Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
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
"I've taken some stick for passages in Altered Carbon which people complained had sickened them, but then violence should be sickening."
- Richard Morgan
 |
| Dog Pod Grid | ||
| A swarm of quasi-independent aerostatic devices. |
The reason for including this entry, as well as one for aerostat, is that these machines are capable of communicating with each other. This communication allows them to coordinate their movements.
| Atlantis/Shanghai occupied the loftiest ninety percent of New Chusan's land area - an inner plateau about a mile above sea level, where the air was cooler and cleaner. Parts of it were marked off with a lovely wrought-iron fence, but the real border was defended by something called the dog pod grid - a swarm of quasi-independent aerostats... These pods were programmed to hang in space in a hexagonal grid pattern about ten centimeters apart near the ground (close enough to stop a dog but not a cat, hence "dog pods") and spaced wider as they got higher. |
| Technovelgy from The Diamond Age,
by Neal Stephenson. Published by Bantam Books in 1995 Additional resources -
|
Together, they form a protective swarm.
In nature, bees swarm for a purpose; an ageing queen, overcrowding, poor ventilation in the hive. In flight, bee swarms approximate the kind of distance between individuals shown in a dog pod grid, with several thousand individuals spread through a volume the size of a minivan, flying together. However, when a bee swarm settles, the individuals congregate in a dense volume roughly the size of a football.
"Guard" bees don't fly around the hive to protect it; they stand guard in an aggressive stance at the entrance to the hive, checking individuals upon entry.
Compare to the pacification drones from The Breach (2020) by Matt Hill, the scuttle-bot from Hella (2020) by David Gerrold and the robot snake spy from Mariposa (2009) by Greg Bear.
Comment/Join this discussion ( 0 ) | RSS/XML | Blog This |
Additional
resources:
More Ideas
and Technology from The Diamond Age
More Ideas
and Technology by Neal Stephenson
Tech news articles related to The Diamond Age
Tech news articles related to works by Neal Stephenson
Dog Pod Grid-related
news articles:
- COTS Scout: Team Building Robot
- Nano Quadrotors Form Stephenson's Dog Pod Grid
- Autonomous UAV Surveillance Swarm
- Flyfire Micro-Helicopter Display
- Improve MAVs By Studying Bees In Flight
- Largest Micro-Drone Swarm Release Successful
- Drone Catches Drone! In Japan
- Biggest Drone Swarm Sets World Record
- Drone 100, Coordinated Drone Performance Team
- China's Drone Fleet Flies In Formation
- Crazyflie Drone Swarm Technology
- Slaughterbot AI KIller Quadcopter Drones
- Poland Starts With 1000 Warmate 'Suicide Drones'
| EBS-260 Handjet Free Hand Dot Matrix Printer |
| CD, DVD Bit Rot And PKD's Civic Notification Distorter |
| Zoom Education Idea Is 100 Years Old |
| 'A Sign in Space' Gives Practice In Decoding ET Messages |
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 Science Fiction Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
|
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
'... he had tightened the chest to gain maximum pumping action from the motion of breathing.'
'...a prayer wheel swung into view and began spinning at a furious pace.'
'And are all the people willing to be governed by a machine?'
'It's an old model,' Rawlins said. 'I'm not sure what to do.'
'the robot-boss was busy at the lip of the new lode instructing and egging the men on to greater speed...'
'He rode the bike with an intense lack of physical grace...'
