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The Wanderer Fritz Leiber 25140K 2023-09-02

Paul Hagbolt nervously nudged Margo Gelhorn, warning her to stop giggling as a woman in the second row called to Doc: "What&039;s that hyperspace you were saying planets could coested like a veteran panelist, turning to Doc

"It&039;s a notion that&039;s turned up in theoretical physics and any nu his glasses and then running his hands back across his bald head

"As you all know, the speed of light is generally accepted as the fastest possible One hundred and eighty-six thousand miles a second sounds like a lot, but it&039;s snail slohen it conies to the vast -distances between the stars and within the galaxies - a dismal prospect for space travelers

"However," Doc continued, "it&039;s theoretically possible that space-time may be so warped or cruher dimension - in hyperspace, which is where the word comes in Or even that every part touches every other part If that is the case, then faster-than-light travel would be theoretically possible by so out of our universe into hyperspace and then back in again at the desired point Of course, hyperspace travel has been suggested only for spaceships, but I don&039;t knohy a properly equipped planet couldn&039;t e it, too - theoretically Professional scientists like Bernal and philosophers such as Stapledon have theorized about traveling planets, not to mention authors like Stuart and S sotto voce: "Hot air!"

"How about that?" Beardy asked Doc, bringing the question onto the platform with a fine impartiality "Is there any concrete evidence for the existence of hyperspace or hyperspace travel?"

Frolanced toward hirin "I&039;ve tried to goosefor clues, but they don&039;t take me very seriously"

"You interest ht such clues take?"

"I&039;ve thought about that," Doc admitted with relish "One idea I&039;ve coet a ship into and out of hyperspace ravitational fields - fields so intense that they would visibly distort the starlight passing through that voluested to my astronomer friends that they watch for the stars to waver on clear nights of good seeing - and especially from satellite &039;scopes - and that they hunt through short-exposure star photographs for evidence of the sa-out briefly ortwistedly"

The thin woman in the second row said: "I saw a story in the papers about athe stars twirl Would that be evidence?"

Doc chuckled "I&039;m afraid not Wasn&039;t he drunk? We mustn&039;t take these silly-season ite his chest and Margo clutch his arently "Isn&039;t Doc describing exactly what you saw in those four photographs?"

"It sounds sihten it out in his own ly: "He used the word &039;twist&039;"

"Well, how about it?" Margo de or hasn&039;t he?"

"Opperly said - " Paul beganand realized that Doc was speaking to him

"Excuse me, you two in the back row - sorry, I don&039;t know your names - do you have a contribution to make?"

"Why, no No, sir," Paul called rapidly "We were simply very much impressed by your presentation"