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Ask HN: Whats your favorite Sci-Fi short story?

MichaelMoser123 10y ago
Just came across this nice reddit https://www.reddit.com/r/shortscifistories/ https://www.reddit.com/r/shortscifistories/
searchfaster 10y ago
'Flowers for Algernon'
pinewurst 10y ago
'Understand' - Ted Chiang (technically a novelette)
khein11 10y ago
The Last Question - Isaac Asimov
- stevekemp 10y ago
  That was my first thought, but since you've posted it my runner up is "The Egg": http://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html http://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html
ThomPete 10y ago
Three Worlds Collide - http://lesswrong.com/lw/y4/three_worlds_collide_08/ http://lesswrong.com/lw/y4/three_worlds_collide_08/
dark_ph0enix 10y ago
The Crystal Spheres[0] by David Brin [0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Crystal_Spheres https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Crystal_Spheres
bendev_test 10y ago
The Seventh Voyage from The Star Diaries by Stanislaw Lem http://english.lem.pl/works/novels/the-star-diaries/154-the-seventh-voyage http://english.lem.pl/works/novels/the-star-diaries/154-the-...
spcelzrd 10y ago
Not my favorite, but an underrated one: The Machine Stops by E. M. Forster. Forster is better known for writing period romances like A Room with a View. The Machine Stops, written in 1909, deals with issues of isolation and alienation that come with advances in communication technology, and it sort of kind of predicts the internet.
lappet 10y ago
The truth of fact, the truth of feeling by Ted Chiang https://subterraneanpress.com/magazine/fall_2013/the_truth_of_fact_the_truth_of_feeling_by_ted_chiang https://subterraneanpress.com/magazine/fall_2013/the_truth_o... This story changed the way I saw writing with the way it portrays it as a tool that can be used or misused just like any other.
FiatLuxDave 10y ago
I'm a huge fan of this format for sci-fi, so it's a hard choice. Probably "Goodnight Mr. James" by Clifford Simak. Honorable mentions to: "Microcosmic God" and "If all men were brothers would you let one marry your sister?" by Ted Sturgeon "Bordered in Black" and "Neutron Star" by Larry Niven "Blood Music" by Greg Bear "Special Delivery" by George O. Smith "The Gold at the Starbow's End" by Fredrick Pohl
adityar 10y ago
March Hare Mission by Ford McCormack
J-dawg 10y ago
They're made out of meat http://www.terrybisson.com/page6/page6.html http://www.terrybisson.com/page6/page6.html
RUG3Y 10y ago
"The Feeling of Power", by Isaac Asimov. In this story, humans have forgotten how to do basic math, except for one man, who regards it as a hobby. edit: http://john.regehr.org/reading_list/power.html http://john.regehr.org/reading_list/power.html
thisone 10y ago
Fondly Fahrenheit by Alfred Bester: http://www.editoreric.com/greatlit/books/Fondly-Fahrenheit.html http://www.editoreric.com/greatlit/books/Fondly-Fahrenheit.h...

Just came across this nice reddit https://www.reddit.com/r/shortscifistories/ https://www.reddit.com/r/shortscifistories/

searchfaster 10y ago

'Flowers for Algernon'

pinewurst 10y ago

'Understand' - Ted Chiang (technically a novelette)

khein11 10y ago

The Last Question - Isaac Asimov

stevekemp 10y ago
That was my first thought, but since you've posted it my runner up is "The Egg": http://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html http://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html

ThomPete 10y ago

Three Worlds Collide - http://lesswrong.com/lw/y4/three_worlds_collide_08/ http://lesswrong.com/lw/y4/three_worlds_collide_08/

dark_ph0enix 10y ago

The Crystal Spheres[0] by David Brin [0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Crystal_Spheres https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Crystal_Spheres

bendev_test 10y ago

The Seventh Voyage from The Star Diaries by Stanislaw Lem http://english.lem.pl/works/novels/the-star-diaries/154-the-seventh-voyage http://english.lem.pl/works/novels/the-star-diaries/154-the-...

spcelzrd 10y ago

Not my favorite, but an underrated one: The Machine Stops by E. M. Forster. Forster is better known for writing period romances like A Room with a View. The Machine Stops, written in 1909, deals with issues of isolation and alienation that come with advances in communication technology, and it sort of kind of predicts the internet.

lappet 10y ago

The truth of fact, the truth of feeling by Ted Chiang https://subterraneanpress.com/magazine/fall_2013/the_truth_of_fact_the_truth_of_feeling_by_ted_chiang https://subterraneanpress.com/magazine/fall_2013/the_truth_o... This story changed the way I saw writing with the way it portrays it as a tool that can be used or misused just like any other.

FiatLuxDave 10y ago

I'm a huge fan of this format for sci-fi, so it's a hard choice. Probably "Goodnight Mr. James" by Clifford Simak. Honorable mentions to: "Microcosmic God" and "If all men were brothers would you let one marry your sister?" by Ted Sturgeon "Bordered in Black" and "Neutron Star" by Larry Niven "Blood Music" by Greg Bear "Special Delivery" by George O. Smith "The Gold at the Starbow's End" by Fredrick Pohl

adityar 10y ago

March Hare Mission by Ford McCormack

J-dawg 10y ago

They're made out of meat http://www.terrybisson.com/page6/page6.html http://www.terrybisson.com/page6/page6.html

RUG3Y 10y ago

"The Feeling of Power", by Isaac Asimov. In this story, humans have forgotten how to do basic math, except for one man, who regards it as a hobby. edit: http://john.regehr.org/reading_list/power.html http://john.regehr.org/reading_list/power.html

thisone 10y ago

Fondly Fahrenheit by Alfred Bester: http://www.editoreric.com/greatlit/books/Fondly-Fahrenheit.html http://www.editoreric.com/greatlit/books/Fondly-Fahrenheit.h...