Science Fiction Dictionary: Terms, Ideas and Technology

Science Fiction Dictionary: Ideas, Terms and Technology
( 3734 Inventions Available)

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

Device Name	Book/Story	Author	Date
Abglanz A mask that hides identity.	The Mountain in the Sea	Naylor	2022
Ablative Heat (Reentry) Shield A single-use shield or covering designed to accept the heat of reentry and burn off.	Triplanetary	Smith	1934
A-Bomb Abbreviation for "atomic bomb".	Sixth Column	MacDonald	1941
Absolute Black A material so absolutely black that it absorbed all incident light.	Restaurant at the End of the Universe	Adams	1980
Accelerated Schooling Knowledge force-fed directly into the brain.	Cities in Flight	Blish	1957
Accelerated Schooling Helmet A device that stimulates the brain and imparts knowledge directly.	Cities in Flight	Blish	1957
Acceleration Chair A specially-designed chair used to help crew stay mobile during periods of high acceleration.	The Mote in God's Eye	Niven (w/J. Pournelle)	1974
Acceleration Couch A chair designed for use in during periods of high acceleration (multiple gravities).	The Mote in God's Eye	Niven (w/J. Pournelle)	1974
Acceleration Hammock Webbing used to cushion acceleration in spacecraft.	Pioneer - 1957	Gade	1939
Acceleration Shell A special suit designed to help people survive accelerations of up to twenty-five gravities.	The Forever War	Haldeman	1974
Acceleration-tank A water-filled tank used to ease the strains of acceleration.	Triplanetary	Smith	1934
Accu-Terrain Floor A special floor for virtual reality environments that simulates any kind of surface.	Natulife	Brin	1994
Acoustic Apparatus (Osophone) A device that used bone conduction to transmit sound.	Acoustic Apparatus	Gernsback	1923
Actinoscope A device that used a pulsating polarized ether wave to judge the distance to an object (a RADAR)	Ralph 124c 41 +	Gernsback	1911
Adam Selene A computer generates a human avatar for itself.	The Moon is a Harsh Mistress	Heinlein	1966
Adiabatic Pods Tiny space capsules large enough to hold one passenger.	The Lady Who Sailed The Soul	Smith	1960
Adjustable House A house with elastic walls and structural members, the shape of which can be changed.	Gather, Darkness!	Leiber	1943
Adjustable Television A television that allowed viewers to adjust the content of political speeches.	The Simulacra	Dick	1964
Adnix A device that muted the television to lessen the impact of commercials.	Contact	Sagan	1985
Adoption of Television Prediction of TV penetration in homes and the death of movie houses.	Prima Donna 1980	Brown	1931
Advertising Airship A dirigible capable of reproducing full-color video ads on its sides.	Blade Runner	Scott	1982
Aerial Dynamite Ships Using airplanes to drop explosives during war.	Looking Forward: A Dream of the United States of the Americas in 1999	Bird	1899
Aerial Navies Use of vast numbers of air-ships (planes) to overwhelm land defenses.	The World Masters	Griffith	1903
Aerial Telegraph Communication between individuals in spacesuits.	Edison's Conquest of Mars	Serviss	1898
Aeriduct (Rain Maker) A specific means of producing rain.	A Journey In Other Worlds	Astor IV	1894
Aero Bus (Flying Bus) A flying bus.	What Not: A Prophetic Comedy	Macaulay	1918
Aerocab A floating taxicab.	Buck Rogers, 2430 AD	Nowlan (w/D. Calkins)	1929
Aerocab (Aeroflyer) A electric flying taxi, or car.	Ralph 124c 41 +	Gernsback	1911
Aerocar A personal flying vehicle.	The Abduction of Alexandra Seine	Smale	1900
Aerocycle (Ærocycle) An aerial bicycle, human powered.	Looking Forward: A Dream of the United States of the Americas in 1999	Bird	1899
Aerodrome (Ærodromes) Flying machines.	Looking Forward: A Dream of the United States of the Americas in 1999	Bird	1899
Aeromuse Pillow A pillow that doubles as a music player.	The Human Blend	Foster	2010
Aerostat Monitor A small flying platform, capable of maneuvering in three dimensions; can hover in place and communicate with others like it.	The Diamond Age	Stephenson	1995
Aether Cannon A hand-held energy weapon.	Storm Thief	Wooding	2006
Agfom Potent-Shot Special film allows user to take a picture of what happens in the next thirty minutes.	Clans of the Alphane Moon	Dick	1964
Aggressive-Response Service An answering service with an attitude.	The Golden Globe	Varley	1998
Agile Recording Robot A recording machine that moves toward its subject.	Solar Lottery	Dick	1955
Agony Box A device for causing non-lethal, non-injuring pain by nerve induction.	Heretics of Dune	Herbert	1984
Agricultural Robot Pest Controller An agricultural robot specifically designed to perform pest control activities.	Runaway	Crichton	1985
Agricultural World Planet set aside for the production of food for another world.	Foundation	Asimov	1951
AI-Based Hiring and Firing Letting a computer system handle the hiring and firing of employees.	Manna	Brain	2002
Air Blast An air dryer for personal use.	Coventry	Heinlein	1940
Air Renewal Re-oxygenating the air within the projectile spacecraft.	From the Earth to the Moon	Verne	1867
Air Scooter A flying personal vehicle.	Space Double	Schachner	1940
Air Speedster Highly maneuverable air vehicle for hunting.	Foundation	Asimov	1951
Air Tank Flying Using little blasts of compressed air to fly around inside a space station.	The Power Planet	Leinster	1931
Air Tunnel A means of sending trains through the air.	Through the Air Tunnel	Vincent	1929
Airbag Jacket A jacket or coverall with inflatable air bags throughout for protection against impact.	Snow Crash	Stephenson	1992
Air-Blanket A dome-less protective air shield.	Hollywood on the Moon	Kuttner	1938
Airboarding Typing in thin air to input characters into a computer.	Halting State	Stross	2007
Aircab A flying autonomous taxi cab.	Time Crime	Piper	1955
Air-Car A personal flying car	A Matter of Size	Bates	1934
Air-Conditioned Coat An otherwise ordinary overcoat that fights the heat.	Deep Eddy	Sterling	1993
AIRE A piece of software that can break through encryption to determine exactly how a compiled program accomplishes its tasks.	Mother of Storms	Barnes	1994
Air-Freighter Cargo Plane An enormous airplane used for transporting cargo across the country.	The Invisible Raiders	Repp	1929
Airjeep A small military air vehicle.	Uller Uprising	Piper	1952
Airlock An intermediate chamber between airless space and the interior of a space craft.	Skylark of Space	Smith	1928
Airmaker A device that creates a specific breathable mix directly from the atmosphere.	Ringworld	Niven	1970
Airmakers Machine to create breathable air from the constituent materials on an alien planet.	The Big Rain	Anderson	1954
Air-o-Stat Provides life-giving air in spacecraft.	Satellite Five	Barnes	1938
Airplane Window Ads An airplane window that allows you to - see advertisements!	The Space Merchants	Pohl (w/CM Kornbluth)	1952
Airpolo Polo played in mid-air with special aircraft and helium-filled balls.	Sunward Flight	Zagat	1943
Air-Propelled Train A silent means of mass transit.	Fahrenheit 451	Bradbury	1953
Air-Restorer Capsule A device that re-oxygenates air in space suits.	The Planet Strappers	Gallun	1961
Air-Ship (VTOL Airship) A flying machine capable of vertical take-off and landing.	The Angel of the Revolution	Griffith	1893
Air-Shoes Footgear provides the wearer with the ability to "walk" through the air, climbing as needed.	An Adventure in Time	Flagg	1930
Air-Taxi A flying taxicab with autonomous features.	Prelude to Foundation	Asimov	1988
Air-Tight Cities Cities with breathable air constructed on worlds with no atmosphere.	The Cosmic Pantograph	Hamilton	1935
Air-Tight Suit An special outfit that would allow a person to survive in vacuum.	Edison's Conquest of Mars	Serviss	1898
Airtight Tent A temporary structure for living on an airless moon or asteroid.	Asteroid of Fear	Gallun	1951
Air-to-Surface Missile Very early description of a projectile fired from an airship into a surface target.	The Angel of the Revolution	Griffith	1893
Aladur High tensile strength, lightweight material.	Sunward Flight	Zagat	1943
Alcatraz of Space A planetoid prison.	Reunion on Ganymede	Simak	1938
Alcodote A compound that maintains sobriety while drinking.	Space Viking	Piper	1962
Alcoholic Reliever Mechanized relief from alcoholism.	Bad Medicine	Sheckley	1956
Alcohol-Sensing System A vehicle subsystem that detected alcohol use in the driver, and then took control of the car away from the driver.	The Game Players of Titan	Dick	1963
Alderson Point One end of a tramline, a path between stars that can be traversed using a hyperdrive engine.	The Mote in God's Eye	Niven (w/J. Pournelle)	1974
Alibi Archive A recording made of transmissions from a personal implant that perceived everything that happened to that individual.	Hominids (Neanderthal Parallax)	Sawyer	2003
Alien Life Form Living organisms of non-Earth origin.	The Hothouse Planet	Barnes	1937
Alien Self-Government Rules to assure intelligent aliens the right to govern themselves in freedom.	Co-Operate or Else	van Vogt	1942
Alien Tarantula Interesting illustration of an animal with gecko-like manipulative capabilities.	Engine City	MacLeod	2003
Alien Trojan Malware from another world!	Out of the Dark	Webber	2010
Alien Zoo A zoo that brings together plants and animals from many planets.	The Dosadi Experiment	Herbert	1977
Aliens Speak English The skeleton men of Mercury speak English, but have a good reason for it.	The Mines of Haldar	Hugi	1934
Allswell An organic compound found (or placed) in food that calms and mellows those who partake of it.	Anathem	Stephenson	2008
Alohydrolium The lightest metal.	Ralph 124c 41 +	Gernsback	1911
Alpha Insert A special compound used to seal punctures in space craft.	Exiles of the Moon	Schachner (w. AL Zagat)	1931
Alpha Plus Intervening in the physical development of humans can result in enhancements.	Brave New World	Huxley	1932
Alterable License Number A device which permits a driver to alter the license plate without leaving the vehicle.	Methuselah's Children	Heinlein	1941
Alternate Computer Personality A computer system that can take on complete, alternate personalities.	The Moon is a Harsh Mistress	Heinlein	1966
Altitude Suit Special gear for venturing out at high altitude or even space.	The Black Star Passes	Campbell	1930
AM A supercomputer that hates.	I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream	Ellison	1967
AM-280 Needle Rifle Device shoots a stream of steel needles.	A Matter For Men	Gerrold	1983
Ampek F-a2 Recording System A device that incorporated a living protoplasm, used as a recording and playback system.	The Simulacra	Dick	1964
Amphibious Skimmer Amphibious drone with blades.	Storm Thief	Wooding	2006
Amtal Rule Testing to destruction	Dune	Herbert	1965
Anabolic Protoplaser Uses laser light to repair wounds.	Spock, Messiah!	Cogswell (w/C. Spano)	1976
Anacronopete (Time Machine) A flying electric-powered time machine.	El Anacronopete	Gaspar	1887
Anadrenalin Has the opposite effect of adrenalin.	A Race Through Time	Wandrei	1933
Analogue A combination of a drug and a particular mental state allow a person to devolve to an animal level of their choice.	The Stars My Destination	Bester	1956
Analogue Treatment Hypnotic drug treatment that normalizes behavior in humans.	Ticket to Anywhere	Knight	1952
Android A synthetic being having the form of a human being.	The Cometeers	Williamson	1936
Android Safety Mechanism A device that temporarily incapacitates an android.	Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?	Dick	1968
Androide A device having the form or likeness of a man.	Cyclopaedia	Chambers	1727
Andy A slang term for "android" - an artificially created humanoid being.	Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?	Dick	1968
Anemopter Special craft for journeys through the atmosphere of a gas giant planet.	Finisterra	Moles	2007
Angel Music Player A device that beams music directly into your brain, without wires.	Flood	Baxter	2008
Angel Teeth Essentially a spear dropped from a great height (or from orbit) with a guidance system.	Freedom	Suarez	2010
Animal-tissue Culture Vat A means of producing artificial meat for food.	Uller Uprising	Piper	1952
Annihilator Beam A deadly ray that literally dissolved matter!	The Conquest of Gola	Stone	1931
Ansible Faster-than-light communication.	Rocannon's World	LeGuin	1966
Answerboard A forum or computer meeting location with experts on a particular topic.	Rainbows End	Vinge	2006
Anti-Acceleration Engine For Space Suits Counteracts the effects of high acceleration.	Black Destroyer	van Vogt	1939
Anti-agathic drugs Drugs that indefinitely postpone death from old age.	Cities in Flight	Blish	1957
Anti-Burglar Installations Every electronic house should have automated defenses.	The Angry House	Smith	1955
Anti-Fatigue Pill A pill that counteracts the effects of fatigue and lack of sleep.	The Silent Destroyer	Juve	1929
Anti-Gerasone Cheap immortality comes to your neighborhood convenience store.	Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow	Vonnegut, Jr.	1954
Anti-Glare Coated Glass Special coated glass for space craft.	The Death's Head Meteor	Jones	1930
Antigrav Boots Footgear that negate gravity.	The Day We Celebrate	Bond	1941
Antigravity A force opposed to gravity.	The Vanguard of Neptune	Walsh	1932
Anti-Gravity Belt A device which, when worn, reduces exposure to the effects of gravitation.	Armageddon: 2419 A.D.	Nowlan	1928
Antigravity Globe Arena A spherical arena for wrestling.	Babel-17	Delany	1966
Antigravity Plate (Antigravity Raft) A thin, circular craft that floats.	Co-Operate or Else	van Vogt	1942
Anti-Heptant A compound that erases specific areas of the brain.	To Live Forever	Vance	1956
Antiholo Generator Dispels intrusive hologram advertisements.	The Ophiuchi Hotline	Varley	1977
Anti-Onc Cream An ointment used to cure skin cancers.	Earth	Brin	1990
Anti-Robot Propaganda Human activity against robots.	Liar	Asimov	1941
Anti-Spying Device Foolproof means of defending against spy beams.	Foundation	Asimov	1951
Antithermal Shield A material that protected against climate warming.	The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch	Dick	1965
Anti-Tri-D Shot Counteracts the deadly pesticide Tri-D.	The Morning of the Day They Did It	White	1950
Antiturbulence Wings Wings that are designed to buffer turbulence for passengers.	Deep Eddy	Sterling	1993
Anti-Virus Design Software Create a living space such that the spread of disease is less likely.	Super-Cannes: A Novel	Ballard	2000
Antron A single particle of antimatter - an antiproton.	Minus Planet	Clark, Ph.D	1937
Apergy (Apergion) An antigravity substance with sufficient power to propel a space ship from the Earth to Mars.	Across the Zodiac	Greg	1880
Arachnofiber Uniforms Remarkable attire for a pizza delivery person; but given the violence of near future America, the protection offered by ordinary uniforms was insufficient.	Snow Crash	Stephenson	1992
Architectural Coral A structure grown to a specific shape using small coral-like organisms.	A Gift From Earth	Niven	1968
Arctic Signal Light A means of communicating with spacecraft from the surface of the Earth.	A Journey In Other Worlds	Astor IV	1894
Argento-Platinoid Dispatch Box Impenetrable message carriers.	Venus Mines, Incorporated	Schachner (w. AL Zagat)	1931
Armor Cloth Extremely tough synthetic fabric.	The Mote in God's Eye	Niven (w/J. Pournelle)	1974
Armored Clothing Ordinary apparel that contained both armor and muscle amplification devices.	The Dosadi Experiment	Herbert	1977
Art-Derm Artificial skin sprayed directly on the body.	Dr. Futurity	Dick	1960
Arteria Portal A wormhole entrance.	The Algebraist	Banks	2004
Artificial Atmosphere Machine Not just oxygen, this gives you what you need in space.	Venus Mines, Incorporated	Schachner (w. AL Zagat)	1931
Artificial Brain A non-organic device structured like a human brain.	The Metal Giants	Hamilton	1926
Artificial Butterfly A mechanical, robotic butterfly.	Changeling	Zelazny	1980
Artificial Cloth The creation of fabrics without organic natural fibers.	Ralph 124c 41 +	Gernsback	1911
Artificial eye A surgically-implanted artificial eyeball.	Galactic Patrol	Smith	1937
Artificial Eye Drone A remote flying device that transmits its view to the operator.	Glimpse	Wellman	1938
Artificial Eyes Eyes that are the duplicate of what humans are born with, produced entirely artificially from elements.	Synthetic	Cloukey	1930
Artificial Food Food produced without soil, chemically.	The World Set Free	Wells	1914
Artificial Gill Outfit A diving suit that pulls air from the water.	We Can Remember It For You Wholesale	Dick	1966
Artificial Gravity Procuring gravitational forces without a suitably large mass.	Brigands of the Moon	Cummings	1930
Artificial Gravity System Producing a gravity field without a large nearby mass.	Last and First Men	Stapledon	1930
Artificial Gravity-Assisted Childbirth Using an artificial gravity field to assist (and accelerate) the process of childbirth.	Time Enough For Love	Heinlein	1973
Artificial Intelligence Device (AID) Hand-held device responds intelligently to military intelligence requests.	A Hymn Before Battle	Ringo	2000
Artificial Island For Ocean Rocket Launch An entirely artificial, floating island used as a launch platform.	Between Earth and Moon	von Hanstein	1930
Artificial Life Creating living beings from inorganic elements.	Across Space	Hamilton	1926
Artificial Muscles Replacement for organic muscle tissue.	Cyborg	Caidin	1972
Artificial Planet A very large constructed object in space.	Triplanetary	Smith	1934
Artificial Planet Constructed bodies the size of planets for habitation.	Star Maker	Stapledon	1937
Artificial Silk A fabric like silk produced entirely without silkworms.	In the Deep of Time	Lathrop	1897
Artificial Telepathy Using technology to determine thoughts, and then translate it to speech that could be shared electronically.	We All Died At Breakaway Station	Meredith	1969
Artificial Transparent Element A substance as strong as metal that you can see through.	Last and First Men	Stapledon	1930
Artificial Womb A room in which a human embryo waits for the necessary months as a fetus, preparing for birth (decanting).	Brave New World	Huxley	1932
Artificially Grown Organs Human organs suitable for transplantation, grown outside the body.	A Gift From Earth	Niven	1968
Artificially Produced Speech Speech produced by mechanical means, rather than with vocal chords.	Hotel Cosmos	Gallun	1938
Artificially Pulsating Star A star that has been modified to pulsate with a message to the entire universe.	The Cosmic Blinker	Binder	1953
Artiforg An artificial organ kept 'on line' in the body.	Ubik	Dick	1969
Artif-Org A mechanical version of a human organ.	Cantata 140	Dick	1964
Artigraft Artificial skin graft.	Solar Lottery	Dick	1955
Asbestos Sunshade A means of shielding oneself from the sun's rays.	The Achilles Heel	Gallun	1940
A-Som (Antisomnolence Drugs) One simple pill removes the need for sleep.	Shuteye for the Timebroker	Di Filippo	2006
Assassin Bird A bird genetically engineered to accept instructions on how to kill.	Sparrowhawk	Easton	1990
Assault Ship A one-way, one-use spacecraft for depositing troops at the scene of a space battle.	The Forever War	Haldeman	1974
Asterite A person who was born and lived amongst the asteroids.	Collision Orbit	Williamson	1942
Asteroid Belt The circular region of space containing many small celestial bodies.	The Disc-Men of Jupiter	Wellman	1931
Asteroid Claim Law The legal steps required in claiming an asteroid	Jurisdiction	Schachner	1941
Asteroid From Outside Solar System An asteroid or similar body that comes from outside the solar system; an interstellar body.	Brigands of the Moon	Cummings	1930
Asteroid Garden A method for building a greenhouse on a small, airless body.	Asteroid of Fear	Gallun	1951
Asteroid Homesteaders' School An institution of learning where regular folks learned how to start a farm on an asteroid.	Asteroid of Fear	Gallun	1951
Asteroid Lanes Regular routes traversed by asteroids.	Jurisdiction	Schachner	1941
Asteroid Mine The practice of seeking out and mining asteroids for their ore.	Love Among The Robots	McDowell	1946
Asteroid Mining The mining of asteroid ore, accomplished by traveling to these tiny bodies.	Edison's Conquest of Mars	Serviss	1898
Asteroid Mining (Blasting) Setting charges on an asteroid.	Asteroid of Gold	Simak	1932
Asteroid Mining Robot An autonomous robot able to effectively mine asteroids.	Catch That Rabbit	Asimov	1944
Asteroid Nets Capturing small asteroids or fragments using rocket nets.	Asteroid Justice	Thiessen	1947
Asteroid Prison A jail is the sole occupant of an asteroid.	One Against The Legion	Williamson	1939
Asteroid Rocket An engine attached to an asteroid to drive it through space.	Salvage in Space	Williamson	1933
Asteroid Space Flyer Specialized one-man craft for exploring asteroids.	The Death's Head Meteor	Jones	1930
Asteroid-Metal Metal mined from asteroids.	The Mechanical Monarch	Tubb	1958
Astrogation (to Astrogate) To navigate in space.	Methuselah's Children	Heinlein	1941
Astrogator A person who acts as navigator for s space ship.	The Conquest of Space	Lasser	1931
Astronaut A person who travels in space.	The Death's Head Meteor	Jones	1930
Astronaut (Ship) The first instance of this phrase, it denotes a space-going vessel.	Across the Zodiac	Greg	1880
Astroposit Retro-style system provides a readout on your position anywhere in the galaxy.	The Hunch	Anvil	1961
Asymptotic Drive A propulsion drive that used a tiny black hole to generate energy.	Imperial Earth	Clarke	1976
Atlotl/Gibiril Regimen A method of altering the flow of energy in the body to aid in regrowth of damaged or missing tissue.	The Godmakers	Herbert	1972
Atmosphere Control Recently terraformed planets require constant maintenance.	The Mote in God's Eye	Niven (w/J. Pournelle)	1974
Atmosphere Tester A device used to test the composition of a sample of the atmosphere on another planet, to see if it is breathable by humans.	The Emperor of the Stars	Schachner (w. AL Zagat)	1931
Atmospheric Advertising A means of mass advertising to cities and countries.	In the Year 2889	Verne	1889
Atmospheric Braking Using a planet's atmosphere to gradually decelerate a spacecraft.	Space Cadet	Heinlein	1948
Atmospheric Pressure Control Plane A vessel that flies by creating pockets of high and low pressure.	Around the World in 24 Hours	Romans	1929
Atmospherics Switchboard Make sure each hotel room has the right atmosphere from the right planet.	Lie on the Beam	Peterson	1941
Atom Compactor (Metal Earthworm) A tunneling device.	Death Dives Deep	Ernst	1936
Atom-Gun A handheld device that sprays atomic fire.	Revolt on the Tenth World	Hamilton	1940
Atomic Automatic Fires a special, rocket-like bullet.	Revolt on Io	West	1940
Atomic Blast Weapon Reduces the target to atoms.	The Achilles Heel	Gallun	1940
Atomic Bomb A weapon that uses an atomic chain reaction as an explosive force.	The World Set Free	Wells	1914
Atomic Drill An atomic-powered auger, for use in drilling deep into planets and asteroids.	Minus Planet	Clark, Ph.D	1937
Atomic Energy Splitting the atom to create a destructive force.	The Crack of Doom	Cromie	1895
Atomic Energy Motor An engine which utilizes atomic energy.	The Man from the Atom	Wertenbaker	1926
Atomic Engine A motor running on atomic fuel.	The World Set Free	Wells	1914
Atomic Explosive A handheld bomb that melted its way into an armored door, then detonated.	Hotel Cosmos	Gallun	1938
Atomic Machine A device that shrinks and expands its wearer.	The Man from the Atom	Wertenbaker	1926
Atomic Microscopy A device that can actually visualize a individual molecule and its parts.	The Crack of Doom	Cromie	1895
Atomic Percolator Make coffee with radiation.	The Golden Girl of Munan	Vincent	1928
Atomic Pistol Reduces the target to atomic dust.	Mutiny on Mercury	Simak	1932
Atomic Shell A nuclear munition, fired from a cannon.	Buck Rogers, 2430 AD	Nowlan (w/D. Calkins)	1929
Atomic Torch An atomic-powered cutting and welding tool.	One Against The Legion	Williamson	1939
Atomic-Powered Lifting Suits Special exoskeletons that would allow an ordinary human being to walk in doubled gravity.	The Brain Pirates	Campbell	1938
Atomics The field of nuclear energy.	Nerves	del Rey	1942
Atom-Shifter A device that 'softens' matter, making it possible for a person to pass through.	The Worlds of Tomorrow	Wellman	1940
Atoplane An airplane powered by nuclear energy, capable of tremendous speed and distance.	The Moon of Doom	Bell	1928
Attraction Ray In effect, a tractor beam.	Pirates of the Gorm	Schachner	1932
Attractive Ray A beam of radiation that pulls.	Crashing Suns	Hamilton	1928
Attractor A beam capable of holding objects motionless, as well as adjusting their position.	The Conquest of Gola	Stone	1931
Audio Relay A communication device implanted behind the ear; also used as an alarm for wake-up calls.	The Puppet Masters	Heinlein	1951
Audiphone Communication between space suits in the airless void of space.	Blood of the Moon	Cummings	1936
Auto Course-Finding Pilot A device that not only pilots the craft, but will also plot out a course for you.	Clans of the Alphane Moon	Dick	1964
Auto Shovel Automated mining equipment for use in space.	The Simulacra	Dick	1964
Autobutle An automated servant.	The Godmakers	Herbert	1972
Autocab An fully automated taxi cab.	Between Planets	Heinlein	1951
Auto-Car A personal vehicle for indoor and outdoor use.	The Revolt of the Pedestrians	Keller	1928
Auto-Clerk An automated accounting system.	Beyond This Horizon	Heinlein	1942
Autodoc An automated physician, a fully autonomous surgical robot.	World of Ptavvs	Niven	1965
Auto-Driven Auto (Spinner) A vehicle that accepts coordinates and proceeds to its destination automatically.	The Dream Master (He Who Shapes)	Zelazny	1966
Autofac (Nanorobots) Very small robots working on self-replication	Autofac	Dick	1955
Autofreighter An autonomous vessel carrying trade materials.	The Mountain in the Sea	Naylor	2022
AutoM8 A remote-controlled automobile.	Daemon	Suarez	2009
Automat Unusual name for an intelligent robot; short for "automaton"?	Mad Robot	Gallun	1936
Automated Apartment Maintenance Automated devices that would oversee the maintenance of a rented apartment.	Ubik	Dick	1969
Automated DNA Typing A device that takes quick samples of DNA and compares each sample to a database.	Gattaca	Niccol	1997
Automated Drone Probes Human-sized robot probes for exploration.	The Man in the Maze	Silverberg	1969
Automated Factory A factory that works entirely automatically, without human guidance.	The Hidden Colony	von Hanstein	1935
Automated Hotel Reservation A hotel that did not use clerks; a self-service hotel.	Methuselah's Children	Heinlein	1941
Automated Restaurant Food is prepared and served entirely automatically.	A Princess of Mars	Burroughs	1912
Automated Search For Habitable Planets Automated use of telescopes and other devices to search the universe for Earth-like planets.	Cosmic Quest	Hamilton	1936
Automated Sentry A biometric device that scans facial features for identification.	Darwin's Children	Bear	2003
Automated Space Factories Manufacturing based in space.	Mona Lisa Overdrive	Gibson	1988
Automated Surface Measurement A mechanical method of accurately measuring a surface.	When the Sleeper Wakes	Wells	1899
Automated Taxi A driverless taxicab.	Sagramanda	Foster	2006
Automated Travel Bureau A computer program that allows individuals to book their travel arrangements themselves, with a credit card.	Friday	Heinlein	1982
Automated Wake-Up Call A device that provides automated wake-up calls.	The Kokod Warriors	Vance	1952
Automatic Air Mail Plane A pilotless airplane for delivery of cargo.	The Living Machine	Keller	1935
Automatic City A city designed to protect itself and maintain itself over millions of years.	The Man in the Maze	Silverberg	1969
Automatic Commercial Deletion Device automatically detects commercials and turns off the set for the duration.	Satellite Five	Barnes	1938
Automatic Companion Robot A robotic replacement for a pet or friend.	The Midas Plague	Pohl	1954
Automatic Control Car An autonomous vehicle.	Imperial Earth	Clarke	1976
Automatic Cultivators Agricultural robots.	Piracy Preferred	Campbell	1930
Automatic Delivery Library A library able to deliver any volume within a few moments.	The Lord of Tranerica	Coblentz	1939
Automatic Door A wall strip that rolls up automatically to let you through.	When the Sleeper Wakes	Wells	1899
Automatic Factory Manufacturing facility that functions entirely autonomously.	Autofac	Dick	1955
Automatic Gun A sentry gun that could target and decide to fire without any human intervention.	The Andromeda Strain	Crichton	1969
Automatic Hotel (Hotel Hendrix) A fully automated hotel; complete services provided from check-in to check-out.	Altered Carbon	Morgan	2003
Automatic Light Switch A device that senses if an illuminated room is empty, and turns off the light.	The Man Who Sold The Moon	Heinlein	1950
Automatic Massager An autonomous massage machine with robotic arms and hands.	Far Centaurus	van Vogt	1944
Automatic Navigator Device steers your spaceship to its destination without additional effort from you.	A Matter of Size	Bates	1934
Automatic Ore Cart An autonomous truck for raw ore processing.	Autofac	Dick	1955
Automatic Parking Vehicle autonomously heads for a public hangar.	Twilight	Campbell	1934
Automatic Pilot A device to control the movement of aircraft using computer components.	The Space Merchants	Pohl (w/CM Kornbluth)	1952
Automatic Refueling Screen Repels objects that are too big, and gathers small ones for fuel.	Biddiver	Sturgeon	1941
Automatic Reversed Memory A device that activates memories and plays them back in reverse order.	Brain Control	Cummins	1937
Automatic Shell A projectile that bores through obstacles - even the Earth!	The Great Stone of Sardis	Stockton	1897
Automatic Speeding Fine An automated device that not only computes the speed of a vehicle, but registers and then issues an electronic citation.	Old Fireball	Schachner	1941
Automatic Ticket Machine Get your ticket to Trantor automatically.	Second Foundation	Asimov	1953
Automatic Toll Payment An automated car that pays its own toll.	The Living Machine	Keller	1935
Automatic Truck A cargo-carrying vehicle that autonomously drives to the selected destination.	Mechanocracy	Breuer	1932
Automatic Valet A robotic manservant.	Looking Forward: A Dream of the United States of the Americas in 1999	Bird	1899
Automatic Vein Finder A device to automatically locate veins for intravenous needle insertion.	The Andromeda Strain	Crichton	1969
Automatic-Electric Packing Machine A device able to pack randomly shaped objects combined into a single package automatically.	Ralph 124c 41 +	Gernsback	1911
Automatics Machinery capable of running some aspect of a space ship's operation on its own.	Wandl, The Invader	Cummings	1932
Automatized Factory A factory consisting of machines with imposed human abilities.	The Tunnel Under The World	Pohl	1955
Automatobile An autonomous private car.	Sally	Asimov	1953
Automatobus An autonomous or self-driving bus seating a number of people.	Sally	Asimov	1953
Automaton Chessplayer The first chess-playing computer.	Moxon's Master	Bierce	1910
Auto-Navigation Automatic car navigation, provided on a video console in the dashboard.	The Dream Master (He Who Shapes)	Zelazny	1966
Autonomic Cab An automated taxicab (without robotic driver).	The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch	Dick	1965
Autonomic Food-Processing System Technology allows food to be prepared untouched by human hands.	Cantata 140	Dick	1964
Autonomic Interviewer A robotic reporter.	The Zap Gun	Dick	1965
Autonomic Plow A set of farm implements able to combine and perform as a weapon.	Clans of the Alphane Moon	Dick	1964
Autonomous Assassination Drone A flying UAV that is self-guided to a target, destroys the target, and is capable of destroying itself after mission completion.	Kill Decision	Suarez	2012
Autonomous Car Intercommunication Automatic cars talk to each other about everything.	Sally	Asimov	1953
Autonomous Digging Machine A mechanical device able to excavate on its own.	The War of the Worlds	Wells	1898
Autonomous Truck A truck that drives itself and unloads itself.	Autofac	Dick	1955
Autonomously Recharging UAV Unmanned aerial vehicles that recharge themselves automatically.	Changeling	Zelazny	1980
Autoporter A device that carries your bag for you at airports.	The Shockwave Rider	Brunner	1975
Auto-Scan Automated control of remote surveillance drones.	This Moment of the Storm	Zelazny	1966
Auto-Seal Automatically deployed cover for power outlets; instant child-proofing.	Stand on Zanzibar	Brunner	1968
Autosecretary (Autosec) A software agent able to accept your query and then seach the public net for related information.	Earth	Brin	1990
Autosight Achronic Beam A range-finder for weaponry that isn't limited by time, for the ultimate in accuracy.	Hindsight	Williamson	1940
Autosurgeon A mechanical aid to physicians, performing surgical procedures with surgeons present.	Altered Carbon	Morgan	2003
Auto-Treadmills (Needle-Gym) A simulation-exercise room floor that allows the user to walk and run on a consistently realistic surface.	Natulife	Brin	1994
Ava A piece of learning software.	The Calcutta Chromosome	Ghosh	1995
Avatar A computer-enhanced doppelganger; a computer-generated image that takes your place in a three-dimensional online encounter.	Snow Crash	Stephenson	1992
Avatar Construction Set A collection of software that allows the building of a complete avatar.	Snow Crash	Stephenson	1992
Axolotl Tank A device to regenerate or reshape organic material.	Dune Messiah	Herbert	1969

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