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
"Science fiction represents the modern heresy and the cutting edge of speculative imagination as it grapples with Mysterious Time---linear or non-linear time."
- Frank Herbert
 |
| Space Legs | ||
| The ability to walk under high gee acceleration on a space ship. |
| Lazarus saw from his face that it was necessary to the man's morale. "Okay... if you can handle yourself under two gees."
Ford struggled heavily up out of the acceleration couch he was in. "I've got space legs. What kind of sandwiches?" "I'd say corned beef, but it would probably be some damned substitute. Make mine cheese, with rye if they've got it, and use plenty of mustard. And a gallon of coffee. What are you having, Andy?" "Me? Oh, anything that is convenient." Ford started to leave, bracing himself heavily against double weight, then he added, "Oh-it might save time if you could tell me where to go." - "Brother," said Lazarus, "if this ship isn't pretty well crammed with food, we've all made a terrible mistake. Scout around. You'll find some." |
| From Methuselah's Children,
by Robert Heinlein. Published by Astounding Science-Fiction in 1941 Additional resources -
|
Not one to be hobbled by consistency, Heinlein also uses it in a different sense in Space Cadet (1948):
And yes, EE 'Doc Smith used this phrase - but not until First Lensman, published in 1950!
When the class was dismissed he hurried to his room and into his own cubicle, selected a spool on Martian history, inserted it in his projector, and began to study. He had been tempted to remain in the free-fall gymnasium to practice; he wanted very badly to pass the "space legs" test - free-fall acrobatics - as those who had passed it and qualified in the use of basic space suits as well were allowed one liberty a month at Terra Station.
Comment/Join this discussion ( 0 ) | RSS/XML | Blog This |
Additional
resources:
More Ideas
and Technology from Methuselah's Children
More Ideas
and Technology by Robert Heinlein
Tech news articles related to Methuselah's Children
Tech news articles related to works by Robert Heinlein
| Hayabusa 2 To Begin Asteroid Mining |
| Can Musk Starship Astronauts Use Magnetic Boots? |
| Giant Dolphin Spotted On Jupiter! |
| Musk's Starship An SF Fan's Dream Come True |
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.
|
'The world ... is drenched in unfamiliar information all the way to the horizon.'
'He saw one hiss by him as he rounded the corner, trailing a short whip antenna...'
'It may be organic damage. It may be permanent. Time'll tell, and only after you are off Substance D for a long while.'
It's the polite thing to do, and has been the polite thing to do for about four generations.
