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"Science fiction has gotten more accurate as we've gotten closer to the present, because science fiction stories have not only attracted, but also generated current scientists."
- Larry Niven
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| National Network Surveillance | ||
| A system for providing the government with a way to monitor computer network use. |
The Shockwave Rider provides a very early reference to the idea of Federal surveillance of computer networks. In this excerpt, a person calls the special anonymous service called Hearing Aid to vent his rage at the system.
| From a public veephone at the railcar terminal linking Tarnover to the nearest town
he called Hearing Aid, for the first time in years, and for one dark lonely hour poured
out the secrets of his heart. It was a catharsis, a purgation. But long before he had
regained his room he was shaking, haunted by the fear that Hearing Aid's famous
promise ("Only I heard that!") might not be true. How could it be? It was absurd!
From Canaveral the tendril-ears of federal computers wove through his society like mycelia. No place could possibly be immune. All night he lay awake in fear, expecting his door to be flung open and stern silent men to take him under arrest. By dawn he was half-minded to kill himself. Miraculously, there followed no disaster |
| Technovelgy from The Shockwave Rider,
by John Brunner. Published by Harper and Row in 1975 Additional resources -
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| LingYuan Vehicle Roof Drones Now Available, ala Blade Runner 2049 |
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'It hurtled on down with inconceivable speed until it was visible as thousands of tiny robot planes...'
'Then she looked up with a smile and moved closer to the camera.'
'... folios and tapes and playable discs of platinum alloy.'
'... another corner of his mind began to think about the shields.'
'Michel Ardan, as a Frenchman, was declared chief cook, an important function, which raised no rival.'
