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"I'm a farm boy. It's very interesting; you can detect self-starting characteristics in this society and they are strongest among people who have had some kind of rural upbringing and a very impressionable stage."
- Frank Herbert
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| Atmosphere Tester | ||
| A device used to test the composition of a sample of the atmosphere on another planet, to see if it is breathable by humans. |
When Al and Joe arrive on a planet in an unknown universe, they would like to take off their uncomfortable space suits. But will the atmosphere sustain human life?
| "How about removing our space suits? I always feel uncomfortable in them," Al continued.
"Just a moment while I test this atmosphere to see if it's livable." Joe extracted from the pocket of his suit a clever little device. The turn of a valve, the pressure of a button, and an electric coil heated a sample of the atmosphere. A glance through the tiny spectroscope attachment, and its constitution was revealed. "Oxygen, nitrogen, carbon dioxide - the same gases that make up our air And just about in the same proportions. Alright Al, we can breathe this atmosphere. Off go the suits!" |
| Technovelgy from The Emperor of the Stars,
by Nat Schachner (w. AL Zagat). Published by Wonder Stories in 1931 Additional resources -
|
Very practical device; this is an early reference to the idea, as far as I know.
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'Our study of your race has convinced us that you are not fitted to leave your planet in the present state of your civilization.'
'...the spreading beam of the deranging ray struck them, and Then one toppled and fell. Then another.'
'Within seconds the material was spread out over fifty yards, in a matter of hours it might occupy several cubic miles of space...'
'The men are dead, but their acquired wisdom lives on and I am the beneficiary.'
'Young people found the driverless car admirable for petting.'
'After twenty generations of shillyshallying...'
