XPost: rec.arts.sf.written   
   From: robertaw@drizzle.com   
      
   In article ,   
    Christian Weisgerber  wrote:   
      
   > On 2021-10-16, Don  wrote:   
   >   
   > > Popularity's probably positively correlated to influence. And   
   > > _Perry Rhodan_ is the most popular science fiction ever, with over two   
   > > billion novellas sold. Bubonicon's a takeoff on a PR character named   
   > > Gucky/Pucky. PR's matter transmitter's appeared years before Star Trek's   
   > > transporters. PR's spherical space ships debuted decades before Star   
   > > Wars' Death Star.   
   >   
   > I think PR's influence on Anglo-American SF is approximately zero.   
   > And a good rule of thumb is that _nothing_ in PR is original.  It's   
   > all been seen before.  (Which does not preclude independent   
   > reinvention.)   
   >   
   > _The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction_ traces matter transmission   
   > to the 19th century.   
   >   
   > I vaguely remember von Däniken explaining that a sphere is the   
   > logical shape for a space-ship.  That idea must have been around   
   > for a long time.  (And is completely irrelevant at the level of   
   > magic technology in PR.)   
      
   The warships in various H. Beam Piper's stories (_Space Viking_ as well   
   as stories set in the Federation era and in the Empire Era) were   
   spherical. For that matter, IIRC, the title spaceship in _Skylark of   
   Valeron_ was also spherical.   
      
   --   
   "We have advanced to new and surprising levels of bafflement."   
   Imperial Auditor Miles Vorkosigan describes progress in _Komarr_.   
   —-----------------------------------------------------   
   Robert Woodward robertaw@drizzle.com   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)