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"People are choosing to allow television and Electronic Arts to do all their imagining for them."
- Peter Watts
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| Floating Island | ||
| Large artificial islands floating on Earth's seas. |
Putting aside questions about maintenance and seasickness, a floating island makes good sense. If you don't like the weather, just tow it to a new location.
| Xanadu was the second of the Floating Island chain of independent international corporate entities. Ultimately they would be strung along the world's equator; new islands bringing life to a watery desert. Six of the islands were in place, two as mere skeletons. From the air they looked a little like lily pads, a little like snowflakes five kilometers in diameter. Counting ponds and water recreation areas, the farms and breakwaters, each enclosed an area closer to forty square kilometers. |
| Technovelgy from Saturn's Race,
by Larry Niven (w/S. Barnes). Published by Tor in 2000 Additional resources -
|
This is island-building on a grand scale. For something a little smaller (and more intimate), try the float-home, from Frank Herbert's Whipping Star.
If a more permanent sort of island is desired, try Rumoko, from My Name is Legion by Roger Zelazny.
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Additional
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More Ideas
and Technology from Saturn's Race
More Ideas
and Technology by Larry Niven (w/S. Barnes)
Tech news articles related to Saturn's Race
Tech news articles related to works by Larry Niven (w/S. Barnes)
Floating Island-related
news articles:
- Maya Hotel Floating Pyramid Island In Caribbean Sea
- Lilypad City Floating Island Concept
- Blueseed Offshore Floating Corporation Ready By 2014
| Amazon Will Send You Heinlein's Knockdown Cabin |
| Elegant Bivouac Shelter Produces Water And Electricity |
| AI-THu Shapeshifting Transformer Home |
| With Mycotecture, We'll Just Grow The Space Habitats We Need |
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Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Science Fiction Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
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"The robot solemnly hit a ball against the wall, picked it up and teed it, hit it again, over and again...'
'There was a wall ahead... It was riddled with holes that were the mouths of tunnels.'
'...support the interior human structure against Jupiter’s pull.'
'Anything larger than a BB shot it picked up and placed in a tray...'
'The German chemists have discovered how to supply the needed elements in compact, undiluted form...'
'Compounds devised by the biochemists for the rapid building of bone...'
'The car faltered as the external command came to brake...'
'It is about the size and shape of a kitchen stool, gyro-stabilized...'
