The Machine Stops by E.M. Forster:
Science Fiction Inventions, Technology and Ideas

"Imagine, if you can, a small room, hexagonal in shape, like the cell of a bee. It is lighted neither by window nor by lamp, yet it is filled with a soft radiance. There are no apertures for ventilation, yet the air is fresh. There are no musical instruments, and yet, at the moment that my meditation opens, this room is throbbing with melodious sounds. An arm-chair is in the centre, by its side a reading-desk—that is all the furniture. And in the arm-chair there sits a swaddled lump of flesh—a woman, about five feet high, with a face as white as a fungus. It is to her that the little room belongs..." Read it here. Select an invention:

Breed Humans For Machines
Carefully cull the strong, resilient humans in favor of weakness, that the human race might be more adapted to life in the Machine.

Cinematophote (Blue Optic Plate) - first reference to television
The first reference to a tablet-sized, handheld screen.

Machine Apartment
Each person lives isolated in their own room, supported by a vast planetary machine.

Machine Music
Entertainment from the Great Machine.

Public Call
A form of communication in which a group of people would remain isolated, but through technology could see and hear each other.

Telemedicine Apparatus - first known reference
First reference to a device that allows physicians to examine or aid patients at a distance.

The Book of the Machine
The only book needed for life in the vast Machine.

The Machine - supplies every need
A single vast contrivance that supplied all the needs of the world's millions of solitary inhabitants.

Video Communicator
A device that carried both voice and image, letting the two parties see each other.

 

Technovelgy.com is devoted to the creative inventions of science fiction authors and movie makers. Look for the Science Fiction Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary of Science Fiction Inventions, the Timeline of Science Fiction Inventions, or see what's New.
Find new authors and technologies - Shop for yourself, your library and your lab.

 

 

 

 

Science Fiction
in the News

Jetson ONE Air Races Begin, Can Air Polo Be Far Behind?
re: John Victor Peterson
(9/29/2025)

Will Space Stations Have Large Interior Spaces Again?
re: Orson Scott Card
(9/27/2025)

Mornine Sales Robot
re: Philip K. Dick
(9/25/2025)

Bipedal Robot Floats Gently While Walking
re: George Parsons Lathrop
(9/23/2025)

Musk Idea Of Cars Talking To Each Other Predicted 70 Years Ago
re: Isaac Asimov
(9/21/2025)

Elegant Bivouac Shelter Produces Water And Electricity
re: Arthur C. Clarke
(9/17/2025)

X-Control Janus-1 A Suitcase Aircraft
re: ED Skinner
(9/15/2025)

'AI Assistants' Are Actually Less Reliable For News
re: Arthur C. Clarke
(9/13/2025)

YES!! Remote Teleoperated Robots predicted by Technovelgy!
re: James Blish
(9/11/2025)

Will Robots Ever Fold Landry?
re: Philip K. Dick
(9/9/2025)

Will AIs Give Better Results If You're Rude To Them?
re: John Varley
(9/7/2025)

Cybertruck Robotic Arm F10 Drone Launch!
re: Philip K. Dick
(9/5/2025)

Black Fungus Blocks Radiation
re: Andy Weir
(9/3/2025)

Liuzhi Process Now In Use In China
re: George Orwell
(9/1/2025)

More SF in the News
Home | Glossary | Invention Timeline | Category | New | Contact Us | FAQ | Advertise |
Technovelgy.com - where science meets fiction™
Copyright© Technovelgy LLC; all rights reserved.