This sort of thing, along with blisters and whatnot, is below abstraction. You might note the Furious Wind rebuild; the original had a fully recessed bridge, but the rebuild has a protruding one with big, panoramic windows.
Yeah, and they
look great.
...
"Below abstraction" means "susceptible to bribery", right?
Short Omake: The Window Lobbyist
"Hi, I'm here for the 10:20 presentation?"
"Oh, you're early! Come right in, I see you have your own computer? Here's the cable for the big screen. You want anything to drink, maybe a donut?"
"I'm good, thanks. I'd love to get started, if you don't mind - is this everyone?"
"No, we're waiting on one mo- and here they are. Go ahead, please."
"Alright. Thank you all for having me; I am here to sell you on something which is so mundane, you might have missed the value they bring to your construction. Namely, windows.
"Properly employed, windows serve as a fantastic cost-saving measure. I'm not merely talking about the productivity and health benefits of natural light, but also as a dynamic temperature control mechanism. Be it letting in sunlight to chase off the chill of night, or closing the blinds to keep out the searing heat, proper use of your windows can enable thermal regulation at a drastically lower energy-cost than traditional heating or cooling methods.
"It works where it's cold, too! Close your blinds to retain heat, or open them to let it radiate away.
"To step away from the purely practical, I'd next like to address your aesthetic sensibilities. While a good window does -"
"Excuse me, but aesthetics are a tertiary concern at best
. Instead, could you address the fact that any window you build, is a giant structural weakness? How do you justify such a vulnerability?"
"Ok, um, that's a bit off the script, but it's still an excellent question! I would have to answer that, well, unfortunately there's no really any such thing as perfect security. If you have someone who is already willing to go to such lengths as to smash through your window, you're already in trouble. If they're willing to go that far, it's not much more effort to smash through a door, or even a wall.
"So I guess my answer is, when facing that sort of thing, that you have bigger problems than you could solve by removing the window. You might as well have windows, and gain the benefits when you're
not being attacked which I should hopefully be much more common.
"Ha ha, yeah? No? I should get back to my presentation.
"So I guess I can skip these next few slides. Which brings us to... ah, here we are.
"Next, is the simple fact that a window connects you to the broader world. Not just for the ability to look outside, which does have valuable mental and health benefits, but also because of what it can let in. Open a window to experience anything from the sound of the rain, to a fresh spring -"
"Hang on. Open
a window? Sir, you are aware that we're building spaceships, right?"
"What."
"This is the Starship Design Bureau! An openable window would be an unacceptable safety hazard; an abdication of our responsibility to the crews whom..."
"This, this isn't the Sensible Domiciles Board?"
"No. We do starships. In space."
"I. Excuse me, I have to go."
*Sounds of hurried packing. A door opens, then closes.*
...
"You know, it probably would
be useful to be able to put a Mk. I eyeball on things, in case the sensors ever go down."
