that. However, the map in Ringworld Engineers is
almost certainly fan work and not necessarily in line with what Niven had
in mind.

> If you draw or model this you get a very flat object, with only the very top
> perhaps flaring upwards. I even suspect that the mountain is so huge that it
> would hardly be *visible* from the ground! in contradiction with what Niven
> writes in fact...
I go with Niven! His description of the mountain is very brief. He says that
it is "roughly conical" - nobody would describe a shield volcano as conical
except in the strictest possible sense (this is prose, not a mathematical
definition!). Natives for 100,000 miles around can see the mountain
clearly, indicating a distinctive, dramatic look. Also, Louis refers to the
top as a 'crater' quite early on. I used the mental picture I formed when I
first read Ringworld (over 10 years ago) - which was a steep, conical
volcano like Mt Ngauruhoe in north NZ. This doesn't of course preclude it
flattening out towards the base - which mine does, to a small degree.

As to whether it's visible - well, now we have the higher-precision
pov-engine we can find out. Make an atmospheric fog ~50 miles deep and put
your version of the mountain in it. Then look at it!

Bill

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