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"Tokyo homeless people reiterate the whole nature of living in Tokyo in cardboard boxes, they're only slightly smaller than Tokyo apartments, and they have almost as many consumer goods. It's a nightmare of boxes within boxes."
- William Gibson
 |
| Needle Gun | ||
| A weapon that fires thin slivers of metal. |
This is as far as I know the first use of this term in science fiction. This term has been used to describe a hand-held gun that fired flechette rounds. Also, the term was used in the 19th century to denote a rifle that used a needle to fire a paper cartridge containing a round.
| “I shall kill you three with the poisoned
needle-gun, and my men will immediately
give you burial in space. You and your
officers. Captain, will watch me with such
composure as you may have at your command, and realize that I will brook no interference whatever; that I do not and shall
not hesitate to eliminate anyone who annoys
me.”
The two Martians returned from the corridor, empty handed. The Planetchief’s countenance hardened. Vic Vincennes saw him lift his needle-gun at pointblank range, and felt an intolerable weight falling upon him, crushing the very life from him. He crumbled to the floor, overcome with nausea. The room seemed to be spinning, the sickness more acute and more horrible. Then unconsciousness. |
| From In the Spacesphere,
by Charles Cloukey. Published by Wonder Stories in 1931 Additional resources -
|
From The Empress of Mars (1939) by Russ Rocklynne:
I rammed home the final plunger, and the bee-wing took off flapping up into the thin air and forward with such speed that in a matter of seconds Cammint was a dot of light in the darkness, and the city of Jador was sprawled in fantastic shadows below. I went blind, without lights, never knowing when some similar craft might blunder out of the encircling darkness full tilt into me. I set my course for the Royal Palace, and had my forward needle guns set for any who dared offer me hindrance.
From Slacker's Paradise, by Malcom Jameson, published by Astounding S-F in 1941:
Readers might also check out the needle pipe from Ray Cummings 1928 story Beyond the Stars for an earlier use of this concept, and a bit more detail on other uses.
Her armament was so inadequate as never to have given him a qualm. It consisted simply of a 10 mm. needle gun, fit only to detonate a stray mine.
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'The pokkecon rang again. *The coffee’s for him?* Tsuyoshi said.'
The Jetsons imagined so much future.
'Rod placed the brain inside the panel... the horse raised its head, wiggled its ears, blinked twice, gave a tentative whinny.'
'Pina2bo would have to operate full blast for many years to put as much SO2 into the stratosphere as its namesake had done in a few minutes.'
'Chain of hotels that specialized in non-human service.'
'But then... not every bulldozer operator works on the Moon.'
'Griff found the white and pink map distracting and switched it off using his tongue mouse.'
