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"In WWII, they had a saying that there are no atheists in foxholes. I think the modern equivalent of that is that there are no jaded, bored people in the high-tech industry, in the land of really good hardcore geeks."
- Neal Stephenson
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| Optic Television | ||
| An eye that "sees" more than just its surroundings. |
There is a lot to see in the future world of this novel; so much that ordinary vision may not suffice. Nikolai had a few modern innovations installed to keep up with current events.
| It was astonishing how much room there was in an eye socket, when you stopped to think about it. The actual visual mechanisms had been thoroughly miniaturized by Mechanist prostheticians. Nikolai had some other devices installed: a clock, a biofeedback monitor, a television screen, all wired directly to his optic nerve. They were convenient, but difficult to control at first. His wife had to help him out of the hospital and back to his apartment, because the subtle visual triggers kept flashing broadcast market reports. |
| Technovelgy from Twenty Evocations,
by Bruce Sterling. Published by Interzone in 1984 Additional resources -
|
It's interesting to me that he needs to learn to use it; that he inadvertently gets more information than he can readily assimilate or control.
Be sure to see the entry for Tleilaxu Eyes, from Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert.
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| Zoom Education Idea Is 100 Years Old |
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'... making the point that their likenesses, every move they made, were being transmitted.'
'But the stars are only atoms in larger space, and in that larger space the star-atoms could combine to form living matter, thinking matter, couldn't they?'
'...to build up a video picture would require, say, ten million decisions every second. Mike, you're so fast I can't even think about it. But you aren't that fast.'
'The area affected was five hundred kilometres across, and perfectly circular.'
'Hasan always pitched a Gauzy - a one-molecule-layer tent, opaque, feather-light, and very tough.'
'And he had been sent with troops, supplies and bombs to command Russia's most trusted post, the Moonbase.'
'What is your population', I asked. 'About eighty millions.'
'THE autobus turned silently down the wide street of Hydropole. Robot-guided, insulated from noise and cold...'
