Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction

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First date Word Definition
1930 Vegan adj. (1930) of or pertaining to the star Vega, or the natives or inhabitants of its solar system
1930 Venerian n. 2 (1930) the language of Venerians
1930 viewscreen n. (1930) a television or similar electronic display screen for viewing images or data
1930 vision plate n. (1930) = viewscreen n.
1930 visiplate n. (1930) = viewscreen n.
1931 Alpha Centaurian n. (1931) a native or inhabitant of the Alpha Centauri star system; cf. Centaurian n. 1
1931 astrogation n. (1931) the act of navigation in space, esp. by means of the observation of celestial objects
1931 astrogator n. (1931) one who practices astrogation; (also) an instrument used for this purpose
1931 avian adj. (1931) (of an alien) bird-like
1931 Centaurian n. 1 (1931) a native or inhabitant of the constellation Centaurus or of a star system within it, esp. Alpha Centauri; cf. Alpha Centaurian n.
1931 deflector n. (1931) a force field that protects something (such as a spaceship or a city) from potentially harmful objects or energy; a beam of energy that repels such objects; cf. shield n.
1931 dimensional adj. (1931) between dimensions; joining dimensions
1931 disruptor n. (1931) a type of energy weapon; a weapon that causes damage by disrupting the molecular bonds of its target
1931 earthport n. (1931) a spaceport on Earth
1931 Europan adj. (1931) of or relating to the Jovian moon Europa or its inhabitants
1931 fantasy n. 1 (1931) a genre of fiction which contains elements of magic or the supernatural, frequently set in a world other than our own
1931 force field n. (1931) a field of energy that acts as an invisible barrier; cf. shield n.
1931 free fall n. (1931) a condition of weightlessness
1931 future war n. (1931) a subgenre of science fiction dealing with warfare and how it will be practiced in the future
1931 gate n. (1931) a matter transmission device, esp. a portal or device by means of which something may be (instantaneously) transported to another point in space or time, or into another dimension or alternate universe; cf. slightly earlier gateway n.
1931 marsport n. (1931) a spaceport on Mars
1931 matter transmission n. (1931) the transportation of material objects by a process analogous to radio transmission; cf. matter transmitter n.
1931 matter transmitter n. (1931) a device for conveying matter over a distance by transforming it into energy or information, beaming this to another location, and reconstituting the original matter at the destination; cf. matter transmission n.
1931 midspace adj. (1931) occurring in midspace n.
1931 needle-ray n. (1931) = needle-beam n.
1931 normal space n. (1931) esp. in reference to space travel: the type of space that exhibits the physical laws as we know them, in contrast to hyperspace n.
1931 parallel world n. (1931) a world that exists alongside or in addition to the known world; = parallel universe n.
1931 planet dweller n. (1931) a person who lives on a planet, rather than in space
1931 Plutonian adj. (1931) pertaining to the planet Pluto
1931 Plutonian n. 1 (1931) a native or inhabitant of Pluto
1931 portal n. (1931) a means of entering another dimension or an alternate universe, or of travelling instantaneously from one place or time to another, often portrayed as a door or other structure that may be passed through; cf. gate n.
1931 pressor n. (1931) = pressor beam n.