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From: William Hamblen on 3 May 2010 20:38 On 03 May 2010 02:25:52 GMT, Lewis <g.kreme(a)gmail.com.dontsendmecopies> wrote: >I would say _Tiger, Tiger_ (Renamed _The Stars My Destination_ for the >US) is the best sci-fi book ever written. The novel first saw print under the title The Stars My Destination as a serial in Galaxy magazine, but was renamed Tiger, Tiger for its first book publication in the UK. I don't know whether it is the best SF novel, but it certainly is a rip snorter. You used to get it in a two-volume collection of Hugo winners when you joined the Science Fiction Book Club. Bud -- Gully Foyle is my name, And Terra is my nation. Deep space is my dwelling place. The stars my destination.
From: Mel on 3 May 2010 21:33 Michelle Steiner wrote: > In article > <bced657a-da44-476f-bf89-bd5fa6f2c5f7(a)k19g2000yqm.googlegroups.com>, > Mensanator <mensanator(a)aol.com> wrote: > >> > Bees see UV. �Other creatures see other parts of the spectrum. �Why >> > couldn't there be a mutation with different EM sensors? >> >> The ability to see radar ignores physical reality, that's why it's magic >> and not sci-fi. > > What physical reality is that? Can't there be genetic manipulation to > cause a human being to see radar? The chief problem is the signal diffracting right around the organs of perception. Pupils a foot across might be able to get frequencies down to C band or so at 8GHz (WAG). Mel.
From: Patrick Scheible on 3 May 2010 21:49 Mensanator <mensanator(a)aol.com> writes: > On May 3, 6:03=A0pm, Patrick Scheible <k...(a)zipcon.net> wrote: > > Tom Harrington <t...(a)pcisys.no.spam.dammit.net> writes: > > > In article > > > <a8563890-deb9-4237-a6e5-5eca9ea77...(a)p2g2000yqh.googlegroups.com>, > > > =A0Mensanator <mensana...(a)aol.com> wrote: > > > > > > On May 2, 9:25=A0pm, Lewis <g.kr...(a)gmail.com.dontsendmecopies> wrote= > : > > > > > I would say _Tiger, Tiger_ (Renamed _The Stars My Destination_ for = > the > > > > > US) is the best sci-fi book ever written. What is even more remarka= > ble > > > > > is that is was written over 50 years ago during the early days of > > > > > Sci-Fi. It reads very much like a book from the early 80's in many > > > > > ways. > > > > > > That was a good story, like the Harry Potter series, it's just that > > > > I would hardly call it sci-fi. Like Harry Potter's magic, it would > > > > more appropriately be called Fantasy. > > > > > > Teleportation, mind reading, "seeing" electromagnetic radiation, > > > > c'mon! > > > > What utter nonsense. > > > > > Visible light is part of the electromagnetic spectrum. I can see it. > > > > Bees see UV. =A0Other creatures see other parts of the spectrum. =A0Why > > couldn't there be a mutation with different EM sensors? > > The ability to see radar ignores physical reality, that's why > it's magic and not sci-fi. Which physical reality is that? Different animals see different parts of the spectrum. I see no fundamental problem with that happening by mutation or engineering. > > Teleportation is harder, but is it really harder than faster than > > light travel? > > There was some author (I forget who) that pointed out one of the > problems > with teleportation is conservation of energy, telporting from one side > of > Earth to the other results in a net velocity difference of up to 2000 > mph. > You wouldn't last very long when you re-appeared. And don't most FTL > schemes > employ some work-around that doesn't actually involve going faster > than > light? Yes, that is an insolvable problem for today's physics and engineering. > Fanciful work-arounds that don't violate the basics of physics are sci- > fi. > Pretending physics doesn't exist is magic. No... pretending physics remains static is silly. What would a physicist of 500 years ago have thought of atomic power and weapons, the internet, GPS, etc. etc. For space flight stories, we should assume alien races would be millions of years ahead of us, not 500. What makes it science fiction is that people in the world of the story understand how it works. It's engineering for them. -- Patrick
From: Andrew Swallow on 4 May 2010 00:17 On 04/05/2010 02:33, Mel wrote: > Michelle Steiner wrote: > >> In article >> <bced657a-da44-476f-bf89-bd5fa6f2c5f7(a)k19g2000yqm.googlegroups.com>, >> Mensanator<mensanator(a)aol.com> wrote: >> >>>> Bees see UV. Other creatures see other parts of the spectrum. Why >>>> couldn't there be a mutation with different EM sensors? >>> >>> The ability to see radar ignores physical reality, that's why it's magic >>> and not sci-fi. >> >> What physical reality is that? Can't there be genetic manipulation to >> cause a human being to see radar? > > The chief problem is the signal diffracting right around the organs of > perception. Pupils a foot across might be able to get frequencies down > to C band or so at 8GHz (WAG). > > Mel. > The head is a foot across. A second use may be found for the ears. Andrew Swallow
From: Joe Pfeiffer on 4 May 2010 00:36
Patrick Scheible <kkt(a)zipcon.net> writes: > Tom Harrington <tph(a)pcisys.no.spam.dammit.net> writes: > >> In article >> <a8563890-deb9-4237-a6e5-5eca9ea77d78(a)p2g2000yqh.googlegroups.com>, >> Mensanator <mensanator(a)aol.com> wrote: >> >> > On May 2, 9:25 pm, Lewis <g.kr...(a)gmail.com.dontsendmecopies> wrote: >> > > I would say _Tiger, Tiger_ (Renamed _The Stars My Destination_ for the >> > > US) is the best sci-fi book ever written. What is even more remarkable >> > > is that is was written over 50 years ago during the early days of >> > > Sci-Fi. It reads very much like a book from the early 80's in many >> > > ways. >> > >> > That was a good story, like the Harry Potter series, it's just that >> > I would hardly call it sci-fi. Like Harry Potter's magic, it would >> > more appropriately be called Fantasy. >> > >> > Teleportation, mind reading, "seeing" electromagnetic radiation, >> > c'mon! >> > What utter nonsense. >> >> Visible light is part of the electromagnetic spectrum. I can see it. > > Bees see UV. Other creatures see other parts of the spectrum. Why > couldn't there be a mutation with different EM sensors? > > Teleportation is harder, but is it really harder than faster than > light travel? There's a "really hard SF" school that calls for nothing in the story to violate the laws of physics. Members of that school will regard FTL as fantasy. -- As we enjoy great advantages from the inventions of others, we should be glad of an opportunity to serve others by any invention of ours; and this we should do freely and generously. (Benjamin Franklin) |