Asimov's V08n05 (1984
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. The Belgariad's bestselling magic continues I CASTLE OF WIZARDBY Book Four of The Belgariad by DAVID EDDINGS Garion's adventures had all begun w/ith the theft of the Orb that protected the West from the evil god Torak. Now that the Orb v\as recovered, Garion thought his part in the great quest was over. Little did he know that the best—and the worst—was yet to come . Covw itKiatfflioo by tauwnce aSwinger DEL #1 in Science Fiction and Fantasy On Sale in May REY Published by Ballantine Books $3.50 Put yourself in the story! TRAVELLER Science-Fiction Adventure ® in the Far Future ^ Traveller puts you In the middle of the action! jr Guide your favorite character through the mysteries and dangers of the far future. Explore alien worlds, puzzle out the enigmas of ancient civilizations, con- duct complicated confidence scams, smuggle, build empires, lead revolutions, wage inter- stellar war ... the list of •" science fiction role-playing adventures is as unlimited as your own imagination. 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A dazzling new novel by the author of MIDNIGHT AT THE WELL OF SOULS and DRAGON AT THE GATE Jack Chalkei Jack Oialker triumphs once again in a radiant tale about a ooce>great civilization poised between a return to greatness and an evil... a young giri ... and that which has chosen her as its host for the coming batde: THE SOUL RIDER. $2.9f O 53-275-9 D Haich 1984 BOOKSELLER Sdecaen > SenWe • A SHr Nor Ybd TOR BOOKS SCIENCE FCnON MfiGAZNE Vol. 8 No. 5 (whole no. 77) May 1984 Next Issue on sole May 8.1984 Novella 110 PRESS ENTER* John Variey Short Stories 22 Technology on Vzigs Martin Gardner 26 The Evil Drink Does Isaac Asimov 52 Buzzy Gone Blue Marc Laidlaw 67 Close of Night Daphne Castell 82 Salvage JaneYolen 88 Still Life wifh Scorpion Scott Baker 103 A Citizen of 3V Ronald Anthony Cross Departments 6 Editorial; Controversy Isaac Asimov 13 Letters 20 Gaming Dana Lombardy 40 Viewpoint: The Nuciear Winter Carl Sagan 169 On Books Baird Searles 178 The SF Conventionai Calendar_Envin S. Strauss Cover Oft fof 'PRESS ENTERB ' by Hisoki Yosudo Joe4 Davis: President & Publisher Isaac Asimov; Editorlai Director Shawna McCarthy: Editor Published 13 times a yeor by Dovfs Publications, inc, at $175 per copy, Jan.-0ec. issues. $1.95 Special Mid-Dec. Issue; onnuol subscription of thirteen issues $19.60 In the United States and U.S. possessions. In oil other countries $24.20, payable In oc^once in U.S. funds. Address for subscriptions and all other correspondence ctoout them, P.O. Box 1933, Morion, OH 43305. Address for oil ecWoriol matters: Davis Pubticotlons, Inc. 380 Lexington Averrue. N.Y., NY 10017. Isoac Asimov's ence Fiction Magazine® is the registered trodemcKk erf Davis Publications. Inc. O 1984 by Dovis PLOiicoflons. Inc., 380 L«dngton Ave., Nev/ York. NY 10017. All rights reserved, printed In the U.S.A. Protection secured under the Univer^ and Pan American Copyright Conventions. Reproduction or use of editorial or pictoriol con- tent in (Try manner without repress perrTTission is prohfti^ed. All submissions must Include a self-oddressed. stornped envelope, the publisher assumes no resporrsl- bility for unsolicited manuscripts. Second class postage paid at New York. NY, arxl at additional mailing crffices. Conodlan third doss postage paid at Wiidsor, On- tario. POSTMASTER, send form 3579 to lAsfm. Box 1935. Motion OH 43306. tnConoda return to 625 Monmouth Rd., Windsor. Ontario N8Y3L1. ISSN 0162-2188. EDffDRI/^ CONTROVERSY Primarily, this magazine is instance, we ran the essay a vehicle for entertainment. "Great Moments in Pseudosci- What we hope to do is to give ence” by Martin Gardner, in pleasure to as many people as which he did what he has been possible and to earn an honest doing with unwearying skill for dollar as a result. We do not most of his life—knocking the want to do harm; we do not stuffing out of pseudoscientific want to displease. crackpottery. It is, however, impossible to As it happens, there are a express opinions of any sort, great many people who find impossible to approve or dis- themselves attracted to one or approve of anything, without another of the fields of pseu- running into strong objections doscience—far more than there on the .part of some readers. I are people who are totally re- suppose we might try to avoid sistant to such nonsense. A cer- this by retreating into utter tain number of the pseudosci- blandness, but not only do we entiphiles are articulate and refuse to do that under any con- intelligent, and a certain num- ditions, we are convinced that ber of these read the magazine. even if we did do this, that Some of these pseudoscienti- would not save us. philic readers responded to the So while we don’t seek con- article angrily, particularly to troversy, we don’t intend to go his references to John W. out of our way to avoid it, Campbell, Jr. either. What’s more, I shall not Well, we expect that (and so hesitate to speak my mind in does Martin), but there were these editorials on subjects some characterizations of Mar- where it seems to me to be ap- tin himself that were ludi- propriate that I do so. (This crously wide of the point. I magazine is not my private know Martin well and, of the soap-box, I assure you, and I handful of people I am ac- don’t treat it as such.) quainted with who are totally In the July, 1983, issue, for and uncompromisingly ra- 6 tional, he is the most honest boosted UFOs, the Dean Drive, and open-minded. He is the Dianetics, the Hieronymus ma- only one, to my knowledge, chine, and psi powers. He had who, in publishing articles, will kind words for magic, too. He go to the trouble of publishing felt (he said to me often) that letters that attempt to refute science was too narrow and that his points, and answering them by discussing these beyond-the- politely and without venom. I fringe areas, he was helping to assure you that there is nothing force scientists to investigate venomous in his constitution. areas that might well turn out Some readers seem to think to be important. that because John W. Camp- Well, perhaps. That is, after bell, Jr. was (without question) all, the usual rationalization of the greatest editor in science those who find themselves in fiction’s history, and exerted the difficult position of yearn- more influence on the field than ing for both pseudoscience and anyone else has, that there is respectability. (My intellectual something criminal in criti- life is an easy one since I yearn cisms of him appearing in a sci- for neither.) ence fiction magazine. However, I spent endless I knew John Campbell well, hours discussing these things too, and no one, but no one, has with Campbell, and it always more greatly benefited from his seemed to me that he wasn’t in- constant generous help than I terested in just needling sci- have, something I have at- ence. He believed. And the tested to over and over again in trouble was that he was char- my writings. Nevertheless to ismatic enough to make others say that in some ways Camp- believe, others who didn’t know bell was a good and kind man, as much as he himself did and a giant in the field of imagi- who were much more likely to nation and ideas, a genius in go off the deep end into even the art of editing, is not neces- more extreme foolishness. sarily to say that he was perfect Those he convinced of the in all respects. (We all revere value of pseudoscience and of (Jeorge Washington, but are we the wickedness of scientific or- really expected to believe that thodoxy then convinced others, he never told a lie, just because and this helped spawn the of a completely fictional tale UFOmaniacs, Velikovskians, about a cherry tree?) VonDanikenites, scientolo- The fact is that Campbell had gists, pyramid power freaks, a penchant for accepting pseu- psychic surgery nuts, and oth- doscientific claims uncritically. ers who plague us today. He At one time or another, he was not the sole originator, to EDITORIAL; CONTROVERSY 7 be sure, and the pseudoscien- in ISAAC ASIMOV: tiphiles would be here today Editorial Director ample numbers even without SHAWNA MCCARTHY: caitof him, but he helped and in that SHEILA WILLIAMS: respect, he did harm to the Assrsiortt Editor RALPH RUBINO: cause of science. Corporate Art Director it GERRY HAWKINS: Nor is it valid to say that Associote Art Director is cowardly to attack Campbell TERRI CZECZKO: Art Editor now that he is dead and cannot MARIANNE WELDON: Associate Designer defend himself In the first place, CARL BARTEE: the act of death does not convert Director of Monutacturing CAROLE DIXON: a person into a plaster saint, or Production Monoger alter truth, and in the second IRIS TEMPLE: Director Subsldiarv Rights place, there are many who are BARBARA BAZYN: presently alive and vocal who Monoger, Controcts 8t Permissions MICHAEL DILLON: will gladly defend Campbell, Circulation Director.