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Hackers (short stories)
Encyclopedia
Hackers is an anthology
of short stories
edited by Jack Dann
and Gardner Dozois
. It contains stories by noted science fiction
and cyberpunk
writers of the late 1980s and early 1990s about hackers
.
, was first published in Omni
in July, 1982. It tells the story of two hackers who hack systems for profit. The two main characters are Bobby Quine who specializes in software and Automatic Jack
whose field is hardware. A third character in the story is Rikki, a girl with whom Bobby becomes infatuated and for whom he wants to hit it big. Automatic Jack acquires a piece of Russia
n hacking
software that is very sophisticated and hard to trace. The rest of the story unfolds with Bobby deciding to break into the system of a notorious and vicious criminal called Chrome, who handles money transfers for organized crime
, and Automatic Jack reluctantly agreeing to help. The break-in is ultimately successful, but Rikki decides to leave the group and go to Hollywood, to the grief of Quine and Jack who have grown to love her.
One line from this story — "...the street finds its own uses for things" — has become a widely-quoted aphorism for describing the sometimes unexpected uses to which users can put technologies (for example, hip-hop DJs' reinvention of the turntable, which transformed turntables from a medium of playback into one of production). Bobby Quine is mentioned in Neuromancer
as one of the mentors of the protagonist. The Finn, a recurring character in Gibson's Sprawl trilogy of novels, makes his first appearance in this story as a minor figure. The events of the story are referenced in Count Zero
, the second entry of the Sprawl trilogy.
The word cyberspace
, coined by Gibson, was first used in this story.
This story and "Dogfight" were later published in a collection of William Gibson short stories, also titled Burning Chrome.
The story functioned as a conceptual prototype for Gibson's Sprawl trilogy of novels.
, and was first published in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine in 1987. This is the story of a man whose wife is kidnapped during a business dealing about bio computers. The man then finds out that his wife's electronic records have disappeared. Bound by his wife's love, he plunges back to his hacker days to track his wife's abductor, and even enlists the help of his old college hacking master. Thinking originally that it was the company involved in the business deal, he blackmails them, but then finds out that something else may be behind the ordeal.
, and was first published in Interzone 44
in 1991. Two twin sisters in the near future find themselves in the middle of a world where a virus evolved through mutation and natural selection as part of biological warfare research has escaped. Both sisters become infected with a version of the virus, but only one of them survives. The surviving sister uses her hacking skills to find out the reason behind her sister's death, exact revenge and inform the public.
and was first published in Playboy
in 1987. In the future, an alien species has colonized the Earth and used the humans' own information infrastructure to control them through their in-body implants. Hackers have become valuable because they can exploit the system. Some hackers have become known as pardoners because they can arrange for people to escape the aliens' sentences in exchange for profit. The story focuses on one of the best pardoners. He is bested in a hacking duel only to find out that his opponent is an android. The pardoner faces a mistake he made in his past and finds a way to escape by hacking the alien mainframe with the help of a woman he had swindled.
and was first published in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine in June 1991.
A man afflicted with Alzheimer's disease
programs his personality into a computer, and enlists the machine's help for his final wish.
and William Gibson
, and was first published in Omni
in 1985. A lonely ex-shoplifter who suffers from a neural block preventing him from returning to his hometown of Washington, D.C.
, finds a female friend, whose parents have set a neural block on her to protect her virginity
– a sort of a mental chastity belt
. He becomes enthralled by a new video game – Fokker
s & Spad
s – where he engages in dogfight
s as a World War I
fighter pilot
and, with help from his female friend (a gifted hacker of both hardware and software) becomes one of the best fighters. To beat the very best fighter, though, he betrays and hurts his newfound friend only to find himself alone again after his victory over the crippled war-veteran Tiny.
The story is typical of the cyberpunk genre in that its mood never rises from the melancholy and that the protagonist ends up suffering a kind of Pyrrhic victory
, realizing too late that succeeding in his endeavor (i.e. winning the game) has cost him too dearly. As in film noir
, the theme of betrayal
exists strongly in the tale, as the protagonist sacrifices everything around him to succeed.
, and was first published in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction in 1988. In a bizarre future, free from AIDS
and genetic diseases, everyone can be a human genome
hacker. One such hacker/scientist, while trying to find a way for the human body to become a cocaine-producing factory, engineers a virus that enriches the dendritic
connections of mammalian brains. This virus seems to produce eccentric, absent-minded geniuses, but most humans are apparently immune to this neural Chernobyl
(though the reader should be aware of the possibility of an unreliable narrator
). Instead, it is animals that suffer the most obvious changes as a result of this virus, leading to more intelligent dogs and cats, as well as a culturally-aware raccoon
society.
, and was first published in Machine Sex and Other Stories in 1988. A young female hacker, coming to terms with her own sexuality, invents "wet-ware": software and hardware that can plug into the human body, and has the ability to sexually stimulate men.
, and was first published in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine in 1994. A couple is faced with having to deal with the loss of their child due to a partial nuclear meltdown. The mother comes to terms with the loss by having conversations with her son in a virtual reality setting, at first assisted by an analyst and then on her own. The father cannot come to terms with the loss of his son, and instead immerses himself in virtual reality almost completely, disregarding even his own health.
, but then it progresses into a genetic war as people and countries make use of these new genes without licensing them from the companies that made them. The story's main character is Evan, who finds himself in the middle of the gene wars immediately after graduating with a degree in molecular genetics. He becomes deeply involved in his company's business, but is eventually infected with a Trojan horse
that removes the loyalty genes the companies had put into him. Evan makes a cure for HIV available and eventually brings about a fundamental change in genetics that allows people to change and shape their own bodies. No one has to die anymore and some people, greens, even choose to get all their sustenance from the sun. In a telling quote from the story Evan says, "I remember when you knew what a human being was, I suppose I'm old-fashioned, but there it is."
, and was first published in Wired in 1994. The story is presented in the form of a letter from the main character, Stark, to a female cyberpunk
whom he meets in the course of his work. In the story, most information and media channels are hooked together in something called the Spew. This is a version of today's Internet, except it congregates all sorts of information (from credit card transactions, to security camera feeds). It is possible to profile people in a most complete way because the Spew was allowed by the government to be insecure. Stark is hired as a Profile Auditor, someone who tracks other people and their profiles in the Spew in order to track consumer trends. He does this inside the Demosphere, or in DemoTainment Space, which is a virtual reality
representation of the Spew. He comes across a woman whose profile seems "too normal" and discovers that she is a cyberpunk, using the Spew to her own advantage without being tracked.
, and was first published in Omni
in 1986. Pal Tremont, a Korea
n boy who likes classical music, is adopted by an American
family and comes into the life of Peter Tuthy and writer Lauren Davies. Peter is a mathematician and computer hacker (seemingly based in part on Alan Turing
) who is very interested in 4-dimensional space (4-D). Lauren wants Pal to help her with her writings, but Pal is more useful to Peter as he can easily visualize 4-D space. Pal is able to see a whole new world, inhabited by 4-D beings and is even able to play 4-D music for them. The beings eventually make contact and take Pal and Peter into their own world.
Anthology
An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...
of short stories
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
edited by Jack Dann
Jack Dann
Jack Dann is an American writer best known for his science fiction, an editor and a writing teacher, who has lived in Australia since 1994. He has published over seventy books, in the majority of cases as editor or co-editor of story anthologies in the science fiction, fantasy and horror genres...
and Gardner Dozois
Gardner Dozois
Gardner Raymond Dozois is an American science fiction author and editor. He was editor of Asimov's Science Fiction magazine from 1984 to 2004...
. It contains stories by noted science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
and cyberpunk
Cyberpunk
Cyberpunk is a postmodern and science fiction genre noted for its focus on "high tech and low life." The name is a portmanteau of cybernetics and punk, and was originally coined by Bruce Bethke as the title of his short story "Cyberpunk," published in 1983...
writers of the late 1980s and early 1990s about hackers
Hacker (computer security)
In computer security and everyday language, a hacker is someone who breaks into computers and computer networks. Hackers may be motivated by a multitude of reasons, including profit, protest, or because of the challenge...
.
"Burning Chrome"
This story, written by William GibsonWilliam Gibson
William Gibson is an American-Canadian science fiction author.William Gibson may also refer to:-Association football:*Will Gibson , Scottish footballer...
, was first published in Omni
Omni (magazine)
OMNI was a science and science fiction magazine published in the US and the UK. It contained articles on science fact and short works of science fiction...
in July, 1982. It tells the story of two hackers who hack systems for profit. The two main characters are Bobby Quine who specializes in software and Automatic Jack
Jack (connector)
In electronics and electrical assemblies, the term jack commonly refers to a surface-mounted connector, often, but not always, with the female electrical contact or socket, and is the "more fixed" connector of a connector pair...
whose field is hardware. A third character in the story is Rikki, a girl with whom Bobby becomes infatuated and for whom he wants to hit it big. Automatic Jack acquires a piece of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n hacking
Hacker (computer security)
In computer security and everyday language, a hacker is someone who breaks into computers and computer networks. Hackers may be motivated by a multitude of reasons, including profit, protest, or because of the challenge...
software that is very sophisticated and hard to trace. The rest of the story unfolds with Bobby deciding to break into the system of a notorious and vicious criminal called Chrome, who handles money transfers for organized crime
Organized crime
Organized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are...
, and Automatic Jack reluctantly agreeing to help. The break-in is ultimately successful, but Rikki decides to leave the group and go to Hollywood, to the grief of Quine and Jack who have grown to love her.
One line from this story — "...the street finds its own uses for things" — has become a widely-quoted aphorism for describing the sometimes unexpected uses to which users can put technologies (for example, hip-hop DJs' reinvention of the turntable, which transformed turntables from a medium of playback into one of production). Bobby Quine is mentioned in Neuromancer
Neuromancer
Neuromancer is a 1984 novel by William Gibson, a seminal work in the cyberpunk genre and the first winner of the science-fiction "triple crown" — the Nebula Award, the Philip K. Dick Award, and the Hugo Award. It was Gibson's debut novel and the beginning of the Sprawl trilogy...
as one of the mentors of the protagonist. The Finn, a recurring character in Gibson's Sprawl trilogy of novels, makes his first appearance in this story as a minor figure. The events of the story are referenced in Count Zero
Count Zero
Count Zero is a science fiction novel written by William Gibson, originally published 1986. It is the second volume of the Sprawl trilogy, which begins with Neuromancer and concludes with Mona Lisa Overdrive, and is a canonical example of the cyberpunk sub-genre.Count Zero was serialized by Isaac...
, the second entry of the Sprawl trilogy.
The word cyberspace
Cyberspace
Cyberspace is the electronic medium of computer networks, in which online communication takes place.The term "cyberspace" was first used by the cyberpunk science fiction author William Gibson, though the concept was described somewhat earlier, for example in the Vernor Vinge short story "True...
, coined by Gibson, was first used in this story.
This story and "Dogfight" were later published in a collection of William Gibson short stories, also titled Burning Chrome.
The story functioned as a conceptual prototype for Gibson's Sprawl trilogy of novels.
"Spirit of the Night"
This story was written by Tom MaddoxTom Maddox
Tom Maddox is an American science fiction writer, known for his part in the early cyberpunk movement.His first novel was Halo , published in 1991 by Tor Books. His story Snake Eyes appeared in the 1986 collection Mirrorshades, edited by Bruce Sterling.He is perhaps best known as a friend and...
, and was first published in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine in 1987. This is the story of a man whose wife is kidnapped during a business dealing about bio computers. The man then finds out that his wife's electronic records have disappeared. Bound by his wife's love, he plunges back to his hacker days to track his wife's abductor, and even enlists the help of his old college hacking master. Thinking originally that it was the company involved in the business deal, he blackmails them, but then finds out that something else may be behind the ordeal.
"Blood Sisters"
This story was written by Greg EganGreg Egan
Greg Egan is an Australian science fiction author.Egan published his first work in 1983. He specialises in hard science fiction stories with mathematical and quantum ontology themes, including the nature of consciousness...
, and was first published in Interzone 44
Interzone (magazine)
Interzone is an award-winning British fantasy and science fiction magazine. Published since 1982, Interzone is the eighth longest-running science fiction magazine in history and the longest-running British SF magazine...
in 1991. Two twin sisters in the near future find themselves in the middle of a world where a virus evolved through mutation and natural selection as part of biological warfare research has escaped. Both sisters become infected with a version of the virus, but only one of them survives. The surviving sister uses her hacking skills to find out the reason behind her sister's death, exact revenge and inform the public.
"Rock On"
This story was written by Pat Cadigan, and was first published in Light Years and Dark in 1984. This story takes place in a post-modern world where Rock and Roll is about to become extinct. Bands of the time have to use "sinners" (i.e. Synthesizer), or people who have experienced Rock and Roll in person, in order to realize their music. This is the story of one such sinner."The Pardoner's Tale"
This story was written by Robert SilverbergRobert Silverberg
Robert Silverberg is an American author, best known for writing science fiction. He is a multiple nominee of the Hugo Award and a winner of the Nebula Award.-Early years:...
and was first published in Playboy
Playboy
Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...
in 1987. In the future, an alien species has colonized the Earth and used the humans' own information infrastructure to control them through their in-body implants. Hackers have become valuable because they can exploit the system. Some hackers have become known as pardoners because they can arrange for people to escape the aliens' sentences in exchange for profit. The story focuses on one of the best pardoners. He is bested in a hacking duel only to find out that his opponent is an android. The pardoner faces a mistake he made in his past and finds a way to escape by hacking the alien mainframe with the help of a woman he had swindled.
"Living Will"
This story was written by Alexander JablokovAlexander Jablokov
Alexander Jablokov is an American writer and novelist. He worked for years as a communications engineer in Boston before becoming a full time writer in 1988; however, he now has a day job as a marketing executive.-Novels:...
and was first published in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine in June 1991.
A man afflicted with Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death...
programs his personality into a computer, and enlists the machine's help for his final wish.
"Dogfight"
This story was written by Michael SwanwickMichael Swanwick
Michael Swanwick is an American science fiction author. Based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he began publishing in the early 1980s.-Biography:...
and William Gibson
William Gibson
William Gibson is an American-Canadian science fiction author.William Gibson may also refer to:-Association football:*Will Gibson , Scottish footballer...
, and was first published in Omni
Omni (magazine)
OMNI was a science and science fiction magazine published in the US and the UK. It contained articles on science fact and short works of science fiction...
in 1985. A lonely ex-shoplifter who suffers from a neural block preventing him from returning to his hometown of Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, finds a female friend, whose parents have set a neural block on her to protect her virginity
Virginity
Virginity refers to the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. There are cultural and religious traditions which place special value and significance on this state, especially in the case of unmarried females, associated with notions of personal purity, honor and worth...
– a sort of a mental chastity belt
Chastity belt
A chastity belt is a locking item of clothing designed to prevent sexual intercourse. They may be used to protect the wearer from rape or temptation. Some devices have been designed with additional features to prevent masturbation...
. He becomes enthralled by a new video game – Fokker
Fokker
Fokker was a Dutch aircraft manufacturer named after its founder, Anthony Fokker. The company operated under several different names, starting out in 1912 in Schwerin, Germany, moving to the Netherlands in 1919....
s & Spad
Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés
SPAD was a French aircraft manufacturer between 1911 and 1921. Its SPAD S.XIII biplane was the most popular French fighter airplane in World War I.-Deperdussin:...
s – where he engages in dogfight
Dogfight
A dogfight, or dog fight, is a form of aerial combat between fighter aircraft; in particular, combat of maneuver at short range, where each side is aware of the other's presence. Dogfighting first appeared during World War I, shortly after the invention of the airplane...
s as a World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
fighter pilot
Flying ace
A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...
and, with help from his female friend (a gifted hacker of both hardware and software) becomes one of the best fighters. To beat the very best fighter, though, he betrays and hurts his newfound friend only to find himself alone again after his victory over the crippled war-veteran Tiny.
The story is typical of the cyberpunk genre in that its mood never rises from the melancholy and that the protagonist ends up suffering a kind of Pyrrhic victory
Pyrrhic victory
A Pyrrhic victory is a victory with such a devastating cost to the victor that it carries the implication that another such victory will ultimately cause defeat.-Origin:...
, realizing too late that succeeding in his endeavor (i.e. winning the game) has cost him too dearly. As in film noir
Film noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
, the theme of betrayal
Betrayal
Betrayal is the breaking or violation of a presumptive contract, trust, or confidence that produces moral and psychological conflict within a relationship amongst individuals, between organizations or between individuals and organizations...
exists strongly in the tale, as the protagonist sacrifices everything around him to succeed.
"Our Neural Chernobyl"
This story was written by Bruce SterlingBruce Sterling
Michael Bruce Sterling is an American science fiction author, best known for his novels and his work on the Mirrorshades anthology, which helped define the cyberpunk genre.-Writings:...
, and was first published in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction in 1988. In a bizarre future, free from AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
and genetic diseases, everyone can be a human genome
Genome
In modern molecular biology and genetics, the genome is the entirety of an organism's hereditary information. It is encoded either in DNA or, for many types of virus, in RNA. The genome includes both the genes and the non-coding sequences of the DNA/RNA....
hacker. One such hacker/scientist, while trying to find a way for the human body to become a cocaine-producing factory, engineers a virus that enriches the dendritic
Dendrite
Dendrites are the branched projections of a neuron that act to conduct the electrochemical stimulation received from other neural cells to the cell body, or soma, of the neuron from which the dendrites project...
connections of mammalian brains. This virus seems to produce eccentric, absent-minded geniuses, but most humans are apparently immune to this neural Chernobyl
Chernobyl
Chernobyl or Chornobyl is an abandoned city in northern Ukraine, in Kiev Oblast, near the border with Belarus. The city had been the administrative centre of the Chernobyl Raion since 1932....
(though the reader should be aware of the possibility of an unreliable narrator
Unreliable narrator
An unreliable narrator is a narrator, whether in literature, film, or theatre, whose credibility has been seriously compromised. The term was coined in 1961 by Wayne C. Booth in The Rhetoric of Fiction. This narrative mode is one that can be developed by an author for a number of reasons, usually...
). Instead, it is animals that suffer the most obvious changes as a result of this virus, leading to more intelligent dogs and cats, as well as a culturally-aware raccoon
Raccoon
Procyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals, comprising three species commonly known as raccoons, in the family Procyonidae. The most familiar species, the common raccoon , is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are...
society.
"(Learning About) Machine Sex"
This story was written by Candas Jane DorseyCandas Jane Dorsey
Candas Jane Dorsey is a Canadian poet and science fiction novelist.Born and still living in Edmonton, Alberta, Dorsey became a writer from an early age, and a freelance writer since 1980. She writes across genre boundaries, writing poetry, fiction, mainstream and speculative, short and long form,...
, and was first published in Machine Sex and Other Stories in 1988. A young female hacker, coming to terms with her own sexuality, invents "wet-ware": software and hardware that can plug into the human body, and has the ability to sexually stimulate men.
"Conversations with Michael"
This story was written by Daniel MarcusDaniel Marcus
Daniel Marcus is a science fiction author from Berkeley, California. He has written numerous short stories that have appeared in Witness, Asimov's Science Fiction, Realms of Fantasy, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, and other publications. Binding Energy, a collection of his short...
, and was first published in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine in 1994. A couple is faced with having to deal with the loss of their child due to a partial nuclear meltdown. The mother comes to terms with the loss by having conversations with her son in a virtual reality setting, at first assisted by an analyst and then on her own. The father cannot come to terms with the loss of his son, and instead immerses himself in virtual reality almost completely, disregarding even his own health.
"Gene Wars"
This story was written by Paul J. McAuley, and was first published in Interzone 48 in 1991. The story tells of the progress that humanity makes by hacking genes. It originally starts with companies using their power and knowledge to profit by introducing stronger crops and preventing a cure for HIVHIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
, but then it progresses into a genetic war as people and countries make use of these new genes without licensing them from the companies that made them. The story's main character is Evan, who finds himself in the middle of the gene wars immediately after graduating with a degree in molecular genetics. He becomes deeply involved in his company's business, but is eventually infected with a Trojan horse
Trojan Horse
The Trojan Horse is a tale from the Trojan War about the stratagem that allowed the Greeks finally to enter the city of Troy and end the conflict. In the canonical version, after a fruitless 10-year siege, the Greeks constructed a huge wooden horse, and hid a select force of men inside...
that removes the loyalty genes the companies had put into him. Evan makes a cure for HIV available and eventually brings about a fundamental change in genetics that allows people to change and shape their own bodies. No one has to die anymore and some people, greens, even choose to get all their sustenance from the sun. In a telling quote from the story Evan says, "I remember when you knew what a human being was, I suppose I'm old-fashioned, but there it is."
"Spew"
This story was written by Neal StephensonNeal Stephenson
Neal Town Stephenson is an American writer known for his works of speculative fiction.Difficult to categorize, his novels have been variously referred to as science fiction, historical fiction, cyberpunk, and postcyberpunk...
, and was first published in Wired in 1994. The story is presented in the form of a letter from the main character, Stark, to a female cyberpunk
Cyberpunk
Cyberpunk is a postmodern and science fiction genre noted for its focus on "high tech and low life." The name is a portmanteau of cybernetics and punk, and was originally coined by Bruce Bethke as the title of his short story "Cyberpunk," published in 1983...
whom he meets in the course of his work. In the story, most information and media channels are hooked together in something called the Spew. This is a version of today's Internet, except it congregates all sorts of information (from credit card transactions, to security camera feeds). It is possible to profile people in a most complete way because the Spew was allowed by the government to be insecure. Stark is hired as a Profile Auditor, someone who tracks other people and their profiles in the Spew in order to track consumer trends. He does this inside the Demosphere, or in DemoTainment Space, which is a virtual reality
Virtual reality
Virtual reality , also known as virtuality, is a term that applies to computer-simulated environments that can simulate physical presence in places in the real world, as well as in imaginary worlds...
representation of the Spew. He comes across a woman whose profile seems "too normal" and discovers that she is a cyberpunk, using the Spew to her own advantage without being tracked.
"Tangents"
This story was written by Greg BearGreg Bear
Gregory Dale Bear is an American science fiction and mainstream author. His work has covered themes of galactic conflict , artificial universes , consciousness and cultural practices , and accelerated evolution...
, and was first published in Omni
Omni (magazine)
OMNI was a science and science fiction magazine published in the US and the UK. It contained articles on science fact and short works of science fiction...
in 1986. Pal Tremont, a Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
n boy who likes classical music, is adopted by an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
family and comes into the life of Peter Tuthy and writer Lauren Davies. Peter is a mathematician and computer hacker (seemingly based in part on Alan Turing
Alan Turing
Alan Mathison Turing, OBE, FRS , was an English mathematician, logician, cryptanalyst, and computer scientist. He was highly influential in the development of computer science, providing a formalisation of the concepts of "algorithm" and "computation" with the Turing machine, which played a...
) who is very interested in 4-dimensional space (4-D). Lauren wants Pal to help her with her writings, but Pal is more useful to Peter as he can easily visualize 4-D space. Pal is able to see a whole new world, inhabited by 4-D beings and is even able to play 4-D music for them. The beings eventually make contact and take Pal and Peter into their own world.