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

"By the time I can take people out to where Hubble is looking, they won't be human anymore, by a long way."
- Larry Niven

Self-Opening Box  
  Don't show this to Apple.  

Unboxing videos have become de rigueur these days; this box would really take the cake.

He kicked at the great box disconsolately, "Well, if you won't open, you won't open."

As if smarting under the kick, the box opened. A cut appeared on the upper surface, widened rapidly and folded the top back and down on other side like a valise. Sam clapped his forehead and addressed a rapid prayer to every god from Set to Father Divine. Then he remembered what he'd said.

"Close," he suggested.

The box closed, once more as smooth as a baby's anatomy.

"Open."

The box opened.

Technovelgy from Child's Play, by William Tenn.
Published by Astounding Science Fiction in 1947
Additional resources -

Comment/Join this discussion ( 0 ) | RSS/XML | Blog This |

Additional resources:
  More Ideas and Technology from Child's Play
  More Ideas and Technology by William Tenn
  Tech news articles related to Child's Play
  Tech news articles related to works by William Tenn

Articles related to Culture
California Governor Candidate Calls For Voting By Phone
Chinese Hospital Tries Vonnegut's 'Harrison Bergeron' Cosplay
A Remarkable Coincidence
Is It Time To Forbid Human Driving?

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>

Google
  Web TechNovelgy.com   

 

 

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

Science Fiction in the News

Japan's AI Buddharoid Automonks
'...each of them is a neural mapping of the mind of a Tibetan monk who actually lived.'

The New Habitable Zones Include Asimov's Ribbon Worlds
'...there's a narrow belt where the climate is moderate.'

MIT Computerized Bionic Leg Is Part Of The User
'The leg was to function, in a way, as a servo-mechanism operated by Larry’s brain, through the mediation of the electronic brain in the leg.'

California Governor Candidate Calls For Voting By Phone
'... every veephone on the continent would display, over and over, two propositions.'

Robots For Hire En Masse
'...small investors profited, too.'

China's Handheld Electromagnetic Gun
'Completely silent, accurate up to about twenty meters. No recoil...'

3D Printing A 12-Meter Boat Hull
'It makes drawings in the air...'

China Still Working On Rescue Robot That Eats People
Firefighter Rescue Robot Eats Humans - again!

Lawyer AIs Create Chaos In Our Legal System
'I want my lawyer program.'

Chinese Hospital Tries Vonnegut's 'Harrison Bergeron' Cosplay
'He wore spectacles with thick wavy lenses. The spectacles were intended to make him not only half blind, but to give him whanging headaches besides.'

More SF in the News

More Beyond Technovelgy

Home | Glossary | Science Fiction Timeline | Category | New | Contact Us | FAQ | Advertise |
Technovelgy.com - where science meets fiction™

Copyright© Technovelgy LLC; all rights reserved.