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Vernor Vinge
Vernor Steffen Vinge (; October 2, 1944 – March 20, 2024) was an American science fiction author and professor. He taught mathematics and computer science at San Diego State University. He was the first wide-scale popularizer of the technological singularity concept and among the first authors to present a fictional "cyberspace".. Revised and expanded from "Viewpoint", ''Communications of the ACM'' 32 (6): 664–65, 1989, . He won the Hugo Award for his novels '' A Fire Upon the Deep'' (1992), '' A Deepness in the Sky'' (1999), and '' Rainbows End'' (2006), and novellas '' Fast Times at Fairmont High'' (2001) and '' The Cookie Monster'' (2004). Writing career Vinge published his first short story, "Apartness", in the June 1965 issue of the British magazine '' New Worlds''. His second, " Bookworm, Run!", was in the March 1966 issue of '' Analog Science Fiction'', then edited by John W. Campbell. The story explores the theme of artificially augmented intelligence by conn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Waukesha, Wisconsin
Waukesha ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 71,158 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located along the Fox River (Illinois River tributary), Fox River adjacent to the Waukesha (village), Wisconsin, Village of Waukesha, it is the List of cities in Wisconsin, eighth-most populous city in Wisconsin. Waukesha is part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area. History The area that Waukesha now encompasses was first settled by European-Americans in 1834, with Morris D. Cutler as its first settler. When the first settlers arrived, there was nothing but dense virgin forest and wild prairie. The settlers laid out farms, constructed roads, erected government buildings and established post routes. The original founders of Waukesha consisted entirely of settlers from New England, particularly Connecticut, rural Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, as well some from upstate New York who were born to parent ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Technological Singularity
The technological singularity—or simply the singularity—is a hypothetical point in time at which technological growth becomes uncontrollable and irreversible, resulting in unforeseeable consequences for human civilization. According to the most popular version of the singularity hypothesis, I. J. Good's #Intelligence explosion, intelligence explosion model of 1965, an upgradable intelligent agent could eventually enter a positive feedback loop of successive Recursive self-improvement, self-improvement cycles; more intelligent generations would appear more and more rapidly, causing a rapid increase ("explosion") in intelligence that culminates in a powerful superintelligence, far surpassing all human intelligence.Vinge, Vernor"The Coming Technological Singularity: How to Survive in the Post-Human Era", in ''Vision-21: Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering in the Era of Cyberspace'', G. A. Landis, ed., NASA Publication CP-10129, pp. 11–22, 1993. - "There may be developed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Witling
''The Witling'' is a 1976 science fiction novel by American writer Vernor Vinge, about the planet Giri, whose humanoid inhabitants, the Azhiri, are able to teleport. This ability varies from person to person: those without the talent at all are called ''witlings'' and are the lowest class of person in Azhiri society. Plot Two human explorers become trapped on Giri. They struggle to find help from various powerful Azhiri factions. Each of these wish to exploit the relatively advanced technology the humans brought with them. The humans also face the problem of getting to a place from which they can leave the planet. When the Azhiri teleport, they keep the same absolute motion they had at the point of departure. Since the planet is rotating, this is considerable and can be lethal for long distances. Reception ''SF Signal'' praised Vinge's portrayal of Azhiri society, and his detailed extrapolation of how it would be affected by ubiquitous teleportation, but considered the char ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stefan E
Stefan may refer to: * Stefan (given name) * Stefan (surname) * Ștefan, a Romanian given name and a surname * Štefan, a Slavic given name and surname * Stefan (footballer) Stefan Figueiredo Pereira (; born 16 April 1988) is a professional footballer who currently plays as a forward for Hong Kong Premier League club Southern. Born in Brazil, he plays for the Hong Kong national football team. Club career On ... (born 1988), Brazilian footballer * Stefan Heym, pseudonym of German writer Helmut Flieg (1913–2001) * Stefan (honorific), a Serbian title * Stefan (album), ''Stefan'' (album), a 1987 album by Dennis González See also * Stefan number, a dimensionless number used in heat transfer * Sveti Stefan or Saint Stefan, a small islet in Montenegro * Stefanus (other) {{Disambiguation ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grimm's World
''Grimm's World'' is a 1969 science fiction novel by Vernor Vinge. Background In 1968, Damon Knight published Vinge's novella "Grimm's Story" as part of Orbit 4. Knight told Vinge that if he expanded the novella to book-length, then he would get Vinge a contract with Berkley Books, where Knight worked as a science fiction editor. Vinge wrote an extension, and it became his first published novel.Vinge, Vernor. Introduction to "The Barbarian Princess", a story by Vernor Vinge, in ''The Collected Stories of Vernor Vinge'' Tor Books, 2001, New York, In 1987, Vinge revised the novel for Baen Books Baen Books () is an American publishing house for science fiction and fantasy. In science fiction, it emphasizes space opera, hard science fiction, and military science fiction. The company was established in 1983 by science fiction publisher an ... and added a new opening section, changing the title to '' Tatja Grimm's World''. References 1969 American novels 1969 science ficti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orbit (anthology Series)
''Orbit'' was a series of anthologies of new science fiction edited by Damon Knight, often featuring work by such writers as Gene Wolfe, Joanna Russ, R. A. Lafferty, and Kate Wilhelm. The anthologies tended toward the avant-garde edge of science fiction, but by no means exclusively; occasionally the volumes featured nonfiction critical writing or humorous anecdotes by Knight. Inspired by Frederik Pohl's '' Star Science Fiction'' series, and in its turn an influence on other original speculative fiction anthologies, it ran for over a decade and twenty-one volumes, not including a 1975 "Best of" collection selected from the first ten volumes. Rationale and publication history In his Introduction to the final ''Orbit'' volume (no. 21), Knight wrote: A series of original anthologies, like Fred Pohl's ''Star Science Fiction'', if it had hardcover, paperback, and book-club editions, could easily pay its way. I made up a proposal, called it ''Orbit'' more or less at random, and my a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John W
John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Epistle of John, often shortened to 2 John * Third Epistle of John, often shortened to 3 John People * John the Baptist (died ), regarded as a prophet and the forerunner of Jesus Christ * John the Apostle (died ), one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ * John the Evangelist, assigned author of the Fourth Gospel, once identified with the Apostle * John of Patmos, also known as John the Divine or John the Revelator, the author of the Book of Revelation, once identified with the Apostle * John the Presbyter, a figure either identified with or distinguished from the Apostle, the Evangelist and John of Patmos Other people with the given name Religious figures * John, father of Andrew the Apostle and Saint Peter * Pope John (disambigu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Analog Science Fiction
''Analog Science Fiction and Fact'' is an American science fiction magazine published under various titles since 1930. Originally titled ''Astounding Stories of Super-Science'', the first issue was dated January 1930, published by William Clayton, and edited by Harry Bates. Clayton went bankrupt in 1933 and the magazine was sold to Street & Smith. The new editor was F. Orlin Tremaine, who soon made ''Astounding'' the leading magazine in the nascent pulp science fiction field, publishing well-regarded stories such as Jack Williamson's '' Legion of Space'' and John W. Campbell's "Twilight". At the end of 1937, Campbell took over editorial duties under Tremaine's supervision, and the following year Tremaine was let go, giving Campbell more independence. Over the next few years Campbell published many stories that became classics in the field, including Isaac Asimov's ''Foundation'' series, A. E. van Vogt's ''Slan'', and several novels and stories by Robert A. Heinlei ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bookworm, Run!
"Bookworm, Run!" is a science fiction short story by American writer Vernor Vinge. His second published work of fiction, it appeared in '' Analog Science Fiction Science Fact'' in 1966, and was reprinted in '' True Names... and Other Dangers'' in 1987, and in 2001's '' The Collected Stories of Vernor Vinge''. As with many of Vinge's later works, "Bookworm, Run!" deals with intelligence amplification: Norman Simmons, the bookworm of the title, is a surgically altered chimpanzee with human-equivalent intelligence. Plot summary As part of an experiment, Norman's brain has been given a wireless link to an enormous database. By accident, he is given access to the United States Government's main database. Seeking knowledge for its own sake, Norman asks for ''all'' the data stored within; one of the first facts he consciously realizes from his direct-brain download is that, by accessing classified data, he has just committed a federal crime with severe penalties. Norman uses his new kno ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New Worlds (magazine)
''New Worlds'' was a British science fiction magazine that began in 1936 as a fanzine called ''Novae Terrae''. John Carnell, who became ''Novae Terrae''s editor in 1939, renamed it ''New Worlds'' that year. He was instrumental in turning it into a professional publication in 1946 and was the first editor of the new incarnation. It became the leading UK science fiction magazine; the period to 1960 has been described by science fiction historian Mike Ashley as the magazine's "Golden Age". Carnell joined the British Army in 1940 following the outbreak of the Second World War and returned to civilian life in 1946. He negotiated a publishing agreement for the magazine with Pendulum Publications, but only three issues of ''New Worlds'' were produced before Pendulum's bankruptcy in late 1947. A group of science fiction fans formed a company called Nova Publications to revive the magazine; the first issue under their management appeared in mid-1949. ''New Worlds'' continued to appear ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Cookie Monster (novella)
''The Cookie Monster'' is a science fiction novella by American writer Vernor Vinge. It was first published in the October 2003 issue of '' Analog''. Plot summary The story begins following the first day of Dixie Mae Leigh's job as a customer support employee at a fictional company called Lotsatech. She receives an insulting and mysterious email and, in a fit of rage, decides to find out who sent it. Dixie Mae and fellow employee Victor search the Lotsatech campus looking for the author of the email, following clues in the email header. They meet up with Ellen, a grad student in computer science, who decides to try to help Dixie Mae. While they talk, several mysteries arise and convince them that the email may be a kind of warning about something going on at Lotsatech involving a professor named Gerry Reich, who seems to be involved in all the projects on the campus. Ellen finds another clue in the email leading the three to another building where, to their utter astonishment, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rainbows End (Vinge Novel)
''Rainbows End'' is a 2006 science fiction novel by Vernor Vinge. It was awarded the 2007 Hugo Award for Best Novel. The book is set in San Diego, California, in 2025, in a variation of the fictional world Vinge explored in his 2002 Hugo-winning novella " Fast Times at Fairmont High" and 2004's "Synthetic Serendipity". Vinge had tentative plans for a sequel, picking up some of the loose threads left at the end of the novel. The many technological advances depicted in the novel suggest that the world is undergoing ever-increasing change, following the technological singularity, a recurring subject in Vinge's fiction and nonfiction writing. Plot summary Thanks to advances in medical technology, Robert Gu is slowly recovering from Alzheimer's disease. As his faculties return, Robert (who has always been technophobic) must adapt to a different world, where almost every object is networked and mediated-reality technology is commonplace. Robert, formerly a world-renowned poet but ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
