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"I think we could solve our problems more easily through strength of character; but that's always been a commodity in extremely short supply."
- Gregory Benford
 |
| Robot Snake | ||
| A mechanical reptile, with no legs. |
As far as I know, the first use of this phrase in science fiction. There are earlier descriptions, however: see below.
| "There’s Cobber. He’s a mechanical device, but he’s part of my
act and easily explained. They
might not think to look for a second reason for my wanting him
near me...
After a long moment she dropped her hands from the wheel, took the robot snake from his box and draped his topaz and emerald length over her shoulders and the mechanism, triggered by the warmth of her body, set the jeweled evil head to weaving nervously. Then she reached out mentally for Artemus Chester. Chester scanned her mind and his face gradually lightened. "Excellent! I’m sure Mr. Kilgore's electronic wizards can build some sort of amplifying circuit into your robot snake by the time I’m ready for you to leave. I do have to find a crime for you..." |
| Technovelgy from Bait for the Tiger,
by Lee Chaytor. Published by Fantastic Universe in 1958 Additional resources -
|
Here's another brief excerpt:
Compare to the mining worm robot from Love Among the Robots (1946) by Emmett McDowell, the robot earthworm from War with the Robots (1962) by Harry Harrison, the mechanical cobra from Lord of Light (1967) by Roger Zelazny, the digger worm from With Friends Like These (1985) by Connie Willis and the robot snake spy from Mariposa (2009) by Greg Bear.
"The agent from Los Angeles arrived with Cobber in a padded box. He was followed within a few minutes by the electronics expert of the Bureau, who purred over the complicated insides of the big silvery-green reptile. He put it through its paces. The six-foot robot slithered and reared and struck in a sensuously-writhing series of movements. Steve stood frowning at it, divided between revulsion and admiration. "It’ll never do,” he said."
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Additional
resources:
More Ideas
and Technology from Bait for the Tiger
More Ideas
and Technology by Lee Chaytor
Tech news articles related to Bait for the Tiger
Tech news articles related to works by Lee Chaytor
Robot Snake-related
news articles:
- Robot Snakes No Longer Stopped By Stairs
| VaMEx Biomimetic Mars Robot Inspired By Skink |
| DIY Robotic Content Farming |
| Vero Robotic Dog With Vacuum Cleaner Feet |
| Boy Makes Biomimetic Turtle Robot |
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'Looks like she has bought the Avatar Construction Set and put together her own...'
'Across the ground something small and metallic came, flashing in the dull sunlight of midday.'
'A broken circle with arrows pointing to a right-hand flow appeared in the chalf.'
'The object seemed melted together like wax — nothing was distinguishable.'
'Midges have many capabilities. To the untrained eye, they look like sparrows.'
'I made disks of my own voice to the number of five hundred very carefully chosen words.'
'His sensors out and working, and the whirring of the tape that sucked up sight and sound and shape and smell and form...'
