Latest By
Category:
Armor
Artificial
Intelligence
Biology
Clothing
Communication
Computers
Culture
Data Storage
Displays
Engineering
Entertainment
Food
Input Devices
Lifestyle
Living Space
Manufacturing
Material
Media
Medical
Miscellaneous
Robotics
Security
Space Tech
Spacecraft
Surveillance
Transportation
Travel
Vehicle
Virtual
Person
Warfare
Weapon
Work
"Every scientist worth his salt that I know of has read science fiction."
- Greg Bear
 |
| Slideway | ||
| A slidewalk, or moving walkway, that moves people forward. |
| Hamilton Felix let himself off at the thirteenth level of the Department of Finance, mounted a slideway to the left, and stepped off the strip. |
| From Beyond This Horizon,
by Robert Heinlein. Published by Street Publications in 1942 Additional resources -
|
Compare this to the slidewalk in Lieber's 1941 story Sanity.
You might be able to argue that an earlier version of this general concept can be found in the moving roadway from H.G. Wells' 1899 story When the Sleeper Wakes. The first commercial passenger conveyor belt was built in 1954 (by Goodyear for the Hudson and Manhattan railroad). As far as I know, the "electric stairway", or escalator, was introduced in 1900.
Comment/Join this discussion (BACK ON!) ( 0 ) | RSS/XML | Blog This |
Additional
resources:
More Ideas
and Technology from Beyond This Horizon
More Ideas
and Technology by Robert Heinlein
Tech news articles related to Beyond This Horizon
Tech news articles related to works by Robert Heinlein
| Swiss HCPVT Giant Photovoltaic 'Flower' |
| Peel And Stick Thin Film Solar Cells |
| Microbattery Extreme High Performance |
| Speeding Ticket Robots To Cite Autonomous Cars? |
Want to Contribute an
Item?
It's easy:
Get the name of the item, a
quote, the book's name and the author's name, and Add
it here.
| <Previous | Next> |
|
|
|
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
|
'Then their lasers vaporized the smaller satellites...'
'The legs are long, curled way up to deliver power, like a cheetah's.'
'It rested among green parklands and... stood in total isolation, a glittering block of whites and flashing windows dotted with colors.'
'George Walt's corporate existence proved the workability of wholly mechanical organs...'
