Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction

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First date Word Definition
1968 sleeper ship n. (1968) a spaceship in which most or all of the passengers are in some form of suspended animation such as cold sleep in order to avoid aging during a very long voyage
1968 smof v. (1968) to talk with fans about organizing conventions or related fan activity
1968 sonic screwdriver n. (1968) in the British television series Doctor Who: a (hand-held) electronic device which uses sound waves to perform various mechanical and technical functions
1968 speculative fiction n. 3 (1968) fiction which includes science fictional elements but which is regarded as not part of the genre of science fiction, as because it is soft science fiction, or to avoid a stigma felt to be associated with the term ‘science fiction’
1968 trekkie n. (1968) an admirer of the U.S. television programme Star Trek
1968 Vulcan mind meld n. (1968) = mind-meld n.
1968 Vulcan nerve pinch n. (1968) a one-handed pinch delivered (chiefly by Vulcans) to the base of a person’s neck that immediately renders the victim unconscious
1967 dystopic adj. (1967) of, pertaining to, or resembling a dystopia n. 2
1967 energy vampire n. (1967) a being that feeds on energy (in various senses)
1967 Franken- prefix (1967) (used to form nouns in the sense ‘created or modified by scientific techniques, esp. genetic engineering’)
1967 Klingon n. (1967) in the fictional universe of the Star Trek franchise: a member of a humanoid alien race, characterized by authoritarian brutality and a strict code of honor; (also) the language of this race, now widely studied as an artificial language
1967 neopro n. (1967) a new professional writer
1967 organlegger n. (1967) a person who illegally removes organs from people or corpses and sells them to use for transplantation
1967 sublight n. (1967) speeds below light-speed
1967 time hopper n. 2 (1967) = time traveller n.
1967 Tolkienesque adj. (1967) characteristic of or resembling J.R.R. Tolkien or his writings; cf. Tolkienian adj.
1967 transhuman adj. (1967) having the qualities or characteristics of transhumans
1967 trekker n. (1967) an admirer of the U.S. television programme Star Trek
1967 tribble n. (1967) in the fictional universe of the Star Trek franchise: a species of small, furry, featureless alien
1966 ansible n. (1966) an instantaneous communication device, not limited by the speed of light; cf. earlier ultraphone n.
1966 clone n. (1966) any member of a hypothetical population of artificially produced, identical beings; (also) a duplicate of a living person
1966 corpsicle n. (1966) a cryogenically frozen person; someone in cold sleep n.; (also, occasionally) a frozen corpse
1966 cryonics n. (1966) the practice or technique of deep-freezing the bodies of people who have died, usu. of an incurable disease, with the aim of reviving them once a cure has been found
1966 Cyberman n. (1966) in the British television series Doctor Who: one of a race of emotionless cybernetic humanoids
1966 Dyson sphere n. (1966) an artificial structure in the form of a hollow shell surrounding a star, built esp. in order to capture the star’s energy output
1966 Earthsider n. (1966) a native or inhabitant of Earth
1966 Nebula n. (1966) any of several awards given annually by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America for excellence in science fiction and fantasy writing
1966 phaser n. (1966) in the fictional universe of the Star Trek franchise: a (usu. hand-held) weapon incorporating an energy beam whose phase can be altered to create different effects (such as stunning, disintegration, etc.) on the target