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"The answer to the problem of information overload on the Net is reputations… engineer a system called a reputation server."
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It seems fair to assume that this word is modeled on "telepath", but see the discussion below.
How does it work? One character explains it:
The origin of this word seems straightforward enough, but if you look, you can find it earlier. Bear with me.
John FM Dovaston wrote a long poem Fitz-Gwarine: A Ballad of the Welsh Border in Three Cantos in 1811. It contains these lines:
Science fiction fans feel right at home in these lines. In The Empath episode of Star Trek: TOS, when Scotty learns about Gem, the young woman empath, he says "Scott comments that she must have been a "pearl of great price" and they all agree. Yes, the "pearl of great price" is a parable from the book of Matthew, but is there some sort of in-joke here that I don't know about?
The Star Trek TOS episode The Empath (1968) was striking enough that I remember it from childhood. In Star Trek: TNG, one of the main characters is an empath, counselor Deanna Troi.
Compare to the Voight-Kampff Empathy Test from m Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep (1968) Philip K. Dick and the empathy box originally from The Little Black Box (1964) also by Dick. Comment/Join this discussion ( 0 ) | RSS/XML | Blog This | Additional
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Science Fiction
Timeline
Europa Clipper Plate Carries A Special Message
'...a universal cryptogram — yet it is one which can be interpreted by any intelligent creature on any planet in the Solar System!'
Micro-Robots Are Smallest, Fully Functional
'With a whir, the Scarab shot from the concealing shadows of the corner where it had hidden itself.'
AI Enhances Images Your Brain Sees
'I could have sworn the psychomat showed pictures almost as sharp and detailed as reality itself'
Illustrating Classic Heinlein With AI
'Stasis, cold sleep, hibernation, hypothermia, reduced metabolism, call it what you will - the logistics-medicine research teams had found a way to stack people like cordwood and use them when needed.'
Deflector Plasma Screen For Drones ala Star Wars
'If the enemy persists in attacking or even intensifies their power, the density of the plasma in space will suddenly increase, causing it to reflect most of the incoming energy like a mirror.'
DIY Robotic Hand Made After Loss Of Fingers
'I made them... with the fine work of the watchmaker...'
Can A Human Land A SpaceX Rocket On Its Tail?
'If she starts to roll sideways — blooey! The underjets only hold you up when they’re pointing down, you know.'
Robot Snakes No Longer Stopped By Stairs
'...she dropped her hands from the wheel, took the robot snake from his box.'
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