Showing results by author "Ben Bova" in All Categories

An extraterrestrial colony, in some form, may already exist, just awaiting discovery. But the greatest impediment to such an important scientific discovery may not be technological, but political. No scientific endeavor can be launched without a budget, and matters of money are within the arena of politicians. Dr. Ben Bova explores some of the key players and the arguments waged in a debate of both scientific and cultural priorities.

Despite Mercury's desolateness, there are still those who hope to find diamonds in the rough. Saito Yamagata thinks Mercury's position will make it an ideal orbit point for satellites that could someday create enough power to propel starships into deep space.

Acclaimed science-fiction authors Orson Scott Card and Ben Bova, along with their shared audiobook producer and occasional narrator Stefan Rudnicki, discuss audiobooks and their works in a joint interview. The authors touch on their thoughts on audiobooks vs. print editions, the effect of technology on literature, religion, science, and many other fascinating topics sure to intrigue both Card and Bova fans, as well as all audiobook enthusiasts.

Luke Abramson, a brilliant cellular biologist who is battling lung cancer, has one joy in life: his 10-year-old granddaughter, Angela. When Angela is diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor and given less than six months to live, Luke wants to try a new enzyme, Mortality Factor 4 (MORF4), that he believes will kill Angela's tumor. However, the hospital bureaucracy won't let him do it because MORF4 has not yet been approved by the FDA. Knowing Angela will die before he can get the treatment approved, Luke abducts her from the hospital with plans to take her to a private research laboratory in Oregon.

Some see stem-cell research as mankind’s greatest scientific breakthrough; others, a blasphemous attempt to play God. Suddenly, the possibility of immortality exists. Two brothers, both doctors, stand on opposite sides of the controversy. To Arthur Marshak, his work is a momentous gift to humanity. To Jesse Marshak, it is a curse. And between them stands a beautiful, remarkable woman that both brothers will do anything to save.

No matter what strange forms the future takes, says Ben Bova in his introduction, crime and criminals will always be with us - and with them, the need for law enforcement. Included in this collection of short stories are the full-length novel City of Darkness and "Brillo" - the famous collaboration between Bova and Harlan Ellison.

Imagine a machine that would end all wars and bloodshed. A machine that can create a virtual world so real, so complete, where all conflicts are waged, but where no one ever dies or gets hurt. The dueling machine is just that...until a madman dictator of a small empire finds a way to bend virtual reality to his will - and uses the dueling machine to take over the galaxy! It's up to the machine's creator and a rather inept Star Watchman to discover the plan and stop it.

In this Martian adventure story, two men fly to the highest mountain on Mars, and in the process learn more about Mars and about themselves. Bova's work is premeated by the idea of space as a new frontier, and of SF settings as opportunities for explorers and entrepreneuers, the classic Heinlein...

In novels such as Mars, Moonbase, and The Rock Rats, Ben Bova told stories about rivalries and wars, of outsized individuals, public crusades, and the private passions that drive us as we expand into the solar system and make use of its vast resources. Bova wrote short fiction about some of the same characters and events—Sam Gunn, Martin Humphries, Klaus Fuchs, Dan Randolph, and the Asteroid Wars—featured in those works, and those stories are collected in Tales of the Grand Tour, a landmark of modern science fiction. The stories in this collection are:

In the future as Bova here imagines it, Earth is an ecological nightmare, and humanity may well go the way of the dinosaurs. But overhead orbits salvation. A vast metallic island in space, the Trikon station conducts genetic research too risky to be done on earth - research that could save the planet.

From the creation of life to the exploration of the heavens and the stars—from the origins of the earth to the possibility of life on other planets, Ben Bova unveils the beauty and science behind the phenomenon of light. Bova masterfully explains how light affects us every day of our lives—from our religions to our sex drives. He examines how we use light in art, science, industry, entertainment, cosmetics, jewelry, and myriad other ways. Using accessible language, Bova provides easy-to-understand examples that explain even the most difficult and mind-bending concepts.

In the next century, the United States and Russia have joined forces to form the International Peacekeeping Force. The IPF is charged with controlling the satellite network and preventing nuclear missile launches. But many factions resent this orbital police force - and attempt to seize control of the satellites.... and the IPF itself.

When a nuclear missile launched by a rogue North Korean faction explodes in space, the resulting shock wave destroys most of the world’s satellites, throwing global communication into chaos. U.S. military satellites, designed to withstand such an assault, show that two more missiles are sitting on launch pads in North Korea, ready to be deployed. Faced with the threat of a thermonuclear attack, the United States has only one possible defense: Able One.

The first immortals are already living among us. You might be one of them. At first glance, that arresting statement sounds as if it might come from a science fiction story. But it is an astonishing, exciting fact - as explained clearly and cogently by Dr. Ben Bova. Here is a compelling, startling, understandable, and vitally important study of the greatest challenge - and the most tantalizing opportunity - ever faced by humankind.

In Carbide Tipped Pens,over a dozen of today's most creative imaginations explore these frontiers, carrying on the grand tradition of such legendary masters as Isaac Asimov, Robert Heinlein, and John W. Campbell, while bringing hard science fiction into the 21st century by extrapolating from the latest scientific developments and discoveries.

Frontiers can be found in all directions - frontiers of timeand space, as well as frontiers of courage, devotion, love, hate, and the outer limits of the human spirit. This outstanding collection of stories by one of science fiction's premier talents spans the length and breadth of history and the universe while exploring thought-provoking new ideas and dilemmas.

In a dystopian New York City, a teenager fights for his survival. Years ago, New York City was closed by the government in response to insidious crime and pollution. The huge Manhattan Dome hovers high in the smog, while beneath it, the city lies deserted—its buildings haunted, hollow shells. Each summer, though, the metropolis opens for two months as a sort of morbid recreational park, and gangs prey on those who venture onto its darkest streets.

Step into a world where disputes are settled without injury in The Dueling Machine. In this thrilling tale, you and your opponent choose weapons and environments, entering an artificial reality to engage in battles to the virtual death‚Aîwithout any real harm. However, the stakes rise when a cunning warrior from the Kerak Empire discovers a way to translate these virtual confrontations into deadly reality. Now, the machines inventor, Dr. Leoh, must race against time to stop his creation from becoming a weapon of conquest. Originally written with Myron R. Lewis, this gripping story first ...