The Entity (Anderson)
Encyclopedia
The Entity is a science fiction
short story
by Poul Anderson
and John Gergen that appeared in the June 1949 issue of Astounding Science Fiction. "The Entity" was the fifth story published by Anderson, and the only story published by Gergen, a friend of Anderson's from the Minneapolis Fantasy Society.
has discovered an ancient, deserted alien outpost on an airless planet. The most puzzling object at the outpost is a featureless black sphere resting on a concrete pedestal that instantly drains all power from any device that is exposed to it. The sphere is impervious to all attempts to study it, and when the crew of the Diogenes attempt to lift it off its pedestal with a levitation machine, it shorts out their ship's main generators. Repairing the generators will require weeks, and morale is already low when the ship's biologist
hypothesizes that the sphere is actually a sentient entity which is actively resisting them. The captain thinks this unlikely, but decides that they will have to remain on the planet until they understand what the sphere is. In the meantime, to raise morale, the captain orders the crew of the Diogenes to get roaring drunk.
During the party, the ship's planetographer drunkenly complains to the captain that an electrical apparatus he was working on blew out when they were trying to lift the sphere. This leads to a moment of drunken clarity for the captain: the sphere, he realizes, is actually a power broadcaster. It absorbs energy of all sorts, including potential energy
(which is why it can't be lifted), then converts it with near total efficiency to electromagnetic radiation
, broadcasting at a frequency of 30,000 hertz
, which happens to be the frequency the planetographer's apparatus was set to receive.
The captain also realizes that they can move the sphere into the ship by simply rolling it off its pedestal onto a levitator and carrying it, as long as they make no attempt to lift it against the planet's gravity. Once it is in the ship, they can surround it with energy receivers and feed the energy it broadcasts directly into the ship's engine, which should give the ship enough power to move it. Once the scientists on Earth work out the sphere's operating principles, they will be able to duplicate it and use it to power Earth's civilization.
The Psychotechnic League
Anderson listed "The Entity" as part of the Psychotechnic League series in a timeline published in the Winter 1955 issue of Startling Stories
, but it was not included in a later timeline that appeared in the Psychotechnic League collection Starship (1982). Although one character in "The Entity" mentions that the discovery of hyperdrive occurred "a few decades" earlier, the Startling timeline has the story take place in 3150, nearly four centuries after the discovery of hyperdrive in the Psychotechnic League universe. The late date may have been Anderson's way of explaining away the absence of the sphere's power broadcasting technology in any of the other Psychotechnic League stories. There is nothing in "The Entity" that conflicts with the rest of the Psychotechnic series, but neither is there any positive correlation with it.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
by Poul Anderson
Poul Anderson
Poul William Anderson was an American science fiction author who began his career during one of the Golden Ages of the genre and continued to write and remain popular into the 21st century. Anderson also authored several works of fantasy, historical novels, and a prodigious number of short stories...
and John Gergen that appeared in the June 1949 issue of Astounding Science Fiction. "The Entity" was the fifth story published by Anderson, and the only story published by Gergen, a friend of Anderson's from the Minneapolis Fantasy Society.
Plot summary
The interstellar scout ship DiogenesDiogenes
Diogenes is a Greek name shared by several important historical figures:*Diogenes of Sinope , better known as Diogenes the Cynic or simply Diogenes, philosopher...
has discovered an ancient, deserted alien outpost on an airless planet. The most puzzling object at the outpost is a featureless black sphere resting on a concrete pedestal that instantly drains all power from any device that is exposed to it. The sphere is impervious to all attempts to study it, and when the crew of the Diogenes attempt to lift it off its pedestal with a levitation machine, it shorts out their ship's main generators. Repairing the generators will require weeks, and morale is already low when the ship's biologist
Biologist
A biologist is a scientist devoted to and producing results in biology through the study of life. Typically biologists study organisms and their relationship to their environment. Biologists involved in basic research attempt to discover underlying mechanisms that govern how organisms work...
hypothesizes that the sphere is actually a sentient entity which is actively resisting them. The captain thinks this unlikely, but decides that they will have to remain on the planet until they understand what the sphere is. In the meantime, to raise morale, the captain orders the crew of the Diogenes to get roaring drunk.
During the party, the ship's planetographer drunkenly complains to the captain that an electrical apparatus he was working on blew out when they were trying to lift the sphere. This leads to a moment of drunken clarity for the captain: the sphere, he realizes, is actually a power broadcaster. It absorbs energy of all sorts, including potential energy
Potential energy
In physics, potential energy is the energy stored in a body or in a system due to its position in a force field or due to its configuration. The SI unit of measure for energy and work is the Joule...
(which is why it can't be lifted), then converts it with near total efficiency to electromagnetic radiation
Electromagnetic radiation
Electromagnetic radiation is a form of energy that exhibits wave-like behavior as it travels through space...
, broadcasting at a frequency of 30,000 hertz
Hertz
The hertz is the SI unit of frequency defined as the number of cycles per second of a periodic phenomenon. One of its most common uses is the description of the sine wave, particularly those used in radio and audio applications....
, which happens to be the frequency the planetographer's apparatus was set to receive.
The captain also realizes that they can move the sphere into the ship by simply rolling it off its pedestal onto a levitator and carrying it, as long as they make no attempt to lift it against the planet's gravity. Once it is in the ship, they can surround it with energy receivers and feed the energy it broadcasts directly into the ship's engine, which should give the ship enough power to move it. Once the scientists on Earth work out the sphere's operating principles, they will be able to duplicate it and use it to power Earth's civilization.
The Psychotechnic LeagueThe Psychotechnic LeagueThe Psychotechnic League is a future history created by science fiction writer Poul Anderson. The name "Psychotechnic League" was coined by Sandra Miesel in the early 1980s, to capitalize on Anderson's better-known Polesotechnic League future history...
Anderson listed "The Entity" as part of the Psychotechnic League series in a timeline published in the Winter 1955 issue of Startling StoriesStartling Stories
Startling Stories was an American pulp science fiction magazine, published from 1939 to 1955 by Standard Magazines. It was initially edited by Mort Weisinger, who was also the editor of Thrilling Wonder Stories, Standard's other science fiction title. Startling ran a lead novel in every issue;...
, but it was not included in a later timeline that appeared in the Psychotechnic League collection Starship (1982). Although one character in "The Entity" mentions that the discovery of hyperdrive occurred "a few decades" earlier, the Startling timeline has the story take place in 3150, nearly four centuries after the discovery of hyperdrive in the Psychotechnic League universe. The late date may have been Anderson's way of explaining away the absence of the sphere's power broadcasting technology in any of the other Psychotechnic League stories. There is nothing in "The Entity" that conflicts with the rest of the Psychotechnic series, but neither is there any positive correlation with it.