DIY History | Transcribe | Hevelin Fanzines | Scientifictionist, v. 1, issue 5, June-July 1946

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Scientifictionist, v. 1, issue 5, June-July 1946

Page 3

"...they saw better if they cultivated this 'nightsight', this ancient part of the eye so long neglected by man..." What's the truth behind that? "Just as the Arabs, nomads out on the ocean of sand, had no plastic art, but, instead, a wonderful aural art of chant and singing verse..." "men could hear for miles" and "their ears grew as keen as a dog's. And with these keeness went subtlety. They appreciated intervals of sound which to the old men of the open air would have been imperceptible." Lots to check up on there: Arabian aural art forms, the keen hearing of dogs, and why subtlety of tone discrimination should go along with "hearing for miles".

"...the sea below a certain depth always at 36 degrees, four degrees above freezing." If this is so, what depth and what sea? Or doesn't it matter....?

"forecasting is quite unscientific." What do the meteorologists say to that?

The main problem I set out for myself was the problem of identifying the fungus as closely as possible to real fungi. As yet I have not succeeded to any degree of satisfaction. The following facts are apparent:
1. it is a balanced parasite, though not obligate
2. it has normal filamentous mycelium
3. it requires (and produces?) a high humidity
4. it creates fat in its physiological activities
5. it propagates with spores
6. it is faintly phosphorescent or luminescent

Those are the facts, the only characteristics given by Heard to describe his mold. Maybe they're not enough. Bessey in his Textbook of Mycology divides all fungi into non-filamentous and filamentous. From our list of facts, Fungus Heard falls into the second group. Thus we have narrowed our unknown down to the class Phycomyceteae. Can we go any further? But this class is extremely toxic to even small quantities of copper compounds -- but let's imagine that Heard's mycologists failed in this remedy for stopping the spread of Fungus H. The cell walls of this class fungi are composed chiefly of carbohydrates. This does not agree too well with the luminescent phenomenon, as the oxidation of luciferin is required for this. Since Heard describes no reproduction characteristics (other than spores) it will be difficult to trace this fungus further. The parasitic nature and habitat of Fungus Heard would eliminate the order Monoblepharidales, and place it in either Saprolegniales or Perononporales. Fungus H. seems to live in moist soil as well as parasitically on trees and other plants, for "wherever grass had grown the fungus grew". The order Saprolegniales includes forms covering both such life habitats: is there any form which can do both? Apparently not, but remember please that Heard's fungus was a new type.

OF MANY THINGS (cont'd from page 1)

nice because there won't really be a funeral and we'll lay in our beds forever, rotting away with the wood, letting the splinters of our bodies sink down into the crevasses of the earth to make it ready for the year Creation tries again. There won't be anyone to bury us nor anyone to weep, nor even to pause a moment to say oh my god my god look at this... this ghastly thing pushed down into the earth!

Let us spare ourselves the words and foolish mouthings of our blinded brains...let us tell ourselves instead that we are content to go on murdering ourselves, with our talk of others doing something no one else but we can ever hope to do.

We are stronger than the strongest government, and taller than the tallest man. In our hands we have the power to create or to destroy all things and all ages. ... think of it before the bomb has done its thinking for you... done it for the rest of time. It is only we the people who can choose to live or die for all time to come. And that's a long time -- all time.

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"...they saw better if they cultivated this 'nightsight', this ancient part of the eye so long neglected by man..." What's the truth behind that? "Just as the Arabs, nomads out on the ocean of sand, had no plastic art, but, instead, a wonderful aural art of chant and singing verse..." "men could hear for miles" and "their ears grew as keen as a dog's. And with these keeness went subtlety. They appreciated intervals of sound which to the old men of the open air would have been imperceptible." Lots to check up on there: Arabian aural art forms, the keen hearing of dogs, and why subtlety of tone discrimination should go along with "hearing for miles". "...the sea below a certain depth always at 36 degrees, four degrees above freezing." If this is so, what depth and what sea? Or doesn't it matter....? "forecasting is quite unscientific." What do the meteorologists say to that? The main problem I set out for myself was the problem of identifying the fungus as closely as possible to real fungi. As yet I have not succeeded to any degree of satisfaction. The following facts are apparent: 1. it is a balanced parasite, though not obligate 2. it has normal filamentous mycelium 3. it requires (and produces?) a high humidity 4. it creates fat in its physiological activities 5. it propagates with spores 6. it is faintly phosphorescent or luminescent Those are the facts, the only characteristics given by Heard to describe his mold. Maybe they're not enough. Bessey in his Textbook of Mycology divides all fungi into non-filamentous and filamentous. From our list of facts, Fungus Heard falls into the second group. Thus we have narrowed our unknown down to the class Phycomyceteae. Can we go any further? But this class is extremely toxic to even small quantities of copper compounds -- but let's imagine that Heard's mycologists failed in this remedy for stopping the spread of Fungus H. The cell walls of this class fungi are composed chiefly of carbohydrates. This does not agree too well with the luminescent phenomenon, as the oxidation of luciferin is required for this. Since Heard describes no reproduction characteristics (other than spores) it will be difficult to trace this fungus further. The parasitic nature and habitat of Fungus Heard would eliminate the order Monoblepharidales, and place it in either Saprolegniales or Perononporales. Fungus H. seems to live in moist soil as well as parasitically on trees and other plants, for "wherever grass had grown the fungus grew". The order Saprolegniales includes forms covering both such life habitats: is there any form which can do both? Apparently not, but remember please that Heard's fungus was a new type. OF MANY THINGS (cont'd from page 1) nice because there won't really be a funeral and we'll lay in our beds forever, rotting away with the wood, letting the splinters of our bodies sink down into the crevasses of the earth to make it ready for the year Creation tries again. There won't be anyone to bury us nor anyone to weep, nor even to pause a moment to say oh my god my god look at this... this ghastly thing pushed down into the earth! Let us spare ourselves the words and foolish mouthings of our blinded brains...let us tell ourselves instead that we are content to go on murdering ourselves, with our talk of others doing something no one else but we can ever hope to do. We are stronger than the strongest government, and taller than the tallest man. In our hands we have the power to create or to destroy all things and all ages. ... think of it before the bomb has done its thinking for you... done it for the rest of time. It is only we the people who can choose to live or die for all time to come. And that's a long time -- all time. page 3