Tim White (British, 1952 - 2020) Assignment in Eternity (1977) by Robert A. Heinlein
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Tim White (British, 1952 - 2020) Assignment in Eternity (1977) by Robert A. Heinlein
He's not wrong. He rarely is.
Midnight Pals: No Politics
[at space coven] Andy Weir: beep boop submitted for the approval of the space coven, i call this the story of the martian Weir: it is a story about the cold triumph of science, with no distracting theme or motif Weir: only science Weir: beep boop
Weir: i will use this story to convey the following scientific facts to you Weir: (1) the atmospheric co-efficient of Mars Weir: (2) the tangent cosign of the hypotenuse of space Weir: (3) the importance of STEM Weir: (4) the langitudinal curve of space-time squared Weir: beep boop
Jule Verne: but andy, don't you see? stories can be about more than cold facts! Weir: beep boop Weir: prognosis negative Weir: further input required Weir: explain data Verne: theme and motif can communicate the ineffable experience of being human Weir: ERROR ERROR THAT SOUNDS LIKE POLITICS ERROR
Verne: through the medium of story, we can truly achieve human connection and plumb the true depth of humanity! Verne: now a lot of people think that 20,000 leagues under the sea is just a story about a cool submarine Verne: but it's actually much, much more Weir: does not compute
Verne: it's about what it means to be part of the brotherhood of man Verne: it's about life and loss and love! Weir: what is this love you speak of Verne: oh andy Verne: how can i describe love Weir: why are your ocular orbs leaking Weir: are your circuits in need of repair
Verne: do you understand what i'm saying? story is about meaning Weir: i liked the part where they fought the squid Verne: oh yeah everyone likes that part HG Wells: it was pretty cool Wells: andy's on to something there
Verne: how can i communicate the ineffable magic of story? Verne: if only there was someone whose whole bit was pontificating about the nature of story Verne: that would be a very useful person to have around in this situation
Robert Heinlein: forget these losers, andy, i've got a story that you'll really enjoy! Heinlein: it's about marines in space! and they have guns! Heinlein: [finger guns] pew pew pew pew! Heinlein: pew pew pew! pew pew! Verne: ok rob you've made your point Heinlein: I'M NOT DONE YET
Weir: beep boop i-i Weir: what is this strange sensation Weir: i feel Weir: i feel an emotion Weir: i feel like space marines shooting guns is totally badass Heinlein: eh? eh? see? Heinlein: you're welcome
Weir: beep boop i have always enjoyed escapist science fiction that is devoid of deeper meaning Weir: like the classic star trek Weir: harlan ellison is so good at that beep boop HG Wells: oh no Harlan Ellison: I WILL MURDER YOU AND EVERYONE HERE
SF cover of the day. Art by Gino D'Achille
Cover illustration by Paul Lehr
Info from ISFDB
Trillium Interactive Software
"Booted up any good books lately?" (Electronic Games Volume 02 #15, Oct. 1984)
Some writers describe American sci-fi as predominately conservative; others decry it as a den of leftism. Who’s right?
Science fiction is a dream about the future, and some of those dreams come true.