SOLVED. Sci Fi short story about futuristic society with universal subsistence care and travel by moving sidewalks. [s]

[Josie]

Twenty years ago (or thirty) I read a short story (or novella, or chapter in a novel) I want to find again. Protagonist is young woman who has grown up in a meritocracy where everyone receives subsistence level food and clothing. I think she had a brother and two parents and grew up in an agricultural community.

She wins a place in university and her agricultural father is annoyed (possibly because she is a girl, possibly because he objects to her not going forward with farming). She goes to university anyway.

Travel in the city is by a parallel succession of moving sidewalks which gradually increase in speed as you move across the "highway." The girl achieves success in school very quickly, reaching "DA" status (distinguished something... academic maybe) which entitles her to a better class of clothing and food. She does this in some sort of psych or soc class where they have an initial assignment that is very tedious involving transcribing or listening to the recordings of other people's lives and she does it by reaching an insight about humanity.

I cannot remember the title of this book or author. I thought it might be Card, but I cannot find it in his bibliography- though that is extensive. It might be a short story he wrote or in a collection he edited. It might be from one of the "Year anthologies" from back then.

Thanks for any help at all.

[Pamela]

This is two stories: "Daughter" and "Dull Drums" from Get Off the Unicorn by Anne McCaffrey.

[Andy]

Here's a list of all the stories in "Get Off the Unicorn" http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/pl.cgi?4...

[Josie]

YES!!!!! Thank you! It makes sense because my beginning McCaffrey phase was the same time as advancing Card.

[Bargle]

Link Get Off the Unicorn by Anne McCaffrey.