The Ophiuchi Hotline by John Varley:
Science Fiction Inventions, Technology and Ideas

Fascinating early Varley book; an alien race has taken over the Earth to care for its other intelligent life, paying no attention to the humans who are scattered around the solar system. Technology made available on a "hotline" beam of information apparently from the constellation Ophiuchi has allowed human beings to survive. Select an invention:

Antiholo Generator
Dispels intrusive hologram advertisements.

Centrifuge Room
A small room on a planetoid that is spun to create artificial gravity.

Genoprinter
A device that does a 'live capture' of a biometric skin sample.

Ghostsmoke
An advertisement projected onto a fine mist.

Gravity Train
An underground railway system that utilizes gravity for acceleration.

Holomist
A means of projecting a commercial message onto a fine spray.

Javelin
A spacer who modified herself to more easily live in space.

Life Bank
A storage facility with the genetic material that was produced by Earth's ecosystem.

Memory Recording
A means of recording the entirety of a person's experience and personality.

Nullfield
A field of energy that creates a barrier.

Null-Suit
A device that projects a field of force that acts like a space suit.

Pork Tree - long and lean
A plant that produces an analog to animal meat.

Symb
A symbiont life form that provides its human with life-giving energy.

 

Technovelgy.com is devoted to the creative inventions of science fiction authors and movie makers. Look for the Science Fiction Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary of Science Fiction Inventions, the Timeline of Science Fiction Inventions, or see what's New.
Find
new authors and technologies - Shop for yourself, your library and your lab.

 

 

 

 

Science Fiction
in the News

Replace The Smartphone With A Connected Edge Node For AI Inference
re: Raymond F. Jones
(11/11/2025)

Artificial Skin For Robots Is Coming Right Along
re: Harl VIncent
(11/9/2025)

Robot Guard Dog On Duty
re: Neal Stephenson
(11/7/2025)

Wearable Artificial Fabric Muscles
re: HG Wells
(11/5/2025)

BrainBridge Concept Transplant Of Human Head Proposed
re: Alexander Belaev
(11/3/2025)

Google's Nano Banana Pro Presents Handwritten Math Solutions
re: Isaac Asimov
(11/1/2025)

Edible Meat-Like Fungus Like Barbara Hambly's Slunch?
re: Barbara Hambly
(10/29/2025)

Sunday Robotics 'Memo' Bot Has Unique Training Glove
re: Robert Heinlein
(10/27/2025)

Woman Marries Computer, Vonnegut's Dream Comes True
re: Kurt Vonnegut
(10/25/2025)

Natural Gait With Prosthetic Connected To Nervous System
re: Charles Recour
(10/25/2025)

Spidery 'Walk Me' Toyota Autonomous Wheel Chair Like Star Wars
re: George Lucas
(10/21/2025)

Dancing Robots Taught Dance Moves
re: Jerome K. Jerome
(10/19/2025)

Proof Of Robothood - Not A Person
re: James Cameron
(10/19/2025)

Indonesian Clans Battle
re: Jack Vance
(10/17/2025)

More SF in the News

Home | Glossary | Invention Timeline | Category | New | Contact Us | FAQ | Advertise |
Technovelgy.com - where science meets fiction™

Copyright© Technovelgy LLC; all rights reserved.