Science Fiction
Dictionary Latest By
"...there's a great affinity between writing poetry and SF."
|
In this case, "exo" is short for exoskeleton, a powered suit that provides added strength. Since this is a William Gibson work, I'm betting that this is no clumsy robotic "Transformers" style device; it is probably a great-looking suit. Note also that carbon fibers are long and strong; but then, so is chitin, the main structural ingredient in arthropod exoskeletons.
The notion of an exoskeleton is derived from biology; many of the world's creatures have no backbone, but use a hard outer shell. It is an elegant solution, since it combines protection with the same structural purpose of bones.
The idea of an exoskeleton has been used before in science fiction; for example, the soldiers in Robert Heinlein's Starship Troopers achieve parity with the insect race they fight by using military exoskeletons (see powered suit).
Why do we assume that an exoskeleton will make you stronger? It is true that some arthropods can carry up to 50 times their body weight. Also, having muscles inside an external skeleton is more efficient. However, most of the advantage comes from the fact that they are small; their muscle weight is low compared to muscle surface area. Comment/Join this discussion ( 2 ) | RSS/XML | Blog This | Additional
resources:
Want to Contribute an
Item?
It's easy:
|
Science Fiction
Timeline
SpaceX Wants A Moonbase Alpha
'And he had been sent with troops, supplies and bombs to command Russia's most trusted post, the Moonbase.'
Vast Apartment Living Will Get Even More Vast
'What is your population', I asked. 'About eighty millions.'
NASA Wants Self-Driving Or Remote-Controlled Vehicles For Lunar Astronauts
'THE autobus turned silently down the wide street of Hydropole. Robot-guided, insulated from noise and cold...'
Elon Musk Says Robotaxis Will Be Ready This August, 2024
'The car had no steering wheel, and no one drove!'
Moonwalkers AI-Controlled Electric Shoes
Now that's power walking that Hugo Gernsback would have approved.
Steve Jobs: 'Capture The Next Aristotle - With AI'
'It was disturbing to think of the Flatline as a construct...'
No Tips! Robotic Food Delivery In Phoenix
'...he rewired the delivery robot so that it would serve him midnight snacks.'
Electric Catamaran 'Explorer Eco 40m' Has 'Solar Skin'
'On went the electric-yacht faster and still faster.'
Orbital Mechanics, The Liftoff, The Turnover, The Retrograde Burn
'...the huge vessel had spun, with a sickening lurch, through a complete half-circle, the instant the power was reversed.'
Harvest Power From Tears And Blinking With Smart Contact Lens
'...he realized that it was not quite a clear lens. Speckles of colored brightness swirled and gathered in it.'
|
Home | Glossary
| Science Fiction Timeline | Category | New | Contact
Us | FAQ | Advertise | Technovelgy.com - where science meets fiction™ Copyright© Technovelgy LLC; all rights reserved. |
||