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Ringworld
''Ringworld'' is a 1970 science fiction novel by Larry Niven, set in his Known Space universe and considered a classic of science fiction literature. ''Ringworld'' tells the story of Louis Wu and his companions on a mission to the Ringworld, a rotating wheel artificial world, an alien construct in space in diameter. Niven later added three sequel novels and then cowrote, with Edward M. Lerner, four prequels and a final sequel; the five latter novels constitute the Fleet of Worlds series. All the novels in the Ringworld series tie into numerous other books set in Known Space. ''Ringworld'' won the Nebula Award in 1970, as well as both the Hugo Award and Locus Award in 1971. Plot summary On planet Earth in 2850 AD, Louis Gridley Wu is celebrating his 200th birthday. Despite his age, Louis is in perfect physical condition due to the longevity drug boosterspice. He meets Nessus, a Pierson's puppeteer, who offers him a mysterious job. Intrigued, Louis eventually accepts. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Ringworld Engineers
''The Ringworld Engineers'' is a 1979 science fiction novel by American writer Larry Niven. It is the first sequel to Niven's '' Ringworld'' and was nominated for both the Hugo and Locus Awards in 1981. Origin In the introduction to the novel, Niven says that he never planned to write more than one ''Ringworld'' novel, but that he did so, in a large part, due to fan support. Firstly, the popularity of ''Ringworld'' resulted in a demand for a sequel. Secondly, many fans had identified numerous engineering problems in the Ringworld as described in the novel. The first major problem was that the Ringworld, being a rigid structure, was not actually in orbit around the star it encircled and would eventually drift, resulting in the entire structure colliding with its sun and disintegrating. In the novel's introduction, Niven says that MIT students attending the 1971 World Science Fiction Convention chanted, "The Ringworld is unstable! The Ringworld is unstable!" Niven says that one r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Known Space
Known Space is the fictional setting of about a dozen science fiction novels and several collections of short stories written by Larry Niven. It has also become a shared universe in the spin-off ''Man-Kzin Wars'' anthologies. The Internet Speculative Fiction Database (ISFDB) catalogs all works set in the fictional universe that includes Known Space under the series name Tales of Known Space, which was the title of a 1975 collection of Niven's short stories. The first-published work in the series, which was Niven's first published piece was "The Coldest Place", in the December 1964 issue of '' If'' magazine, edited by Frederik Pohl. This was the first-published work in the 1975 collection. The stories span approximately one thousand years of future history, from the first human explorations of the Solar System to the colonization of dozens of nearby systems. Late in the series, Known Space is an irregularly shaped "bubble" about 60 light-years across. The epithet "Known Spac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nessus (Pierson's Puppeteer)
This is a list of fictional characters featured in the ''Known Space'' novels by Larry Niven. Individual characters Sigmund Ausfaller Sigmund Ausfaller, a native of Earth, is a member of the Amalgamated Regional Militia ("ARM"), working in the Bureau of Alien Affairs on Earth. To protect puppeteer (and Earth) interests, in "Neutron Star" Ausfaller plants a bomb in the lifesystem of Shaeffer's ship, the ''Skydiver'', so that Shaeffer will not attempt to steal it. Years later, in ''The Borderlands of Sol'', when Shaeffer encounters him on Jinx, he offers Shaeffer and Carlos Wu a ride home to Earth on his ship, ''Hobo Kelly'', in hopes of attracting the attention of whoever or whatever was causing ships to disappear when entering or leaving Sol system. Some years later, Ausfaller, having almost caught up with Shaeffer on Fafnir, is killed by Ander Smittarasheed in order to protect Smittarasheed's interest in the special nanotechnology autodoc developed by Carlos Wu, left on Fafnir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Speaker-to-Animals
This is a list of fictional characters featured in the ''Known Space'' novels by Larry Niven. Individual characters Sigmund Ausfaller Sigmund Ausfaller, a native of Earth, is a member of the Amalgamated Regional Militia ("ARM"), working in the Bureau of Alien Affairs on Earth. To protect puppeteer (and Earth) interests, in "Neutron Star" Ausfaller plants a bomb in the lifesystem of Shaeffer's ship, the ''Skydiver'', so that Shaeffer will not attempt to steal it. Years later, in ''The Borderlands of Sol'', when Shaeffer encounters him on Jinx, he offers Shaeffer and Carlos Wu a ride home to Earth on his ship, ''Hobo Kelly'', in hopes of attracting the attention of whoever or whatever was causing ships to disappear when entering or leaving Sol system. Some years later, Ausfaller, having almost caught up with Shaeffer on Fafnir, is killed by Ander Smittarasheed in order to protect Smittarasheed's interest in the special nanotechnology autodoc developed by Carlos Wu, left on Fafnir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Teela Brown
This is a list of fictional characters featured in the ''Known Space'' novels by Larry Niven. Individual characters Sigmund Ausfaller Sigmund Ausfaller, a native of Earth, is a member of the Amalgamated Regional Militia ("ARM"), working in the Bureau of Alien Affairs on Earth. To protect puppeteer (and Earth) interests, in "Neutron Star" Ausfaller plants a bomb in the lifesystem of Shaeffer's ship, the ''Skydiver'', so that Shaeffer will not attempt to steal it. Years later, in ''The Borderlands of Sol'', when Shaeffer encounters him on Jinx, he offers Shaeffer and Carlos Wu a ride home to Earth on his ship, ''Hobo Kelly'', in hopes of attracting the attention of whoever or whatever was causing ships to disappear when entering or leaving Sol system. Some years later, Ausfaller, having almost caught up with Shaeffer on Fafnir, is killed by Ander Smittarasheed in order to protect Smittarasheed's interest in the special nanotechnology autodoc developed by Carlos Wu, left on Fafnir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Louis Wu
Louis Gridley Wu, a fictional character, is the protagonist in the ''Ringworld'' series of books, written by Larry Niven. Louis Wu was born in 2650 to Carlos Wu and Sharrol Janss. When he appears in ''Ringworld'', Louis is 6′2″ (188 cm) tall. Without " Flatlander" bodypaint, his brown eyes show no discernible slant and his yellow-brown skinned features are a blended fusion of Earth's many races. Born a "Flatlander", Louis is best known among his friends for inventing the "Sabbatical"—going off alone in a spaceship outside the boundaries of known space until one can tolerate human company again. Louis was the first human being to make contact with the Trinoc species. He is also the only hominid ever to become a Protector and return to normal (Breeder) state afterward. Birth and childhood Louis Wu is the second of two children born to Carlos Wu and Sharrol Janss. Sharrol was married to Beowulf (or "Bey") Shaeffer at the time but the Fertility Board of the United ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pierson's Puppeteers
Pierson's Puppeteers, often known just as Puppeteers, are a fictional alien race from American author Larry Niven's ''Known Space'' books. The race first appeared in Niven’s novella '' Neutron Star''. Biology and sociology The sobriquet "Pierson's" comes from the name of the human who made first contact in the early 26th century in the ''Known Space'' timeline. According to the Niven story '' The Soft Weapon'', Pierson was a crewman aboard a spaceship at a time when there was a camp revival of the ancient ''Time for Beany'' TV show featuring Cecil the Seasick Sea Serpent, an animated character based on a hand puppet; Pierson accordingly described the alien he had met as a Puppeteer, given some resemblance of the head and neck with Cecil. Puppeteers dealing with humans usually give themselves the names of centaurs and other figures in Greek mythology, such as Nessus, Nike and Chiron. Puppeteers' names for themselves are reportedly highly complex, and unpronounceable by hum ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Larry Niven
Laurence van Cott Niven (; born April 30, 1938) is an American science fiction writer. His best-known works are '' Ringworld'' (1970), which received Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards, and, with Jerry Pournelle, '' The Mote in God's Eye'' (1974) and '' Lucifer's Hammer'' (1977). The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America named him the 2015 recipient of the Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Award. His work is primarily hard science fiction, using big science concepts and theoretical physics. It also often includes elements of detective fiction and adventure stories. His fantasy includes the series '' The Magic Goes Away'', rational fantasy dealing with magic as a non-renewable resource. Biography Niven was born in Los Angeles. He is a great-grandson of Edward L. Doheny, an oil tycoon who drilled the first successful well in the Los Angeles City Oil Field in 1892, and also was subsequently implicated in the Teapot Dome scandal. Niven briefly attended ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ringworld Series
The Ringworld series is a series of science fiction novels written by American author Larry Niven. It is part of his Known Space set of stories. Its backdrop is the Ringworld, a giant artifact 600 million miles in circumference around a star. The series is composed of five standalone science fiction novels, the original award-winning book and its four sequels: * 1970: ''Ringworld'' * 1980: ''The Ringworld Engineers'' * 1996: ''The Ringworld Throne'' * 2004: ''Ringworld's Children'' * 2012: ''Fate of Worlds'' (by Niven and Edward M. Lerner) ''Fate of Worlds'' is also a sequel to the four books of the Fleet of Worlds series, set in the same "Known Space" universe and all written by Niven and Edward M. Lerner: * 2007: ''Fleet of Worlds'' * 2008: ''Juggler of Worlds'' * 2009: '' Destroyer of Worlds'' * 2010: ''Betrayer of Worlds ''Betrayer of Worlds'' is a science fiction novel by American writers Larry Niven and Edward M. Lerner, set in the Known Space series. It is a se ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kzin
The Kzinti (singular Kzin) are a fictional, warlike and bloodthirsty race of cat-like aliens in Larry Niven's ''Known Space'' series. The Kzinti were initially introduced in Niven's story "The Warriors" (originally in '' Worlds of If'' (1966), collected in ''Tales of Known Space'' (1975)) and " The Soft Weapon" (1967), collected in ''Neutron Star'' (1968). A Kzin character, Speaker-to-Animals (later known as Chmeee), subsequently played a significant role in Niven's Hugo and Nebula award-winning '' Ringworld'' (1970) and '' Ringworld Engineers'' (1980), giving considerably more background of the Kzinti and their interactions with human civilizations. Following ''Ringworld'', Niven permitted several friends to write stories taking place in the time following "The Warriors" but before "The Soft Weapon"; these stories (including a handful by Niven) were collected in some volumes of ''The Man-Kzin Wars'', which eventually reached fourteen volumes, the first published in June 1988. Kz ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fleet Of Worlds
''Fleet of Worlds'' is a science fiction novel by American writers Larry Niven and Edward M. Lerner, part of Niven's Known Space series. The Fleet of Worlds (sub)series, consisting of this book and its four sequels, is named for its opening book. Novel The novel, co-written by Niven and Edward M. Lerner, was released in 2007 and nominated for a Prometheus Award. It is set shortly after the events of the short story " At the Core". The novel concerns the liberation of New Terra from the Concordance of the Pierson's Puppeteers Pierson's Puppeteers, often known just as Puppeteers, are a fictional alien race from American author Larry Niven's ''Known Space'' books. The race first appeared in Niven’s novella '' Neutron Star''. Biology and sociology The sobriquet "Pier .... It also introduces a new intelligent species to Known Space, the Gw'oth. Series The Fleet of World series consists of five books by the same authors: *''Fleet of Worlds'' (2007), * '' Juggler of Worlds'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rotating Wheel Space Station
A rotating wheel space station, also known as a von Braun wheel, is a concept for a hypothetical wheel-shaped space station. Originally proposed by Konstantin Tsiolkovsky in 1903, the idea was expanded by Herman Potočnik in 1929. Specifications This type of station rotates about its axis, creating an environment of artificial gravity. Occupants of the station would experience centripetal acceleration, according to the following equation: : a = -\omega^2 r where \omega is the angular velocity of the station, r is its radius, and a is linear acceleration at any point along its perimeter. In theory, the station could be configured to simulate the gravitational acceleration of Earth (9.81 m/s2), allowing for human long stays in space without the drawbacks of microgravity. History Both scientists and science fiction writers have thought about the concept of a rotating wheel space station since the beginning of the 20th century. Konstantin Tsiolkovsky wrote about using rotati ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
