2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke:
Science Fiction Inventions, Technology and Ideas

This novel was written at the same time that Stanley Kubrick created the film by the same name. The novel contains many wonderful details that are not present in the movie. The basic story is simple: a mysterious monolith, or stone monuments, is found on the moon. Investigators are led to Jupiter, where more mysteries are found. This novel contains a lot of references to the Hal 9000 computer, one of the first artificially intelligent computers created in fiction. Select an invention:

Emergency Shelter
A small cubicle that provides a last refuge in case the spacecraft's atmosphere is lost.

Flex-Wheels
Special wheels designed for getting around on the Moon.

Grip Shoes - velcro space gear
Shoes with velcro soles used to walk in weightless environments.

HAL 9000 - prototypical AI
The canonical example of an artificially intelligent computer.

Hibernaculum - nap time
A small, self-contained chamber in which a person could endure months of enforced sleep.

Icon Thumbsized Image - first reference?
A very early reference to a screen icon.

Mobile Lab

Newspad - flat panel news display
A notebook-sized computer and display screen for reading news stories or other text matter.

Newspad Electronic Newspaper
An electronic version of a newspaper.

Sleep Generator
An automated way to impose sleep on the brain.

TMA-1 - the Tycho monolith
The Tycho Monolith.

 

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