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Swarm (novelette)
"Swarm" is a science fiction novelette by Bruce Sterling, and his first magazine sale (his previous publications were either novels or anthology contributions). It was first published in ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' in 1982, and later republished in the 1989 collection ''Crystal Express'' as well as the 1999 collection '' The Good New Stuff: Adventure in SF in the Grand Tradition''. "Swarm" was nominated for the Nebula, Hugo and Locus Awards. "Swarm" is the first published work in Sterling's Shaper/Mechanist universe. In 2022, "Swarm" was adapted as an animated short in Netflix's anthology ''Love, Death & Robots'' (vol III, episode 32). Plot summary The Shaper Captain-Doctor Simon Afriel, a passenger in an Investor ship, arrives at an asteroid in another solar system to study a colony of a non-intelligent species known as the Swarm. Their society has an insect-like hierarchy with a queen and different castes, and also hosts some degenerated alien species known ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bruce Sterling
Michael Bruce Sterling (born April 14, 1954) is an American science fiction author known for his novels and short fiction and editorship of the ''Mirrorshades'' anthology. In particular, he is linked to the cyberpunk subgenre. Sterling's first science-fiction story, ''Man-Made Self'', was sold in 1976. He is the author of science-fiction novels, including ''Schismatrix'' (1985), '' Islands in the Net'' (1988), and '' Heavy Weather'' (1994). In 1992, he published his first non-fiction book, '' The Hacker Crackdown: Law and Disorder on the Electronic Frontier''. Writings Sterling is one of the founders of the cyberpunk movement in science fiction, along with William Gibson, Rudy Rucker, John Shirley, Lewis Shiner, and Pat Cadigan. In addition, he is one of the subgenre's chief ideological promulgators. This has earned him the nickname "Chairman Bruce". He was also one of the first organizers of the Turkey City Writer's Workshop, and is a frequent attendee at the Sycamore Hill Wr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Locus Award
The Locus Awards are an annual set of literary awards voted on by readers of the science fiction and fantasy magazine ''Locus'', a monthly magazine based in Oakland, California. The awards are presented at an annual banquet. In addition to the plaques awarded to the winners, publishers of winning works are honored with certificates, which is unique in the field. Originally a poll of ''Locus'' subscribers only, voting is now open to anyone, but the votes of subscribers count twice as much as the votes of non-subscribers. The award was inaugurated in 1971, and was originally intended to provide suggestions and recommendations for the Hugo Awards. They have come to be considered a prestigious prize in science fiction, fantasy and horror literature. ''The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction'' regards the Locus Awards as sharing the reputation of the Hugo and Nebula Awards. Gardner Dozois holds the record for the most wins (43), while Neil Gaiman has won the most awards for works of fic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fermi Paradox
The Fermi paradox is the discrepancy between the lack of conclusive evidence of advanced extraterrestrial life and the apparently high a priori likelihood of its existence, and by extension of obtaining such evidence. As a 2015 article put it, "If life is so easy, someone from somewhere must have come calling by now." Italian-American physicist Enrico Fermi's name is associated with the paradox because of a casual conversation in the summer of 1950 with fellow physicists Edward Teller, Herbert York, and Emil Konopinski. While walking to lunch, the men discussed recent UFO reports and the possibility of faster-than-light travel. The conversation moved on to other topics, until during lunch Fermi blurted out, "But where is everybody?" (although the exact quote is uncertain). There have been many attempts to resolve the Fermi paradox, [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endogenous Viral Element
An endogenous viral element (EVE) is a DNA sequence derived from a virus, and present within the germline of a non-viral organism. EVEs may be entire viral genomes ( proviruses), or fragments of viral genomes. They arise when a viral DNA sequence becomes integrated into the genome of a germ cell that goes on to produce a viable organism. The newly established EVE can be inherited from one generation to the next as an allele in the host species, and may even reach fixation. Endogenous retroviruses and other EVEs that occur as proviruses can potentially remain capable of producing infectious virus in their endogenous state. Replication of such 'active' endogenous viruses can lead to the proliferation of viral insertions in the germline. For most non-retroviral viruses, germline integration appears to be a rare, anomalous event, and the resulting EVEs are often only fragments of the parent virus genome. Such fragments are usually not capable of producing infectious virus, but may e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Symbiosis
Symbiosis (from Greek , , "living together", from , , "together", and , bíōsis, "living") is any type of a close and long-term biological interaction between two different biological organisms, be it mutualistic, commensalistic, or parasitic. The organisms, each termed a symbiont, must be of different species. In 1879, Heinrich Anton de Bary defined it as "the living together of unlike organisms". The term was subject to a century-long debate about whether it should specifically denote mutualism, as in lichens. Biologists have now abandoned that restriction. Symbiosis can be obligatory, which means that one or more of the symbionts depend on each other for survival, or facultative (optional), when they can generally live independently. Symbiosis is also classified by physical attachment. When symbionts form a single body it is called conjunctive symbiosis, while all other arrangements are called disjunctive symbiosis."symbiosis." Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Superorganism
A superorganism or supraorganism is a group of synergetically interacting organisms of the same species. A community of synergetically interacting organisms of different species is called a holobiont. Concept The term superorganism is used most often to describe a social unit of eusocial animals, where division of labour is highly specialised and where individuals are not able to survive by themselves for extended periods. Ants are the best-known example of such a superorganism. A superorganism can be defined as "a collection of agents which can act in concert to produce phenomena governed by the collective", phenomena being any activity "the hive wants" such as ants collecting food and avoiding predators, or bees choosing a new nest site. In challenging environments, micro organisms collaborate and evolve together to process unlikely sources of nutrients such as methane. This process called syntrophy ("eating together") might be linked to the evolution of eukaryote cells and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Commensalism
Commensalism is a long-term biological interaction (symbiosis) in which members of one species gain benefits while those of the other species neither benefit nor are harmed. This is in contrast with mutualism, in which both organisms benefit from each other; amensalism, where one is harmed while the other is unaffected; parasitism, where one is harmed and the other benefits, and parasitoidism, which is similar to parasitism but the parasitoid has a free-living state and instead of just harming its host, it eventually ends up killing it. The commensal (the species that benefits from the association) may obtain nutrients, shelter, support, or locomotion from the host species, which is substantially unaffected. The commensal relation is often between a larger host and a smaller commensal; the host organism is unmodified, whereas the commensal species may show great structural adaptation consistent with its habits, as in the remoras that ride attached to sharks and other fishes. Remo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Love, Death & Robots
''Love, Death & Robots'' (stylized as ''LOVE DEATH + R⬮BOTS'', and represented in emoji form as ❤️❌🤖) is an adult animated anthology streaming television series created by Tim Miller and streaming on Netflix. Produced by Blur Studio, it consists of stand-alone episodes that contain different narrative and animation and are produced by different animation studios from a range of countries, exploring diverse genres; particularly comedy, horror, science fiction, and fantasy. Each episode is connected to the themes of the titular subject matters. However, not every episode includes all three topics. Miller serves as the showrunner and producer alongside Joshua Donen, David Fincher, and Jennifer Miller; most episodes are written by Philip Gelatt, mostly adapting written works. The series is a re-imagining of Fincher and Miller's long in-development reboot of the 1981 animated science fiction film '' Heavy Metal'', which was originally planned to follow the feature lengt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shaper/Mechanist Universe
The Shaper/Mechanist universe is the setting for a series of science fiction short stories (and the novel ''Schismatrix'') written by the author Bruce Sterling. The stories combined cover approximately 350 years of future history, for the period ranging from AD 2200–2550. (Note: All years given are taken from "A Shaper/Mechanist Chronology" in the book ''Schismatrix Plus'', which includes all the Shaper/Mechanist material.) The stories deal with a posthuman society spread across the solar system—primarily in fragile orbiting colonies around planetary bodies like the Moon, Jupiter, Saturn and the Sun. The Earth and its inhabitants have been abandoned by these citizens of the so-called Schismatrix, and no communication is performed or attempted with them. Humanity has largely polarized into two competing factions: The Shapers attempt to push the limits by manipulating the human body itself, through genetic modification and highly specialized psychological training. The Shap ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hugo Award
The Hugo Award is an annual literary award for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year, given at the World Science Fiction Convention and chosen by its members. The Hugo is widely considered the premier award in science fiction. The award is administered by the World Science Fiction Society. It is named after Hugo Gernsback, the founder of the pioneering science fiction magazine ''Amazing Stories''. Hugos were first given in 1953, at the 11th World Science Fiction Convention, and have been awarded every year since 1955. The awards were originally given in seven categories. These categories have changed over the years, and the award is currently conferred in seventeen categories of written and dramatic works. The winners receive a trophy consisting of a stylized rocket ship on a base; the design of the trophy changes each year, though the rocket itself has been standardized since 1984. The Hugo Awards are considered "the premier award in th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territories, nine Minor Outlying Islands, and 326 Indian reservations. The United States is also in free association with three Pacific Island sovereign states: the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau. It is the world's third-largest country by both land and total area. It shares land borders with Canada to its north and with Mexico to its south and has maritime borders with the Bahamas, Cuba, Russia, and other nations. With a population of over 333 million, it is the most populous country in the Americas and the third most populous in the world. The national capital of the United States is Washington, D.C. and its most populous city and principal financial center is New York City. Paleo-Americ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nebula Award
The Nebula Awards annually recognize the best works of science fiction or fantasy published in the United States. The awards are organized and awarded by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), a nonprofit association of professional science fiction and fantasy writers. They were first given in 1966 at a ceremony created for the awards, and are given in four categories for different lengths of literary works. A fifth category for film and television episode scripts was given 1974–78 and 2000–09, and a sixth category for game writing was begun in 2018. In 2019 SFWA announced that two awards that were previously run under the same rules but not considered Nebula awards—the Andre Norton Award for Middle Grade and Young Adult Fiction and the Ray Bradbury Award for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation—were to be considered official Nebula awards. The rules governing the Nebula Awards have changed several times during the awards' history, most recently in 2010. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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