Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Latest By
Category:
Armor
Artificial
Intelligence
Biology
Clothing
Communication
Computers
Culture
Data Storage
Displays
Engineering
Entertainment
Food
Input Devices
Lifestyle
Living Space
Manufacturing
Material
Media
Medical
Miscellaneous
Robotics
Security
Space Tech
Spacecraft
Surveillance
Transportation
Travel
Vehicle
Virtual
Person
Warfare
Weapon
Work
"...science fiction is sort of like a sociological genome. It's a huge range of possible futures, most of them useless; some vital. You never really know in advance."
- Peter Watts
 |
| Gravity Whip | ||
| A roller coaster designe to provide riders with a 'zero G' experience. |
If you think that roller coasters are extreme now, just wait.
| Snakelike and faroff around the edge of the Park the Gravity Whip coiled, offering a total of thirty seconds of weightlessness via computer-designed parabolic arcs. |
| Technovelgy from Dream Park,
by Larry Niven (w/S. Barnes). Published by Ace Books in 1981 Additional resources -
|
Here's a bit more for today's zero G roller coaster designers to think about:
"...We're going to rework the Whip for total Environment. Redesign the cars, add opticals, sound, texture. We've got a dozen scripts waiting for the special effects program. Think of an 'Alice in Wonderland' where the customer really falls down the rabbit hole, or a space trip where your gravity goes out at selected moments... We're working on ways to stretch that thirty seconds of free-fall time, psychologically."
Like extreme coasters? See this article on RoboCoaster G2 - Extreme Robot Roller Coaster.
Thanks to Erik Glenn for suggesting this item.
"Why redo the Whip? It's still pulling 'em in."
Comment/Join this discussion ( 0 ) | RSS/XML | Blog This |
Additional
resources:
More Ideas
and Technology from Dream Park
More Ideas
and Technology by Larry Niven (w/S. Barnes)
Tech news articles related to Dream Park
Tech news articles related to works by Larry Niven (w/S. Barnes)
Gravity Whip-related
news articles:
- Zero Gravity Roller Coaster Coming
| Lucid Dreams On Demand From Prophetic and Card79 |
| Flyboard Water Jet Shoes Lift Off |
| Cosplay Style Wings Could Work On Moon |
| Music Not Impossible (MNI) Vibrotactile Wearable Experience |
Want to Contribute an
Item?
It's easy:
Get the name of the item, a
quote, the book's name and the author's name, and Add
it here.
| <Previous | Next> |
|
|
|
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.
|
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
'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...'
'The car had no steering wheel, and no one drove!'
Now that's power walking that Hugo Gernsback would have approved.
'It was disturbing to think of the Flatline as a construct...'
'...he rewired the delivery robot so that it would serve him midnight snacks.'
'On went the electric-yacht faster and still faster.'
'...the huge vessel had spun, with a sickening lurch, through a complete half-circle, the instant the power was reversed.'
'...he realized that it was not quite a clear lens. Speckles of colored brightness swirled and gathered in it.'
