S. M. Stirling

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S. M. Stirling

30 Quotations from S. M. Stirling

alternative reality n. 1992 S. M. Stirling Snowbrother xi. 208 He moved in a peculiar and wholly nonphysical way that left the Essence of the scene closer to his sight. His own Symbol stood clear: that of the girl, a human destroyed; the network of the spell binding them together. The alternative reality he had constructed was there, potential, but still vanishingly unlikely. Still, anything was possible; knowing that was one of the keys of this art. Perception could alter probability.
anti-agathic n. 2008 S. M. Stirling In the Courts of the Crimson Kings 32 One of them was a genuine anti-agathic, slowing down aging for Martians and probably for Terrans too.
anti-agathic adj. 2008 S. M. Stirling In the Courts of the Crimson Kings 286 Another relevant biological trait is the longer Martian life span, approximately twice the human norm, with lives of one hundred fifty to two hundred years not uncommon, and several decades more far from unknown; anti-agathic drugs may double this, if taken consistently from adulthood.
astroengineer n. 1990 S. M. Stirling Stone Dogs 315 ‘Makin’ remarkable progress, Merarch-Professor,’ Yolanda said. They were teleconferencing, and the astroengineer was suited up; she could see segments of construction material behind him.
cold sleep n. 1990 J. Pournelle & S. M. Stirling Asteroid Queen in L. Niven et al. Man-Kzin Wars III (1992) iii. 66 She had spent most of the intervening decades in coldsleep, at a high fraction of lightspeed; he had lived every minute of them here on Wunderland, lived hard and without the best anti-senescent treatments.
cold sleep n. 1992 J. Pournelle & S. M. Stirling In Hall of the Mountain King in L. Niven et al. Man-Kzin Wars V ii. 19 He learned that a hyperdrive transport back to Sol was out of the question, and there wasn’t even a place for him in cold sleep aboard a slowship.
credit n. 1993 J. Pournelle & S. M. Stirling Prince of Sparta 183 We be needing CS credits and Friedlander marks someday too.
dirtside adv. 2006 S. M. Stirling Sky People i. 21, I know three months in zero-G makes you feel like a boiled noodle when you get back dirtside.
Earther n. 1991 G. Bear & S. M. Stirling Man Who Would Be Kzin in L. Niven et al. Man-Kzin Wars IV 264 Even after a decade, the words war and enemy still carried a strong flavor of obscenity to most Earthers.
earthling n. 2006 S. M. Stirling Sky People i. 21 The newcomers spared a few startled glances at them: You had to look fairly closely to see that they weren’t common garden-variety Caucasoid Earthlings.
fresher n. 1992 J. Pournelle & S. M. Stirling In Hall of the Mountain King in L. Niven et al. Man-Kzin Wars V i. 11 Sweat stained the fat man’s white linen suit, and a haze of smoke hung below the ceiling as the fresher system fought overstrain.
hell planet n. 1993 A. McCaffrey & S. M. Stirling City Who Fought (1994) 326 Pounding feet came closer: Joseph’s heavier tread, and the lighter, faster sound of the folk the hell-planet bred.
humanoid n. 2006 S. M. Stirling Sky People xi. 237 Marc drew and shot, drew and shot, distantly aware that he was glad of the activity distracting him from the fact that scores of gorilla-strong humanoids were rushing at him with intent to kill him and eat his flesh, and not necessarily in that order.
hyperdrive n. 1990 J. Pournelle & S. M. Stirling Asteroid Queen in L. Niven et al. Man-Kzin Wars III (1992) x. 166 The commander of the hyperdrive warship Outsider’s Gift sat back and relaxed for the first time in weeks as his craft broke through into normal space.
in-system adv. 1989 J. Pournelle & S. M. Stirling Children's Hour in L. Niven et al. Man-Kzin Wars II (1991) ii. 176 The flatlander warship was still headed insystem; from the look of things they were going to use the sun for a whip-round.
jumpspace n. 2000 J. Doohan & S. M. Stirling Independent Command vii. 146 Reality twisted, and if Raeder’s stomach hadn’t already been knotted with tension he would have lost all interest in food. They found themselves spat out of jumpspace into the vicinity of a small yellow sun.
lifeship n. 1991 G. Bear & S. M. Stirling Man Who Would Be Kzin in L. Niven et al. Man-Kzin Wars IV 272 They cut loose the kzin lifeship, with Halloran inside, five hours later, and then turned a shielded ion drive against their orbital path to drop inward and lose themselves in the Belt.
mind-control v. 2015 S. M. Stirling A Clan’s Foundation in By Tooth & Claw 100 He hadn’t mind controlled a Mrem slave since he’d been young and he’d forgotten the pleasure it brought.
mind-meld n. 2006 S. M. Stirling Sky People xii. 255 Sorry, podna. l think you’re not her type—weren’t even before we did the mind-meld thing.
needle gun n. 2006 S. M. Stirling Sky People iv. 98 Anthropologists there had to be handy with dueling-swords and needle-guns as well as getting used to being looked down on as monkeys from the wilds.
off-planet adj. 1993 J. Pournelle & S. M. Stirling Prince of Sparta 17 They’ve got too much off-planet support.
rocketeer n. 1993 J. Pournelle & S. M. Stirling Prince of Sparta 219 Finally, two Helot rocketeers came up.
science fictional adj. 2006 S. M. Stirling Sky People iii. 75 Sort of science-fictional, Marc thought. But then, we're exploring an alien planet, eh?
scout ship n. 1993 A. McCaffrey & S. M. Stirling City Who Fought iv. 71 The brain/brawn scout ship is too claustrophobic and limited. I like dealing with a lot of people.
slideway n. 1990 J. Pournelle & S. M. Stirling Asteroid Queen in L. Niven et al. Man-Kzin Wars III (1992) iv. 82 The men at either elbow guided him to the slower edge-strip of the slideway and onto the sidewalk.
sophont n. 1996 S. M. Stirling Drakon 7 The Cygnus Nine probe had reported in, and there was not only a habitable planet, but an intelligent species on it. That made her flip the aircraft up, let it do the piloting and take notice; that was only the second race of sophonts found so far, in scores of systems.
space station n. 2006 S. M. Stirling Sky People v. 121 According to the news, they were busting their asses at that base in Guiana and their little space station, but it would be years before they could do anything interplanetary, and by then they'd be a distant third fiddle.
stasis field n. 1990 J. Pournelle & S. M. Stirling Asteroid Queen in L. Niven et al. Man-Kzin Wars III (1992) ii. 63 They had a device, a stasis field that forms invulnerable protection and freezes time within; we have never been able to understand the principle and copies do not work, but we have found them occasionally, and they can be deactivated.
Terran n. 1 2006 S. M. Stirling Sky People iv. 99 A couple of skinny pigs closed in on the refuse after the Terrans went by, snapping at a local who kicked at one of them.
torchship n. 1990 J. Pournelle & S. M. Stirling Asteroid Queen in L. Niven et al. Man-Kzin Wars III (1992) i. 41 The little torchship had not been doing well of late, and the kzin-nominated purchasing combines on the asteroid base of Tiamat had been squeezing harder and harder.