Dear Stan;
I enjoyed Kevin Walsh’s Science Fact article, “Other Earths in Space and Time.” (January/February 2011) In fact, I read it twice. I would just like to point out that he missed the second most habitable world in the solar system.
Titan is better than Mars in my opinion. It has an atmosphere that would require no pressure suits or pressure tight habitats. It should not be necessary to live beneath a couple of meters of rock for protection from radiation. The downside is that there is no free oxygen and Titan is very, very cold. Humans will need really good insulation. A power source for light and heat to grow plants within the habitats will also take care of the lack of oxygen. I imagine, that should fusion power ever become practical, it would be easy for humanity to permanently live on Titan. For a limited stay, a well-designed fission reactor could provide power for a decade or two. The spent fuel could even be used for the core of a thermonic power source, providing heat and some power for centuries. However, I really doubt that it would be possible to find usable amounts of uranium on Titan. Getting new fuel from off world would be a requirement for long-term settlement of Titan relying of nuclear fission for power. Wind power might work, but we do not know enough about Titan’s weather to bet on it.
Sincerely,
Michael Keefer
Bremerton, WA
Dear Dr. Schmidt:
James C. Wilcox’s complaint (January/ February 2011), that too many Analog stories are about junior officers or staffers who defy orders to avert tragedy, reminds me that the late Gordon R. Dickson specialized in this trope—and makes me wonder if some of his Astounding/Analog serials may have partly triggered Wilcox’s letter. Many a Dickson hero is the only one to know What Must Be Done, and with monomaniacal devotion follows his lonely path up to or beyond the limits of human endurance, despite unrelenting pressure to follow (erroneous) Conventional Wisdom from his companions, peers, superiors and/or society at large. Only in the final pages does Dickson’s hero explain to a skeptical (at first) review board, ad-hoc committee, or kangaroo court how his actions have single-handedly averted a terrible threat to human kind.
I found this particular type of Dickson novel development and denouncement growing all too predictable before they stopped appearing in your fine magazine about 1996 or so.
Sincerely,
Richard M. Boothe
Seal Beach, CA
Dear Stan,
I don’t have a subscription yet, but I will soon. This is a real geek question: my daughter is doing a degree in computer game design and I wanted to show her an article I read decades ago in one of my father’s Analogs—probably a ’60s or early ’70s edition. It told how a couple of Navy engineers used a Cray to design a fighter pilot game and may be the first description ever of a computer game. I’ve been through my father’s incomplete collection, but can’t find it, and I can’t use the lovely database because I can’t remember the author or the title.
Please help!
Patricia Finney
I’m pretty sure that the article is called “Spacewar” and it’s by Albert W. Kuhfeld, in the July 1971 issue. That means it was probably in the works when my old thesis advisor showed me the game at MIT. I believe it was actually played on a PDP-8, though, which is a long way short of a Cray. I think it had something like 64KB RAM (but was about the size and shape of a household refrigerator].
What I now find most fascinating about the article is John Campbell’s introductory blurb saying he doubted the game would ever catch on because the playing field cost a quarter of a megabuck. Less than a decade later, my far-from-wealthy 9-year-old nephew got a much more sophisticated descendant of Spacewar as one of several Christmas presents, to be played on any available television set.
Even the best visionaries usually fell fall short in this area (and, very likely, still do)!
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READER’S DEPARTMENTS
UPCOMING EVENTS
Anthony Lewis
28 April–1 May 2011
WORLD HORROR CONVENTION at Doubletree Hotel Austin, Austin, TX. Guests: Sarah Langan, Joe Hill, Joe R. Lansdale, Vincent Chong, and Brian Keene. Membership: $125 until 1 March 2011, $150 at the door, supporting $60. Info: http://whc2011.org/; WHC 2011, PO Box 170045, Austin, TX 78717.
6–8 May 2011
LEPRECON 37 (Arizona SF & Fantasy conference with emphasis on art) at Tempe Mission Palms Hotel, Tempe, AZ. Artist Guest of Honor: John Picacio; Author Guests of Honor: Elizabeth Bear and Sarah Monette; Music Guest: Seanan McGuire. Membership: $35 until 31 December 2010, more later. Info: http://leprecon.org/lep37/; [email protected]; +1.480.945.6890; Box 26665, Tempe, AZ 85285.
19–22 May 2011
NEBULA AWARDS WEEKEND (Presentation of SFWA Awards and other activities) at Washington Hilton, Washington, DC. Info: http://www.nebulaawards.com/
20–22 May 2011
KEYCON (Manitoba SF conference) at Radisson Winnipeg Downtown, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Author Guest of Honor: L. E. Modesitt, Jr.; Artist Guests of Honor: Darrell K. Sweet and Theresa Mather; Editor Guest of Honor: Barbara Galler-Smith. Membership: CAD40 until 1 May 2011, CAD50 thereafter. Info: http://www.keycon.org/
27–30 May 2011
BALTICON 45 (Baltimore area SF conference) at Marriott’s Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD. Guest of Honor: Dr. Benjamin Bova; Artist Guest of Honor: Vincent Di Fate; Music/Filk Guests of Honor: Bill and Brenda Sutton; Special Guest of Honor: Steve Geppi. Member ship: TBA. Info: http://www.balticon.org/; [email protected]; Balticon, PO Box 686, Baltimore, MD 21203.
17–21 August 2011
RENOVATION (69th World Science Fiction Convention) at Reno-Sparks Convention Center, Reno, Nevada. Guests of Honor: Ellen Asher, Charles N. Brown, Tim Powers, Boris Vallejo. Membership from 1 October 2010 until some later date (see website for latest details): Attending Adult: $180; Attending 17 to 21: $100; Attending 0 to 16: $75; Supporting: $50. [Ages as of 17 August 2011]. This is the SF universe’s annual get-together. Professionals and readers from all over the world will be in attendance. Talks, panels, films, fancy dress competition—the works. Nominate and vote for the Hugos. Info: http://www.renovationsf.org/, [email protected], PO Box 13278, Portland, OR 97213-0278. Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Renovation-The-69th-World-Science-Fiction-Convention/112169025477179?ref= ts; LiveJournal: http://community.livejournal.com/renovationsf/
Running a convention? If your convention has a telephone or fax number, e-mail address, or web page, please let us know so that we can publish this information. We must have your information in hand SIX months before the date of your convention.
Attending a convention? When calling conventions for information, do not call collect and do not call too late in the evening. It is best to include a S.A.S.E. when requesting information; include an International Reply Coupon if the convention is in a different country.
Copyright © 2011Anthony Lewis
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INFORMATION
Analog Science Fiction and Fact (Astounding), Vol. CXXXI, No. 4, April 2011. ISSN 1059-2113, USPS 488-910, GST#123054108. Published monthly except for combined January/February and July/August double issues by Dell Magazines, a division of Crosstown Publications. One-year subscription $55.90 in the United States and possessions, in all other countries $65.90 (GST included in Canada), payable in advance in U.S. funds. First copy of new subscription will be mailed within eight weeks of receipt of order. When reporting change of address allow 6 to 8 weeks and give new address as well as the old address as it appears on the last label. Periodical postage paid at Norwalk, CT and additional mailing offices. Canadian postage paid at Montreal, Quebec, Canada Post International Publications Mail, Product Sales Agreement No. 40012460. (c) 2011 by Dell Magazines, a division of Crosstown Publications, all rights reserved. Dell is a trademark registered in
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