Starquake.pdf

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Cliff-Web was too embarrassed to reply, and they moved along the slidewalls in silence, switching leads at each tack. As they came to the next intersection they switched places again so that Cliff-Web was spreading the field lines again. Snuggled up to his trailing side, Zero-Gauss tried to break the silence with a whispered comment. "You certainly have an unusual personal robot," she said. "It is one of the most lifelike robots I have ever seen. Yet most personal robots are programmed to be deferential and polite." "Moving-Sand is one of our newest models. I'm checking it out before we go into production. As for his personality, being owner of a large company, I meet nothing but deferential and polite people. I wanted something different at home to keep my brain-knot from getting too big for my hide. I programmed Moving-Sand’s personality atter the Old One that raised me in the clan hatchery." "Good idea," said Zero-Gauss. "Keeps you thinking like a hatchling. When I can afford a personal robot, I think I'll do the same." "Anything to keep the egg-tending syndrome from starting," said Cliff-Web. "Gardening helps, too." "That was one of the reasons I chose plants and small animals for my research," said Zero-Gauss. "Of course, all that may be unnecessary now that we have rejuvenation." The rest of their journey to the Inner Eye Institute was carried out in silence. 06:55:20 GMT TUESDAY 21 JUNE 2050 While waiting for Amalita to finish her careful inspection of Dragon Slayer, Pierre reopened conversation with Sky-Teacher through the link to the surface of the neutron star. "I want to thank you for saving our lives. If there is anything we can ever do to repay you... ." "I have studied the speculation past literature of the human race in order to better understand you," Sky-Teacher responded. "It is amusing to me that your present offer coincides with that in the ancient fable by Aesop about the lion and the mouse. At one time in the distant past, you did help us, and we appreciated it. We hope that we have been of some help in correcting your recent predicament. As for the future, it is difficult to see how you, with your limited technology, could be ofany help to us, but we appreciate your thoughts. If everything is in order once again for you to leave, I will once again say goodbye." With the last words, the screen went blank again. 06:56:20 GMT TUESDAY 21 JUNE2050
It was turnfeast, and Time-Circle shuffled listlessly past the foodmats in the faculty dining compound. He took a few staple items from the wide selection, stuffed them in a carrying pouch, picked up a large bag of unfermented pulp juice and made his way to the eating area. Over the topsides of some diners already enjoying their turnfeast, he saw three eyes up on stalks waving at him. He cheered up a little and made his way over to join the newest member of the faculty club, D. C. Neutron-Drip, who had received a Doctorate in Crustallography and chosen a new name only three turns ago. Time-Circle had taken part in the ceremony as the senior representative of her in-clan family and had given the clan approval for the name change. The two were the only members of their clan at the Inner Eye Institute, since the clan home was far from Bright's Heaven at the East Pole. He knew from her age that she wasn't from one of his eggs so he didn't have to be concerned about his relationship with her. Now that she was no longer a student, he intended to get to know her better. Neutron-Drip moved over as he approached and spread out to share the resting pad with her. Reaching into his pouch, he pulled out his food and set it on the eating mat. "What an uninspired turnfeast you have there," said Neutron-Drip, her eye-stubs waving back and forth in disapproval. "Three ground-meat loaves, two crunch-fruits, and a bag of pulp juice. Turnfeast is supposed to be a feast, not a refueling stop." She formed a manipulator, picked up a small portion of baked Flow Slow egg covered with a tangy pulp nut sauce and held it before his eating pouch. "Here," she said. "Try this, maybe it will cheer you up." He took the morsel, very much aware of the feel of the strange manipulator in his eating pouch as he did so. "Itis very tasty. I may have to go back and get some for myself," he said, his eye-stub pattern assuming a more normal wave-pattern as the taste of the nut sauce penetrated the back of his eating pouch. "I thought that would cheer you up," she said. "What is bothering you?" "My research project," he replied. "It used to be fun, but now it is giving me nothing but trouble." "Is there something wrong with the Time-Comm machine?" she asked. "It could be something wrong with the machine or it could be I don't understand the theory well enough yet. Either way I don't get any money for a new 24-channel machine until I figure out what this one is doing. This first machine only has four channels each way and it takes forever to get any data. I even had to turn down a graduate student last turn. He was eager to do research on time communication, and I would have loved to have a bright youngling to work with, but I honestly couldn't allow him to spend the next dozen greats waiting to collect enough data to complete a doctoral project." "I know the student," said Neutron-Drip. "It was Eager-Eyes. He came to me after you turned him down. He and I are going to set up a crustquake detector array around the East Pole mountains. With any luck, his thesis should establish the basis for a theory to predict East Pole crustquakes."
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STARQUAKE Acknowledgments
Page 3 and 4: Prelude Burrowing through the dark
Page 5 and 6: science instruments and consoles, w
Page 7 and 8: Please take a rest." "Doctor Wong,
Page 9 and 10: about half a day we will be in prop
Page 11 and 12: Amalita floated over to the table a
Page 13 and 14: One of her near eyes caught him loo
Page 15 and 16: "All you need to do is shrink the h
Page 17 and 18: Pierre spoke quickly to the robotic
Page 19 and 20: slid open. He entered the security
Page 21 and 22: Slinklings, and Cold, Chilly's mate
Page 23 and 24: page and didn't like what he saw. "
Page 25 and 26: He activated a conference link and
Page 27 and 28: egg-tending fever. Every time I see
Page 29 and 30: A glowing speck swung around the to
Page 31 and 32: "If only Dragon Slayer had some mea
Page 33 and 34: "That gives us four greats of turns
Page 35 and 36: "I see someone in the back." "Brigh
Page 37 and 38: with spots of different emittance t
Page 39 and 40: Web Construction is the biggest con
Page 41 and 42: activated. "There are 144 connector
Page 43 and 44: With the X-ray illuminators in plac
Page 45 and 46: up and wait. Then there would begin
Page 47 and 48: 06:55:16 TUESDAY 21 JUNE2050 Quiet
Page 49 and 50: There was a loud clang from nearby.
Page 51 and 52: Hearing the decimal number for the
Page 53: walls made out of high quality supe
Page 57 and 58: "After the success with the three m
Page 59 and 60: "Renegotiate them," she replied. "J
Page 61 and 62: "Those machines produce both the an
Page 63 and 64: millimeters away it fades into the
Page 65 and 66: She started with the animals. Three
Page 67 and 68: idly to the surrounding crust. She
Page 69 and 70: 06:58:07 GMT TUESDAY 21 JUNE2050 Qu
Page 71 and 72: kilohertz gravitational radiation t
Page 73 and 74: "We're losing it!" Heavy-Egg shoute
Page 75 and 76: y the errant streams. Treads grippi
Page 77 and 78: "Less than a turn," said the Comm O
Page 79 and 80: "Our total space force consists of
Page 81 and 82: "Bright has cursed us all!" Hohmann
Page 83 and 84: straight toward her, moving rapidly
Page 85 and 86: You should be able to find more cag
Page 87 and 88: close. She could have done a good i
Page 89 and 90: "My plan is to use the robots on Eg
Page 91 and 92: were mixed to produce an ultra-hot
Page 93 and 94: and gravitational waves. Status 82%
Page 95 and 96: "There is someone muttering nearby.
Page 97 and 98: farming class how to tell ripe nut-
Page 99 and 100: of engineers who can fix the damage
Page 101 and 102: Eighty turns later, Qui-Qui returne
Page 103 and 104: They worked their way through the m
Page 105 and 106:
other two read zero. Must be breaks
Page 107 and 108:
Qui-Qui would arrive at each clan c
Page 109 and 110:
satiated, however, for he would nev
Page 111 and 112:
They charged, the mounted warriors
Page 113 and 114:
out that what was needed was a spec
Page 115 and 116:
"You must be Qui-Qui," Ferocious-Ey
Page 117 and 118:
stage' for our lander. We can store
Page 119 and 120:
"We are aware of that," said Plasma
Page 121 and 122:
"One," said Cliff-Web. "And an infi
Page 123 and 124:
field. Cliff-Web had returned to no
Page 125 and 126:
"There are flying animals on the hu
Page 127 and 128:
nothing, tor the forces were gravit
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"We will need to have a new power g
Page 131 and 132:
"Good. Let's cut it up and haul it
Page 133 and 134:
The trade was made, with the captai
Page 135 and 136:
operation," said Power-Pack. "My se
Page 137 and 138:
"We would rather wait to taste the
Page 139 and 140:
"But she only has eight eyes now!"
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her whip-sword and urged her Swift
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for the Taker to come again." "The
Page 145 and 146:
As if to punctuate his offer, there
Page 147 and 148:
As he flowed up over the crumbled b
Page 149 and 150:
"Focus the laser on the landing bas
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"It has been a long time since the
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their quirrls sparred with each oth
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"The humans take forever to do anyt
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"That's the last of the HoloMem sto
Page 159 and 160:
to the Science Deck. Pierre looked
Page 161 and 162:
"Hey! Look at the sightseers," Abdu
Page 163 and 164:
choose will be a better name, anobl
Page 165 and 166:
The screen on the communications co
Page 167 and 168:
This was the first time there had b
Page 169 and 170:
"Coupling experiments successful,"
Page 171 and 172:
Manager-Director/5 set up a confere
Page 173 and 174:
"The cheela are bringing them now."
Page 175 and 176:
"Mine," replied Abdul. "She's right
Page 177 and 178:
Amalita and Abdul in two segments o
Page 179 and 180:
15 min 31 g cheela generation 29 se
Page 181 and 182:
and behaves much like a young cheel
Page 183 and 184:
Ngw* 5. CI»ft-Wort Plant Upon reve
Page 185 and 186:
We wanted Dragon Slayer at a 406-ki
Page 187 and 188:
Figure 10. Gravity Catapult The wor
Page 189:
6. F. J. Tipler, "Rotating Cylinder
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