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"No one has ever produced a statement of fact that was technically true. The most accurate statements of science we have today are accurate to only 15 decimal places."
- Bart Kosko
 |
| Threat Team (of sf writers) | ||
| Gathering together a group of science fiction writers to try to predict what will happen, or to understand an unknown threat. |
The government creates a special think tank of science fiction writers who try to understand the aliens and extrapolate their capabilities. Eventually, they even invited a captured member of the aliens to join their "herd" - the Dreamer Fithp. The military called them the Threat Team.
| They took their places in the lecture room, but they tended to sit for a moment, then get up and gather in clumps. Most of them talked at once. Working with the science-fiction people was an educational experience. They had no reverence for anything or anyone...
"Admiral Carrell has assembled an intelligence group to advise the National Security Council. You are part of it." "Makes sense. Who else knows about aliens?" She looked at her seating chart. Curtis. She nodded. "...You are the Threat Team. The others will assume the aliens are friendly. Our group will examine the possibility they are hostile..." |
| From Footfall,
by Larry Niven (w/J. Pournelle). Published by Ballantine in 1985 Additional resources -
|
As one character says in the book, you might as well listen to science fiction writers because, in some areas, "they're the only experts we have."
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Additional
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More Ideas
and Technology from Footfall
More Ideas
and Technology by Larry Niven (w/J. Pournelle)
Tech news articles related to Footfall
Tech news articles related to works by Larry Niven (w/J. Pournelle)
Threat Team (of sf writers)-related
news articles:
- Sigma: SF Writers Advise Homeland Security
- France's 'Red Team' Of Science Fiction Authors
| China's Artificial Intelligence-Enhanced Education |
| France's 'Red Team' Of Science Fiction Authors |
| BrainNet Triple Telepathic Gaming Threat |
| Project Dylan - Amazon's Voice-Activated Wearable That Recognizes Human Emotions |
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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.
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'But when Old Father Sun departs, the chromoplastic reverts to transparency in the dark.'
'It extended three of its tiny arms sideways to lock onto the registration pins...'
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'Mass-produced in the orbiting factories...'
'I enjoy watching this way, but - He waved his hand and the circuit switched abruptly.'
SF writers popularized and elaborated on this idea a generation before the first patents were filed.
'The autopilot would need data before it could begin a translation...'
'Sealed to the ground along all the sides, Honey, he growled...'
