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While we're on lasers, I've got a question: is there kind of energy weapon that would (realistically) be visible in space? People often criticize science fiction shows and movies for depicting lasers that are visible in a vacuum (not to mention energy weapons that appear to travel slower than light), but would it be conceivable for, say, phasers to be visible in a vacuum?

Yes, it is. We know that phasers are particle beam weapons, with the fictional "nadions" being the particle in question.

So, assume that nadions are unstable particles, with a very, very short half life. Short enough that many of them will decay on the way from the weapon to the target, even for a nearby target like a person a few feet away. Further assume that when a nadion decays, it emits a photon, or many photons for that matter, and that the photons are in the visible light spectrum.

So what happens now is that the entire length of the phaser beam is itself a source of light - a glowing beam. It could even explain why more powerful beams are brighter, because more powerful beams = more nadions = more decays = more photons.

You might also imagine modifications which alter the energy of each nadion might result in light of a different frequency being emitted, explaining why beams have different colours in some applications.

your earlier thread is funny as was going to ask folk here if they wouldn't mind an online interview for my discourse analysis and cog psy work on deindividuation, conformism, cognitive dissonance etc, obviously would be ethically cleared by the BPS and people would have the right to withdraw at any point, anonymity, a brief and debrief etc.

I love surveys. Go for it

excellant, when i can get ethical clearance etc, will ask your permission to stick a thread up, will supplement interviews but with nothing boring like likert scales but maybe Q methodology would be good, its basically placing preprinted notes on a grid in relation to how you feel about their contents.