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"I love that computer science has made mathematics into something like an experimental science. I was never all that good at proving things, but I love doing computer experiments."
- Rudy Rucker
 |
| Toaster | ||
| A handheld beam weapon. |
| "But what about hand weapons? Are there any available?"
"You mean toasters?" "Anything that's lethal." "Nothing." |
| From Accidental Flight,
by W.F. Wallace. Published by Galaxy in 1952 Additional resources -
|
Here are some additional quotes:
"He adjusted the toaster beam to an imperceptible thickness. Deftly he sliced through the control case and removed a circular section..."
"Outside, there was the characteristic sputter, like frying, that the toaster beam made when it struck metal..."
"Jordan juggled the toaster. "I can weld with this. Let's put him in a cabin and weld the door closed..."
Compare to the blaster (1925) from When the Green Star Waned by Nictzin Dyalhis, the neutron blaster (1951), from The Complete Paratime, by H. Beam Piper and the heat ray from The War of the Worlds (1898), by H.G. Wells
"The rocket pilot moved closer. The deadly little toaster was in his hand..."
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