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Astounding Science Fiction, February 1944
The February 1944 Edition of Astounding contains:
NOVELETTES:
Off the Beam, by George O. Smith
Plague, by Murray Leinster
The Anarch, by Malcolm Jameson
SHORT STORIES:
Though Dreamers Die, by Lester del Rey
Taboo, by Fritz Leiber, Jr.
Catch That Rabbit, by Isaac Asimov
ARTICLES
Universe to Order, by J.F. Coupling
The Plurality of Worlds, by Willy Ley
NOVELETTES:
Off the Beam, by George O. Smith
Plague, by Murray Leinster
The Anarch, by Malcolm Jameson
SHORT STORIES:
Though Dreamers Die, by Lester del Rey
Taboo, by Fritz Leiber, Jr.
Catch That Rabbit, by Isaac Asimov
ARTICLES
Universe to Order, by J.F. Coupling
The Plurality of Worlds, by Willy Ley
Paperback
First published February 1, 1944
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About the author
John W. Campbell Jr.
787 books285 followersJohn Wood Campbell, Jr. was an influential figure in American science fiction. As editor of Astounding Science Fiction (later called Analog Science Fiction and Fact), from late 1937 until his death, he is generally credited with shaping the so-called Golden Age of Science Fiction.
Isaac Asimov called Campbell "the most powerful force in science fiction ever, and for the first ten years of his editorship he dominated the field completely."
As a writer, Campbell published super-science space opera under his own name and moody, less pulpish stories as Don A. Stuart. He stopped writing fiction after he became editor of Astounding.
Known Pseudonyms/Alternate Names:
Don A. Stuart
Karl van Campen
John Campbell
J. W. C., Jr.
John W. Campbell
John Wood Campbell
Isaac Asimov called Campbell "the most powerful force in science fiction ever, and for the first ten years of his editorship he dominated the field completely."
As a writer, Campbell published super-science space opera under his own name and moody, less pulpish stories as Don A. Stuart. He stopped writing fiction after he became editor of Astounding.
Known Pseudonyms/Alternate Names:
Don A. Stuart
Karl van Campen
John Campbell
J. W. C., Jr.
John W. Campbell
John Wood Campbell
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 24, 2022
This review is for 'Off the Beam' by George O. Smith.
"We can check the solar electrostatic field to about seven decimal places right here, and any deviation in the field to the tune of a couple of million electron volts at a distance of a hundred million miles will cause a distortion in the field that we can measure."
Well, I loved it but this was very technical writing. It had a very realistic feel I thought, but not a very dramatic one, given the situation. The best way I can think to describe it was that it was like you were actually on board the ship but that it wasn't really in trouble. Or perhaps that's more like being on board a flight simulator. I suspect that's due to presuming too much about the ending but also probably because we don't get to know the characters very well in this story.
"I remember when we used to do that on manual. There were as many cases of mal de void during cathode change as during turnover."
It's kind of an early Apollo 13 story. A ship returning to Earth from Mars is hit by a micro-meteor during a turnover manoeuvre and the surviving crew must take over from the autopilot controls to save the day with ingenuity and the tools at hand. Like in the real life Apollo 13 situation, the ground crew and the flight crew must work together, but in this story they must achieve cooperation through intuition because direct communication is cut off between them.
"Right. Don, we're on the constants you gave us. What now?"
"At this point I think a short prayer would be of assistance," said Channing soberly.
It also has a bit of a repeated theme about the importance of command structure and focusing on your duty, when Doc keeps telling someone that they need to stop worrying about the injured and focus on the responsibilities of command.
"There is a shipload of gravanol aboard, too. You'll need that and so will we."
This is a great little example of a 1940s hard scifi story, a quick and pleasant read that'll transport you to the future, as it were, in the past.
"We can check the solar electrostatic field to about seven decimal places right here, and any deviation in the field to the tune of a couple of million electron volts at a distance of a hundred million miles will cause a distortion in the field that we can measure."
Well, I loved it but this was very technical writing. It had a very realistic feel I thought, but not a very dramatic one, given the situation. The best way I can think to describe it was that it was like you were actually on board the ship but that it wasn't really in trouble. Or perhaps that's more like being on board a flight simulator. I suspect that's due to presuming too much about the ending but also probably because we don't get to know the characters very well in this story.
"I remember when we used to do that on manual. There were as many cases of mal de void during cathode change as during turnover."
It's kind of an early Apollo 13 story. A ship returning to Earth from Mars is hit by a micro-meteor during a turnover manoeuvre and the surviving crew must take over from the autopilot controls to save the day with ingenuity and the tools at hand. Like in the real life Apollo 13 situation, the ground crew and the flight crew must work together, but in this story they must achieve cooperation through intuition because direct communication is cut off between them.
"Right. Don, we're on the constants you gave us. What now?"
"At this point I think a short prayer would be of assistance," said Channing soberly.
It also has a bit of a repeated theme about the importance of command structure and focusing on your duty, when Doc keeps telling someone that they need to stop worrying about the injured and focus on the responsibilities of command.
"There is a shipload of gravanol aboard, too. You'll need that and so will we."
This is a great little example of a 1940s hard scifi story, a quick and pleasant read that'll transport you to the future, as it were, in the past.
February 25, 2025
3.0 out of 5 stars
A (excellent):
Off the Beam by George O. Smith
The Anarch by Malcolm Jameson
Though Dreamers Die by Lester del Rey
B (very good):
Catch that Rabbit by Isaac Asimov
C (average):
Plague by Murray Leinster
D (poor):
Taboo by Fritz Leiber, Jr.
A (excellent):
Off the Beam by George O. Smith
The Anarch by Malcolm Jameson
Though Dreamers Die by Lester del Rey
B (very good):
Catch that Rabbit by Isaac Asimov
C (average):
Plague by Murray Leinster
D (poor):
Taboo by Fritz Leiber, Jr.
January 8, 2016
These old pulps are...well, Astounding. The science is frequently flawed, the projections of future tech are sometimes almost humorously wrong, and the culture of the time (in which everyone smokes, sexism is ubiquitous, and many people drink to excess) is often laughably projected to carry on with little change into the future. But reading these is a lot of fun. Science fiction fans will no doubt recognize the names of many of the authors, but the stories themselves are obscure, possibly forgotten. That's a shame. Some are quite good. In this issue, I was quite impressed with The Anarch by Malcolm Jameson. This novelette about a rule-bound future in which independent thought is prohibited has an Orwellian flavor, but a hopeful outcome.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews