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Author: Philip K. Dick
Publisher: Courier Dover Publications
ISBN: 048685308X
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 179
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Book Description
Philip K. Dick ponders the very nature of humanity in this anthology of five gripping short stories and novellas. Includes “The Defenders,” “Foster, You’re Dead,” “Piper in the Woods,” “Second Variety,” and “The Variable Man.”
Author: Philip K. Dick
Publisher: Courier Dover Publications
ISBN: 0486852148
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 179
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Book Description
Philip K. Dick ponders the very nature of humanity in this anthology of five gripping short stories and novellas. Includes "The Defenders," "Foster, You're Dead," "Piper in the Woods," "Second Variety," and "The Variable Man."
Author: Philip K. Dick
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780722129586
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 219
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Book Description
Science fiction-noveller.
Author: Philip K. Dick
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :
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Book Description
Science fiction-noveller.
Author: Ron D'Alena
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781546576600
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 322
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Book Description
A CANNON BOOKS Science Fiction Collection *The Variable Man And Other Stories* Eleven Authors. Fourteen Old School Stories. Jam-packed with robots, aliens, energy beams, vidscreens, interstellar war, Armageddon, other worlds, societal/environmental degradation, overpopulation and the ugly hand of big business . . . as well as the mundane of daily life. So kick back, suspend your concept of reality and enjoy. The Variable Man And Other Stories (320 pages): Jesse Franklin Bone (Assassin) Arthur C. Clarke (The Forgotten Enemy) Philip K. Dick (Second Variety, The Variable Man) Randall Garrett (The Highest Treason) Harry Harrison (Arm of the Law, The Repairman) Clifford D. Simak & Carl R. Jacobi (The Street That Wasn't There) Fletcher Pratt & Laurence Manning (City of the Living Dead) Frederik Pohl (The Tunnel Under the World, The Hated, Pythias) Kurt Vonnegut (2BR02B, The Big Trip up Yonder)
Author: Philip K. Dick
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781534754201
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 70
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Book Description
The Terran system is growing and expanding all the time. But an old and corrupt Centaurian Empire is holding Terra down, as it encircles the Terran system and will not let the humans grow out of their current empire. For this reason Terra is at war with Proxima Centauri and is trying to find a way of breaking free from the Centaurian's hold upon them. In the war that results, Terra is continually coming up with new weapons to try and break the Centaurian defenses, but Proxima Centauri is also continually updating its defenses. Using spies and other such tactics, both parties find out about each other's advances, and no actual fighting ever occurs because both sides are too busy trying to beat each other with new technological developments. Terra even calculates their chances to win a war versus Centauri and updates these calculations with each new development, making their decision about a war rely on this calculation. Eventually Terra comes up with a concept for a bomb, called Icarus, that Proxima can not defend against because it travels at faster than light speeds, making use of the buildup of mass at near light speeds as a destructive agent when it slows down to below light speed. Then the odds start to side with Terra, and Terra prepares to fight with this new-found technology. There are two problems 1) is that Icarus does not yet work which prevents Terra from using it against Proxima Centuari and 2) that the existence of Cole on Terra is an "unknown variable" that confuses the war win probability computer. Hence the book title "The Variable Man."
Author: Philip K. Dick
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781511773003
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 98
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Book Description
In the middle of the twenty-second century Terra (a.k.a. Earth) has expanded its influence throughout the Solar System, but a vast, yet weak, empire rules the rest of the Galaxy. Terrans have been at war with this empire for generations, and have never been in a position to prevail over their adversaries. However, the invention of a new weapon - a faster-than-light bomb - may finally shift the balance of power in their favor. Unfortunately, due to an accident with time-travel, a man form the twentieth century ends up in their midst, and his very existence seems to be the cause of uncertainty for the sophisticated prediction computers on which the Terran military establishment relies in planning of their attack. The visitor from the past is thus the variable man - a man whose very existence undermines brings a lot of indeterminism to the military plans.This longish story or a short novella is one of the finest examples of PKD's sci-fi writing skills. The story is well developed, although from the vantage point of today's sci-fi there are many loose ends and naïve plot developments. The story has the charm of vintage sci-fi, all with almost laughably simpleminded view of the 22nd century technology (vidphones are poor man's versions of iPhones) and *very* inaccurate presentation of science. If you are looking for a polished and technologically sophisticated story than you will very disappointed. On the other hand, if you are tired of all the predictable and mechanistic stories that you can read today, and enjoy raw, rough, ideas that aim for immediate impact, then you will definitely enjoy "The Variable Man."
Author: Philip K. Dick
Publisher: Prime Books
ISBN: 9780809556359
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 240
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Book Description
Edited and selected by noted scholar Gregg Rickman, "The Early Work of Philip K. Dick, Volume Two, encompasses stories from the early years of Philip K. Dick. With extensive story notes and introductions by Rickman, "The Early Work of Philip K. Dick" promises an early peek into the many worlds created by one of the acclaimed masters of science fiction and fantasy.
Author: Lord Rc
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 1430324376
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 324
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Book Description
A study of the novels and short stories of science fiction writer Philip K. Dick (1928-1982)with presentation of a literary chronology of his career.
Author: Philip K. Dick
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781980429159
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 84
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Book Description
The Variable Man (published in 1953) is a science fiction novella by American writer Philip K. Dick, which he wrote and sold before he had an agent.The Terran system is growing and expanding all the time. But an old and corrupt Centaurian Empire is holding Terra down, as it encircles the Terran system and will not let the humans grow out of their current empire. For this reason, Terra is at war with Proxima Centauri and is trying to find a way of breaking free from the Centaurian's hold upon them.In the war that results, Terra is continually coming up with new weapons to try and break the Centaurian defenses, but Proxima Centauri is also continually updating its defenses. Using spies and other such tactics, both parties find out about each other's advances, and no actual fighting ever occurs because both sides are too busy trying to beat each other with new technological developments. Terra even calculates their chances to win a war versus Centauri and updates these calculations with each new development, making their decision about a war rely on this calculation. Eventually Terra comes up with a concept for a bomb, called Icarus, that Proxima can not defend against because it travels at faster than light speeds, making use of the buildup of mass at near light speeds as a destructive agent when it slows down to below light speed. Then the odds start to side with Terra, and Terra prepares to fight with this new-found technology. There are two problems; the first is that Icarus does not yet work, which prevents Terra from using it against Proxima Centauri, and the second is the existence of a man from the past brought to the present. He is an "unknown variable" that confuses the almost prophetic SRB machines which calculate the probability of winning the war that all war decisions rely on. Hence, the book is titled "The Variable Man".This is where Thomas Cole, known as The Variable Man, comes in. Cole is a man from the past, from 1913, the time just before the First World War. He is brought into the present (or future depending on perspective) as an accident via a Time Bubble that was used for research about the past.AuthorPhilip Kindred Dick (December 16, 1928 - March 2, 1982) was an American science fiction writer. Dick explored philosophical, social, and political themes in his novels with plots dominated by monopolistic corporations, alternative universes, authoritarian governments, and altered states of consciousness. His work reflected his personal interest in metaphysics and theology, and often drew upon his life experiences in addressing the nature of reality, identity, drug abuse, schizophrenia, and transcendental experiences.Born in Illinois before moving to California, Dick began publishing science fiction stories in the 1950s, initially finding little commercial success. His 1962 alternative history novel The Man in the High Castle earned Dick early acclaim, including a Hugo Award for Best Novel. He followed with science fiction novels such as Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (1968) and Ubik (1969). His 1974 novel Flow My Tears, the Policeman Saidwon the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for best novel. Following a series of religious experiences in February-March 1974, Dick's work engaged more explicitly with issues of theology, philosophy, and the nature of reality, as in such novels as A Scanner Darkly (1977) and VALIS(1981). A collection of his non-fiction writing on these themes was published posthumously as The Exegesis of Philip K. Dick (2011). He died in 1982, at age 53, due to complications from a stroke.In addition to 44 published novels, Dick wrote approximately 121 short stories, most of which appeared in science fiction magazines during his lifetime. A variety of popular films based on his works have been produced, including Blade Runner (1982), Total Recall (adapted twice: in 1990 and in 2012), Minority Report (2002), A Scanner Darkly (2006), and The Adjustment Bureau (2011).
Author: Philip K. Dick
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781607012023
Category : Science fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 0
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Book Description
This volume collects 15 of the earliest short publications by Philip K. Dick and includes an introduction and detailed endnotes on each story.
