They are always there, they are never explained, and they are (almost) always red. They are blinking tubes that don't do anything. The prop has been used in just about every science fiction movie and TV show you've ever seen, even if you don't recall them. Don't believe me? Then watch this compilation of clips that show the same tubes in science fiction stories through the spectrum of the genre.

A bit of digging revealed that this the most common of these gadgets was owned by a company called Modern Props. At one time, you could rent it for $775 a week. Modern Props <a href="https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2020-01-03/modern-props-closes-its-doors">went out of business</a> last year, and most of its inventory was sold at auction. The science fiction stuff, however, may eventually be donated to a museum. -via <a href="https://www.geeksaresexy.net/">Geeks Are Sexy&nbsp;</a>​ #sciencefiction #scifi #movieprop #tvprop #prop

The Most Important Device in the Universe: Blinking Tubes Without Function

"They say that Russia is a technologically backward country," noted the description for the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HZ4DnVfWYQ" class="on">Russian Cyberpunk Farm</a> video clip by birchpunk, "There are no roads, robotics do not develop, rocket do not fly, and mail goes too long. It's a bullshit."Indeed! As farmer Nikolay tells us in the clip, the cyberpunk farm life is all about the newest robots and androids, flying cars and drones, and ... fractal cucumber and genetically engineered kombucha.Completing the visual effects is the fantastic Russian Cyberfolk Song by Ensemble Vanya, Liliana Bush and Daria Scherbak.#specialeffects #vfx #sciencefiction #farming #RussianCyberpunkFarm #birchpunk #farm #robot

The video clip won Best Visual effects in the Sicily Web Fest 2021, beating 98 other nominees from 22 countries.

The next clip is the Russian Cyberfarm New Year Special, featuring the only Christmas tree ever grown in Mars.

The Russian Cyberfarm New Year Special Behind-The-Scenes video clip.

And the latest one from Jun 2021: AI-Vanich in the Russian Cyberfarm