DOCSLIB.ORG

The Reluctant Famulus 107

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Reluctant Famulus 107 The Reluctant Famulus 107 November/December 2015 Thomas D. Sadler, Editor/Publisher, etc. 305 Gill Branch Road, Owenton, KY 40359 Phone: 502-484-3766 E-mail: [email protected] Contents Introduction, Editor 3 Rat Stew, Gene Stewart 8, His Name Was Lulu, Sheryl Birkhead 11 Children of the Flood Alfred D. Byrd 13 New Ancient Earthlings, Gayle Perry 18 The Crotchety Critic, Michaele Jordan 25 A bit of fatuousness, Editor 26 The Guts Of Starship Troopers, Robin Bright 27 Letters 33 Dark Matter, Editor 44 Pyramids, Editor 45 Conclusion, Editor 45 Artwork/Photos Sheryl Birkhead Front cover, Back cover Brad Foster 12, 43, 45 Teddy Harvia 10, 32, 41 A. B. Kynock 35, 39 Spore 33, 37 The Reluctant Famulus is a product of Strange Dwarf Publications. Some of the comments expressed herein are solely those of the Editor/Publisher and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts of any sane, rational persons who know what they are doing and have carefully thought out beforehand what they wanted to say. Material not written or produced by the Editor/Publisher is printed by permission of the various writers and artists and is copyright by them and remains their sole prop- erty and reverts to them after publication. TRF maybe obtained for The Usual but, in return for written material and artwork, postage costs, The Meaning of Life, and Editorial Whim. 2 The Reluctant Famulus Introduction: A State of Puzzlement (Well, maybe not.) What’d I do wrong? The responses to the last the last one of my harping on typos. After all, fan- issue was a bit smaller than usual. There was one zines are notorious for containing typos. Which, comment from Taral Wayne which wasn’t actu- in spite of my diligence, will definitely occur in ally a loc; a loc, from Sheryl Birkhead, locs from this issue—as seems inevitable. I’m slightly em- Jerry Kaufman, Alexis Gilliland, and Kim barrassed to admit it but I finally discovered that Neidigh and Milt Stevens, Lloyd Penney, Brad the word processing program I use the most has Foster, John Purcell, and Dave Rowe. That’s it. I an automatic underline feature that flags misspell- haven’t heard anything from Al Byrd who usually ings as I type away, as do the three other word sends a loc. Neither has Joe Major who is having processors I have and the MS Publisher program. various problems of his own. Other than that, it’s So that might—no guarantees—drastically de- copacetic so far. crease the number of typos. I’ll probably still I must admit that all you folks—and espe- find a way to commit them. Unfortunately, that cially those of you who aren’t retired—are busy won’t do much good when it come to including with real world activities and obligations that the same articles in an issue. can’t be ignored. That’s understandable. In all But wait. Here’s an idea. Maybe if I kill off honesty I can’t really complain and I’m being my typo obsession, drive a stake through its heart greedy for expecting more. Shame on me. and bury it by a crossroads at midnight perform- Take a deep breath and calm yourself down. ing strange, arcane and obscure rituals from an- There. The usual stalwarts provided me with their cient incunabula and reciting archaic enchant- thoughts and that’s greatly appreciated. ments to insure success. Maybe I can finally get it Fortunately, I have a Rat Stew column, The out of my system and concentrate on everything second part of Al Byrd’s Children of the Flood, but typos. another NEA, the latest installment of Michaele Although I might develop some other obses- Jordan’s Crotchety Critic, an article by Sheryl sion. I hope not. That probably wouldn’t be any Birkhead, plus some odds and ends which might better in the end. be of some interest to somebody. Back to the first sentence of the preceding Let’s leave that subject and move on to more paragraph and the matter of “A new Spaceship” important matters—whatever they may be. appearing twice in TRF 107, of which I was Such as my latest screw-up (Something I quickly notified. No excuses. It happened and seem to be good at whether I like it or not.) and what’s done is done. For some strange reason, presenting the article on the new kind of space- even though I keep committing typos and other craft twice. mistakes for readers to find and point out, the I’m beginning to wonder if maybe 27 years of Earth continues its course around the Sun and life publishing TRF are enough and it’s time to retire goes on as always. The GOP will continue trying the fanzine after the 27th anniversary in Decem- to self-destruct (which now seems natural for ber. But then I’ve been known to threaten to stop them), especially since the Speaker of the House publishing The Reluctant Famulus only to turn will be retiring from the post and his office at the around and produce another issue anyway. So end of October. People’s lives will go on nor- I’ve shown I can’t keep a promise—at least in mally and the nitpickers (thankfully a small num- regard to TRF. ber) are still able to nitpick as usual and chortle For whatever it’s worth I plan this issue to be with glee—or something. So, to those who will 3 nitpick, go ahead and have your laugh. I realize something out of a cheap horror movie about now that those errors and the responses to them loathsome, strange looking humans doing nasty, are really very minor matters, and should be eas- distasteful things to hapless travelers. I think I’d ily forgotten. better quit with this thread before I start having We all have our own better, truer pleasures: a nightmares involving all the above in some way. beautiful sunrise or sunset, a newborn baby, the Some observations from unknown sources: happy look on a child’s face, a pet dog or cat, a “America’s a great country. It allows people painting or sculpture by an old master or a con- to believe whatever they want no matter how stu- temporary one, a good book, one’s spouse, good pid, crazy or ignorant it may be.” Anonymous friends, the awesome scenery in America, and on “It’s too bad they’re allowed to breed.” and on. (And fanzines, maybe?) Those are posi- Anonymous tive pleasures and welcome ones. It’s too bad “Even worse, some of them get elected to there seem to be others which aren’t in the same Congress.” Anonymous category. *Which we’re not likely to see unless we’re But humans do have their dark sides. Unfortu- underwater where they live. Or Sponge Bob nately. Among those, many people possess a cer- square pants. tain irrational obsession unintentionally caused There are conspiracy theories and then there by our “Founding Fathers” when they conceived Are CONSPIRACY THEORIES. and wrote the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and According to certain sources, this particular the subsequent 10 (with more having been added theory, which, believe it or not, somehow in- over the years) amendments, one of them being volves President Obama, works like this. In Mon- the Second Amendment in particular. It’s amazing tana there are plans to move all the people out of how many ways that has been interpreted every the inter-mountain west to make way for a grizzly which way to reflect personal viewpoints and jus- bear corridor (which stretches from the Yellow- tify their need to own weaponry of all kinds. Now stone to Yukon ecosystem). Included are UN sol- I’ll drop that subject like a red hot hunk of steel. diers amassed but hidden in Glacier and Yellow- NASA says there’s good evidence of [salt] stone National Parks, from other countries includ- water on Mars. On the other hand, according to ing Croatia, Wales, and who knows where else. extremist Rightwinger Rush Limbaugh, it’s a There are tunnels under the mountains between conspiracy hoax created by NASA. As for signs Glacier and Thompson Falls, Montana, which, of life, that’ll have to wait for who knows how theorists think is where train cars are being stored long. That is, if we’ll be able to recognize it when that “people” have seen that have shackles in we see it. Other kinds of life wouldn’t necessarily them and guillotines. This is where President walk upright on two legs like us humans. After Obama is involved. He had allegedly ordered the all, just to name a few, snakes are life forms. So purchase of 30,000 guillotines. They’re the trains are snails and slugs, starfish* (or Sea stars since westerners are supposedly going to be piled into they’re not actually fish), seals and walruses, when the time comes to move them out to make amoebas, paramecia and even slime molds. Can way for the endangered grizzly bear. It looks as if you picture a human-sized amoeba or parame- we’re not dealing with just plain old evil or ordi- cium and ones with human-level intelligence? nary nutjobs here, we’re dealing with some sort Then there are Republicans, entirely different of severe mental illness. This is in addition to creatures pretending to be intelligent. Oops. That President Obama’s alleged diabolical plot to turn wasn’t a nice thing to write.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Pocketciv a Solitaire Game of Building Civilizations
    PocketCiv A solitaire game of building civilizations. (version:07.11.06) OBJECT: Starting with a few tribes, lead your civilization through the ages to become...civilized. COMPONENTS: What you will definitely need: • The deck of Event cards If you are playing, basic, no frills, true PocketCiv style, you will additionally need: • A pencil • A pad of paper • This set of rules • A printout of the Advances and Wonders If you want to play a bunch of pre-built Scenarios, you will need: • The Scenario book Finally, if you want a full “board game” experience, you will need to download, printout and mount: • The files that contains the graphics for the Resource Tiles, and Land Masses • The deck of Advances and Wonders • Poker chips (for keeping track of Gold) • Glass Beads or wood cubes (for use as Tribes) A FEW WORDS OF NOTE: It should be noted here that since this is a solitaire game, the system is fairly open-ended to interpretation, and how you want to play it. For example, while in the following "Build Your World" section, it talks about creating a single Frontier area; there's nothing that prevents you from breaking up the Frontier into two areas, which would give you two Sea areas, as if your Empire is in the middle of a peninsula. It's your world, feel free to play with it as much as you like. Looking at the scenario maps will give you an idea how varied you can make your world. However, your first play should conform fairly close to these given rules, as the rules and events on the cards pertain to these rules.
    [Show full text]
  • David Rozansky [email protected] 303-375-0499
    News Release from August 5, 2008 Contact: David Rozansky [email protected] 303-375-0499 Flying Pen Press Announces The Summer Of Science Fiction Event Book premiere at the Tattered Cover LoDo features new titles, local authors DENVER — Flying Pen Press announced its Summer of Science Fiction event will be held in Denver at the Tattered Cover Lower Downtown (LoDo) Bookstore on August 7, 2008 at 7:00 pm. The Summer of Science Fiction includes eight science fiction novels and anthologies published in conjunction with Denvention 3, the 66th World Science Fiction Convention® . Flying Pen Press is a Denver-based publisher in its second year of publishing fiction and non-fiction books. David A. Rozansky, publisher, said: "The timing could not be better. We have been building a family of some really great science fiction authors, and so it is only natural that we put together a single event to celebrate their achievements during Worldcon®, when the world's greatest science fiction authors and editors will be here in our own backyard." Worldcon is an annual convention of science-fiction readers and authors from around the world. Each year, the convention members choose the winners of the Hugo Awards® for science fiction, as well as the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer. The 2008 Worldcon will be held in Denver at the Colorado Convention Center August 6 through 10. Six titles will be featured at the Flying Pen Press Summer of Science Fiction Event, and more than a dozen authors will be signing books. Titles premiering during Worldcon include: Irreconcilable Differences, by James R.
    [Show full text]
  • UNIT COUNTER POOL Both
    11/23/2020 UNIT COUNTER POOL Home New Member Application Members Guide About Us Open Match Requests Unit Counter Pool AHIKS UNIT COUNTER POOL To request a lost counter, rulebook or accessory, email the UCP custodian, Brian Laskey at [email protected] ! Please Note: In order to use the Unit Counter Pool you must be a current member of AHIKS. If you are not a member but would like to find out how to join please go to the New Member Application page or click here!! AVALON HILL-VICTORY GAMES Across Five Aprils General 25-2 Counter Insert Advanced Civilization Bulge ‘81 Afrika Korps Empires in Arms Air Assault on Crete 1776 Anzio Tac Air ASL (Beyond Valor, Red Barricades, Yanks) B-17 General 26-3 Counter Insert Bismarck Flight Leader Blitzkreig Firepower Bitter Woods (1st ed. No Utility), 2nd ed Merchant of Venus Breakout Normandy Bulge ‘65 General 28-5 Counter Insert Bulge ’81 Midway/Guadalcanal Expansion Bulge ’91 Bull Run Caesar’s Legions Merchant of Venus Chancellorsville Panzer Armee Afrika Civil War Panzer Blitz Desert Storm (Gulf Strike: Desert Shield) Panzerkrieg D-Day Panzer Leader Devil’s Den Russian Campaign 1809 Siege of Jerusalem (Roman Only) Empires in Arms 1776 Firepower Stalingrad (Original) Flashpoint Golan Stalingrad (AHgeneral.org version) Flat Top (No Markers) Storm over Arnhem Fortress Europa Squad Leader France 1940 Submarine Gettysburg ‘77 Tactics II GI Anvil (German & SS Infantry; Small Third Reich file:///C:/Users/Owner/Desktop/UNIT COUNTER POOL.html 1/5 11/23/2020 UNIT COUNTER POOL Arms) Guadalcanal Tobruk Turning
    [Show full text]
  • Emerging Legal and Policy Trends in Recent Robot Science Fiction
    Emerging Legal and Policy Trends in Recent Robot Science Fiction Robin R. Murphy Computer Science and Engineering Texas A&M University College Station, TX 77845 [email protected] Introduction This paper examines popular print science fiction for the past five years (2013-2018) in which robots were essential to the fictional narrative and the plot depended on a legal or policy issue related to robots. It follows in the footsteps of other works which have examined legal and policy trends in science fiction [1] and graphic novels [2], but this paper is specific to robots. An analysis of five books and one novella identified four concerns about robots emerging in the public consciousness: enabling false identities through telepresence, granting robot rights, outlawing artificial intelligence for robots, and ineffectual or missing product liability. Methodolology for Selecting the Candidate Print Fiction While robotics is a popular topic in print science fiction, fictional treatments do not necessarily touch on legal or policy issues. Out of 44 candidate works, only six involved legal or policy issues. Candidates for consideration were identified in two ways. One, the nominees for the 2013-2018 Hugo and Nebulas awards were examined for works dealing with robots. The other was a query of science fiction robot best sellers at Amazon. A candidate work of fiction had to contain at least one robot that served either a character or contributed to the plot such that the robot could not be removed without changing the story. For example, in Raven Stratagem, robots did not appear to be more than background props throughout the book but suddenly proved pivotal to the ending of the novel.
    [Show full text]
  • 1943 Retrospective Hugo Award Results
    Worldcon 76 in San Jose PO Box 61363 [email protected] Sunnyvale CA 94088-1363, +1-408-905-9366 USA For Immediate Release 1943 RETROSPECTIVE HUGO AWARD WINNERS REVEALED IN SAN JOSE, CA WORLDCON 76 REVEALS WINNERS FOR SCIENCE FICTION’S MOST PRESTIGIOUS FAN-NOMINATED AWARD SAN JOSE, CA, August 16, 2018: The winners of the 1943 Retrospective Hugo Awards were announced on Thursday, August 16, 2018, at the 76th World Science Fiction Convention. 703 valid ballots (688 electronic and 15 paper) were received and counted from the members of the 2018 World Science Fiction Convention. The Hugo Awards, presented first in 1953 and annually since 1955, are science fiction’s most prestigious award, and one of the World Science Fiction Convention’s unique and distinguished institutions. Since 1993, Worldcon committees have had the option of awarding Retrospective Hugo Awards for past Worldcon years prior to 1953 where they had not been presented 25, 50, or 100 years prior to the contemporary convention, with the exception of the hiatus during World War II when no Worldcon was convened. A recent change in this policy has now allowed for Retro Hugos to be awarded for the years 1942-1945. 1943 Retrospective Hugo Award Winners Best Fan Writer Forrest J Ackerman Best Fanzine Le Zombie, edited by Arthur Wilson "Bob" Tucker Best Professional Artist Virgil Finlay Best Editor - Short Form John W. Campbell Best Dramatic Presentation - Short Form Bambi, written by Perce Pearce, Larry Morey, et al., directed by David D. Hand et al. (Walt Disney Productions) For Immediate Release more Page 2 1943 RETROSPECTIVE HUGO AWARD WINNERS REVEALED IN SAN JOSE, CA Best Short Story "The Twonky," by Lewis Padgett (C.L.
    [Show full text]
  • The Imagined Communities of Toxic Puppies: Considering Fan Community Discourse in the 2015 Hugo Awards ‘Puppygate’ Controversy
    . Volume 15, Issue 1 May 2018 The imagined communities of Toxic Puppies: Considering fan community discourse in the 2015 Hugo Awards ‘Puppygate’ controversy J. Richard Stevens & Rachel Lara van der Merwe, University of Colorado, USA Abstract: In 2015, toxic fan conflicts disrupted the Hugo Awards selection proceedings. The conflict between the awards voters and a movement known as ‘Puppygate’, led by angry fans, dates back to at least 2012 and comprises thousands of networked conversations enacting toxic frames of contemporary culture wars (heated and often disruptive exchanges characterized by challenges to identity politics, arguments over representation, and conflicting tastes) from all sides. However, these toxic fan discourses emerged within the context of significant cultural changes. Fans exist in communal spaces formed among institutional and cultural forces, yet the drive to create communal culture through shared communication exchanges continually encourage toxic conflicts of social identity and taste. This article considers the toxic exchanges between various actors in the blogs, social media, and formal public statements of the Puppygate controversy to chronicle how structural change is subsumed into frames of ‘culture war’ rhetoric. Keywords: science fiction, toxic fan exchanges, fan studies, Hugo Awards Introduction In the past few years, toxic fan conflicts have increasingly captured news and social media attention. Such exchanges, which are often cited for their uncivil rhetoric and anti-social tendencies, strategically disrupt spaces of communal cultural appreciation, and represent the growing tensions between fan gatekeeping and conflicts over social values in an increasingly mediated culture. Scholarly analyses of inter- and intra-fandom Othering ‘of fans, by fans’ (Hills, 2012, p.
    [Show full text]
  • What's on the Schedule For
    What’s on the schedule for WBC ‘08? 1776 Empire of the Sun Ra! 1830 Enemy In Sight Race For the Galaxy 1960: Making of the President Euphrat & Tigris Rail Baron Ace of Aces Facts In Five Red Star Rising Acquire Fast Action Battles: The Bulge Republic of Rome Adel Verpflichtet Flying Colors Risk Advanced Civilization Football Strategy Robo Rally Advanced Squad Leader For the People Russia Besieged ASL Starter Kit Formula De Russian Campaign Afrika Korps Formula Motor Racing Saint Petersburg Age of Empires III Galaxy San Juan Age of Renaissance Gangsters Santa Fe Rails Age of Steam Gettysburg Saratoga Agricola Goa Settlers of Catan Air Baron Great Campaigns of ACW Shogun Alhambra Hamburgum Slapshot Amazing Space Venture Hammer of the Scots Speed Circuit Amun-Re Hannibal: Rome vs Carthage Squad Leader Anzio Here I Stand Stockcar Championship Racing Athens & Sparta History of the World Successors Atlantic Storm Imperial Superstar Baseball Attack Sub Ingenious Sword of Rome Auction Ivanhoe Through the Ages Axis & Allies Kaiser's Pirates Thurn & Taxis B-17 Kingmaker Ticket To Ride Battle Cry Kremlin Tigers In the Mist Battlegroup Liar's Dice Tikal Battleline Lost Cities Titan BattleLore Manoeuver Titan Two Bitter Woods Manifest Destiny Titan: The Arena Brawling Battleship Steel March Madness Trans America Breakout Normandy Medici Twilight Struggle Britannia Memoir '44 Union Pacific Bulge '81 Merchant of Venus Up Front Candidate Monsters Ravage America Vegas Showdown Can't Stop Monty's Gamble Victory in the Pacific Carcassonne Mystery of the
    [Show full text]
  • Business Passed on to Next Worldcon
    World Science Fiction Society Business Passed on to Worldcon 76 The following items were passed at Worldcon 75 in 2017 and must be ratified by Worldcon 76 in 2018 in order to become part of the Worldcon Constitution. A.1 Short Title: What Our Marks Really Are Moved: to replace section 2.2 of the Constitution with: Every Worldcon and NASFIC Committee shall include the following notice in each of its publications: “World Science Fiction Society”, “WSFS”, “World Science Fiction Convention”, “Worldcon”, “NASFiC” “Hugo Award”, the Hugo Award Logo, and the distinctive design of the Hugo Award Trophy Rocket are service marks of the World Science Fiction Society, an unincorporated literary society. Every Worldcon and NASFIC Committee shall include a notice in each of its publications that clearly acknowledges the service marks of the Society. The Mark Protection Committee shall supply each such convention committee with the correct form of such notice. Proposed by: The Mark Protection Committee See the 2017 WSFS Business Meeting Minutes for the makers’ commentary on page 6. ***** A.2 Short Title: The Reasonable Amendment Moved: to amend 3.8.5 (Nominee Diversity) of the WSFS Constitution by striking “best” and inserting “reasonable” in its place. The revised 3.8.5 will then read as follows: 3.8.5: If there are more than two works in the same category that are episodes of the same dramatic presentation series or that are written works that have an author for single author works, or two or more authors for co-authored works, in common, only the two works in each category that have the most nominations shall appear on the final ballot.
    [Show full text]
  • Archaeology, Antiquarianism, and the Landscape in American Women's Writing, 1820--1890 Christina Healey University of New Hampshire, Durham
    University of New Hampshire University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository Doctoral Dissertations Student Scholarship Spring 2009 Excavating the landscapes of American literature: Archaeology, antiquarianism, and the landscape in American women's writing, 1820--1890 Christina Healey University of New Hampshire, Durham Follow this and additional works at: https://scholars.unh.edu/dissertation Recommended Citation Healey, Christina, "Excavating the landscapes of American literature: Archaeology, antiquarianism, and the landscape in American women's writing, 1820--1890" (2009). Doctoral Dissertations. 475. https://scholars.unh.edu/dissertation/475 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Scholarship at University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized administrator of University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. EXCAVATING THE LANDSCAPES OF AMERICAN LITERATURE- ARCHAEOLOGY, ANTIQUARIAN ISM, AND THE LANDSCAPE IN AMERICAN WOMEN'S WRITING, 1820-1890 BY CHRISTINA HEALEY B.A., Providence College, 1999 M.A., Boston College, 2004 DISSERTATION Submitted to the University of New Hampshire in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy , in English May, 2009 UMI Number: 3363719 Copyright 2009 by Healey, Christina INFORMATION TO USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleed-through, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted.
    [Show full text]
  • Asian and African Civilizations: Course Description, Topical Outline, and Sample Unit. INSTITUTION Columbia Univ., New York, NY
    DOCUMENT RESUME ED 423 174 SO 028 555 AUTHOR Beaton, Richard A. TITLE Asian and African Civilizations: Course Description, Topical Outline, and Sample Unit. INSTITUTION Columbia Univ., New York, NY. Esther A. and Joseph Klingenstein Center for Independent School Education. PUB DATE 1995-00-00 NOTE 294p.; Photographs and illustrations may not reproduce well. AVAILABLE FROM Esther A. and Joseph Klingenstein Center for Independent School Education, Teachers College, Columbia University, 525 West 120th Street, Box 125, New York, NY, 10027. PUB TYPE Dissertations/Theses Practicum Papers (043) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC12 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *African Studies; *Asian Studies; Course Content; *Course Descriptions; Ethnic Groups; Foreign Countries; *Indians; Non Western Civilization; Secondary Education; Social Studies; World History IDENTIFIERS Africa; Asia; India ABSTRACT This paper provides a skeleton of a one-year course in Asian and African civilizations intended for upper school students. The curricular package consists of four parts. The first part deals with the basic shape and content of the course as envisioned. The remaining three parts develop a specific unit on classical India with a series of teacher notes, a set of student readings that can be used according to individual needs, and a prose narrative of content with suggestions for extension and inclusion. (EH) ******************************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be z:Lad *s from the original document.
    [Show full text]
  • Scott Stephenson History of Computer Game Design
    Scott Stephenson History of Computer Game Design Civilization: Sid Meier’s Legacy Acclaimed as one of the greatest computer games of all time, Sid Meier’s Civilization and its follow-up Sid Meier’s Civilization II rocked the gaming world with a delicate balance of strategy and simulation. Listed as Gamespot U.K.’s number one all- time series among both computer and console games, “Civ” and “Civ II” are universally recognized for the level to which their creator, hall-of-fame designer Sid Meier, raised the bar in terms of overall outstanding game-play. Few games have risen to the level of excellence that these games have achieved in computer gaming history. Civilization, published in 1991 by MicroProse, puts the player in the role of a lone settler in a vast, uncharted world in the year 2000 B.C., and gives him the task of building an empire to “stand the test of time.”1 To accomplish this goal, the player must take on the roles of general, city manager, diplomat, scientist, and economist, as winning involves not only managing the art of war against rival civilizations, but also maintaining the prosperity of the player’s empire. The player must balance “the four impulses of Civilization”—exploration, economics, knowledge, and conquest—to become more powerful, either through peaceful negotiations or world domination. In 1996, MicroProse released Civilization II, a sequel that vastly improved on the original Civ while maintaining the integrity of the original’s game-play. The inspiration for Civilization came from the Avalon Hill board game of the same name, set in the Mediterranean area of Europe and North Africa.
    [Show full text]
  • PR3 Supplement: WSFS Constitution and Hugo Nominating Ballot
    WSFS CONSTITUTION and HUGO NOMINATING BALLOT WSFS Constitution CONSTITUTION The Membership of WSFS shall consist of all of the World Science Fiction Society, people who have paid membership dues to as of August 21, 2018 the Committee of the current Worldcon. Section 1.5: Memberships. SECRETARY’S NOTE: Material in red has 1.5.1: Each Worldcon shall offer supporting been deleted from the current Constitution; and and attending memberships. material in blue is newly added. Items in green 1.5.2: The rights of supporting members of a are hyperlinked cross-references. Worldcon include the right to receive all of its generally distributed publications. Article 1 – Name, Objectives, Membership, 1.5.3: The rights of attending members of and Organization a Worldcon include the rights of supporting Section 1.1: Name. The name of this members plus the right of general attendance organization shall be the World Science at said Worldcon and at the WSFS Business Fiction Society, hereinafter referred to as Meeting held thereat. WSFS or the Society. 1.5.4: Members of WSFS who cast a site- Section 1.2: Objectives. WSFS is an selection ballot with the required fee shall unincorporated literary society whose be supporting members of the selected functions are: Worldcon. (1) To choose the recipients of the annual 1.5.5: Voters have the right to convert to Hugo Awards (Science Fiction Achievement attending membership in the selected Awards). Worldcon within ninety (90) days of its (2) To choose the locations and Committees selection, for an additional fee set by its for the annual World Science Fiction committee.
    [Show full text]