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
"There's a poetry in the materials we use to construct our world of artifacts; it speaks of our long history as a technological species."
- William Gibson
 |
| Trip-Box | ||
| A teleportation device. |
| "Can you come through right now?"
"Maybe." He glanced at the gleaming cage to his left. "But what's this all about?" "I'll have to tell you in person. Please reverse the transfer charges. It is important, Mr. Singer." "All right. I'll come." He moved to his trip box and began its activation. It whined faintly for an instant. Zones of color moved upward within the shafts. "Ready," he said, stepping into the unit. Looking down, he saw that his feet were growing dim. For a moment, the world was disarrayed. Then his thoughts fell back into place again. He was standing within the unit similar to his own... |
| Technovelgy from Eye of Cat,
by Roger Zelazny. Published by Pocket Books in 1982 Additional resources -
|
Another thing I like about this expression is that you can make a cool (or even "groovy") verb out of it:
Teleportation is, of course, a science fiction staple. Compare to libra-transmitter from Into the Meteorite Orbit by Frank R. Kelly, the cosmic express from The Cosmic Express by Jack Williamson, Jaunte from The Stars My Destination and the Transo from Time is the Simplest Thing by Clifford Simak.
See also Compare to the telepomp from The Man Without a Body (1877) by Edward Page Mitchell, the
displacement booth from Flash Crowd (1972) by Larry Niven, the
stepping discs from Ringworld (1970) by Larry Niven and the
trip box from Eye of Cat (1982) by Roger Zelazny.
Also, see the Transo from Time is the Simplest Thing by Clifford Simak and the geofractor (1939) from One Against the Legion by Jack Williamson.
He was nowhere on the premises, and they guessed that he had tripped out from one of the downstairs boxes.
Comment/Join this discussion ( 0 ) | RSS/XML | Blog This |
Additional
resources:
More Ideas
and Technology from Eye of Cat
More Ideas
and Technology by Roger Zelazny
Tech news articles related to Eye of Cat
Tech news articles related to works by Roger Zelazny
| Boring Company Vegas Loop Like Asimov Said |
| SpaceX Rocket Shuttle Point-To-Point On Earth |
| CORLEO Robotic Horse Concept Looks Ready To Ride |
| Futuristic Transit Elevated Bus Never Really Worked |
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
"The robot solemnly hit a ball against the wall, picked it up and teed it, hit it again, over and again...'
'There was a wall ahead... It was riddled with holes that were the mouths of tunnels.'
'...support the interior human structure against Jupiter’s pull.'
'Anything larger than a BB shot it picked up and placed in a tray...'
'The German chemists have discovered how to supply the needed elements in compact, undiluted form...'
'Compounds devised by the biochemists for the rapid building of bone...'
'The car faltered as the external command came to brake...'
'It is about the size and shape of a kitchen stool, gyro-stabilized...'
