Oolite Bulletins

Frank Herberts Futars in Chapterhouse Dune...

Cordwainer Smith's short story "The Game of Rat and Dragon" uses telepathic human-cat teams to fight "dragons" - space-dwelling aliens which can drive human beings insane.

RockDoctor wrote: ↑Fri May 28, 2021 4:57 pm

hiran wrote: ↑Fri May 28, 2021 6:05 am

Somehow I also realize it is hard to describe them since the plot needs explanation.

Every computing course that covers recursion has to spend at least half of the first lecture explaining recursion.
Factorials are a more concise introduction, for about 1/3 of the typical audience :

Code: Select all

n!=n*(n-1)! and 1!=1

True. It has been some years that I struggled with those concepts so I may have forgotten...
Recently, prompted by a questionaire I remembered when I started coding and with that, for how long I have been doing that. Good jolly, that number was bigger than anticipated...

ffutures wrote: ↑Fri May 28, 2021 7:45 pm

OK, let's have five examples of science fiction about, or featuring, cats (or VERY cat-like creatures). To make things just a little harder I want works in which the word "Cat" (or "Cats") DOES NOT APPEAR IN THE TITLE. The cats (or VERY cat-like creatures) must be a substantial part of the plot or at least important at some point in the plot.

For example, the film The Cat from Outer Space would not be accepted because the word "Cat" is in the title. The James Bond film "Diamonds are Forever" which is sort of borderline SF would be accepted because an important bit of the plot involves a cat. Except that I've now used is so you can't have it!

Usual rules - only one per author / created universe / whatever. Please don't enter more than one work per answer.

I believe all the 'Austin Powers' movies feature a cat. Whether that is a substantial part of the plot...
If Mr Bigglesworth gets angry, people die....!!!!

ffutures wrote: ↑Fri May 28, 2021 7:45 pm

OK, let's have five examples of science fiction about, or featuring, cats (or VERY cat-like creatures). To make things just a little harder I want works in which the word "Cat" (or "Cats") DOES NOT APPEAR IN THE TITLE. The cats (or VERY cat-like creatures) must be a substantial part of the plot or at least important at some point in the plot.

For example, the film The Cat from Outer Space would not be accepted because the word "Cat" is in the title. The James Bond film "Diamonds are Forever" which is sort of borderline SF would be accepted because an important bit of the plot involves a cat. Except that I've now used is so you can't have it!

Usual rules - only one per author / created universe / whatever. Please don't enter more than one work per answer.

And then there is a cat-derived lifeform in Red Dwarf. That is one of the three main characters and thus important throughout the plot but just a decendant of a cat. Well, in the first episode called "The End" there was a cat nibbling on a wire here and there, and all of a sudden the ship was flying backwards...

cbr wrote: ↑Fri May 28, 2021 7:58 pm

Frank Herberts Futars in Chapterhouse Dune...

Sorry, no, - they're chimeras of some sort, and really don't look or behave much like real cats, so they fall foul of the "VERY cat-like creature" clause.

Disembodied wrote: ↑Fri May 28, 2021 8:16 pm

Cordwainer Smith's short story "The Game of Rat and Dragon" uses telepathic human-cat teams to fight "dragons" - space-dwelling aliens which can drive human beings insane.

That's a definite yes - they're cats and definitely meet the requirements of the question.

hiran wrote: ↑Fri May 28, 2021 9:30 pm

I believe all the 'Austin Powers' movies feature a cat. Whether that is a substantial part of the plot...
If Mr Bigglesworth gets angry, people die....!!!!

I'm a bit torn on this one - I think he's only on screen for a few seconds in the third film. Having said that, he does seem to be part of the whole criminal genius trope that drives Dr. Evil, so I suppose he is essential to the plot. I'm going to accept it.

hiran wrote: ↑Fri May 28, 2021 9:32 pm

And then there is a cat-derived lifeform in Red Dwarf. That is one of the three main characters and thus important throughout the plot but just a decendant of a cat. Well, in the first episode called "The End" there was a cat nibbling on a wire here and there, and all of a sudden the ship was flying backwards...

Sorry, Cat is about as far from "VERY cat-like creature" as it's possible to get. Yes, his distant ancestors were cats, but your distant ancestors were amphibians and I wouldn't normally describe any human as a frog.

Three to go!

The comic (and now animation) Cleopatra in Space features Khensu, Cleopatra's talking cat/sidekick/mentor.

I just stumbeled over
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fictional_felines

Now it is easy to pick...

Disembodied wrote: ↑Sat May 29, 2021 3:30 pm

The comic (and now animation) Cleopatra in Space features Khensu, Cleopatra's talking cat/sidekick/mentor.

OK, that works. Three to go.

My favorite Sci-Fi-Shorts: >>D U S T<<

Here... have one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJo-xajORwY

Mausnoab Williamston wrote: ↑Sun May 30, 2021 1:04 am

My favorite Sci-Fi-Shorts: >>D U S T<<

Here... have one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJo-xajORwY

On a quick scan through I can't see any cats in there unless I'm missing something.

Form the Marvel universe, there are the Flerkens … they're very cat-like, up to a point.

ffutures wrote: ↑Fri May 28, 2021 7:45 pm

OK, let's have five examples of science fiction about, or featuring, cats (or VERY cat-like creatures).

Well, having just wasted a small part of my life on "Treasure Planet", the first litter-tray product in the Man-Kzin Wars series in Larry Niven's Known Space, I think that's calling for anything where the Kzinti appear is pretty cat-like. If you accept overmuscled tiggers as being cats.

And hang on, nobody has mentioned nobody has yet mentioned "Jones", the Nostromo's ship's cat in Alien (and possibly one of the sequels, which become a bit of a blur after a time).

Quite how space cats get around their terrestrial counterpart's habit of chewing cables and, ehemm, alienating the ship's Sparky never gets explained.

Disembodied wrote: ↑Mon May 31, 2021 11:59 am

Form the Marvel universe, there are the Flerkens … they're very cat-like, up to a point.

Flerkens definitely - Very cat like indeed, apart from the bits where they aren't, which aren't normally visible. Have an MBP because it was one of the ones I thought of when I set the question. Two to go!

RockDoctor wrote: ↑Mon May 31, 2021 2:24 pm

ffutures wrote: ↑Fri May 28, 2021 7:45 pm

OK, let's have five examples of science fiction about, or featuring, cats (or VERY cat-like creatures).

Well, having just wasted a small part of my life on "Treasure Planet", the first litter-tray product in the Man-Kzin Wars series in Larry Niven's Known Space, I think that's calling for anything where the Kzinti appear is pretty cat-like. If you accept overmuscled tiggers as being cats.

And hang on, nobody has mentioned nobody has yet mentioned "Jones", the Nostromo's ship's cat in Alien (and possibly one of the sequels, which become a bit of a blur after a time).

Quite how space cats get around their terrestrial counterpart's habit of chewing cables and, ehemm, alienating the ship's Sparky never gets explained.

Not keen on Kzinti for the same reasons as Red Dwarf and the Futars, they aren't really cat-like in the sense of actually looking something like real cats. But I'll certainly accept Jones, that's another one I thought of when I set the question (still think a chest burster should have come out of her in the last seconds of the movie, but that's just me...). Have a MBP, and one to go!

ffutures wrote: ↑Mon May 31, 2021 10:14 pm

But I'll certainly accept Jones, that's another one I thought of when I set the question (still think a chest burster should have come out of her in the last seconds of the movie, but that's just me...). Have a MBP, and one to go!

I forget which of the Cantorian infinity of Alien sequels (and pre-quels ; have they done a same-time frame one? Yet?) was coming out when I first thought "the cat has got a cartain special something inside", but I'm definitely still waiting for it to ... come out. And I like cats!

Maybe the cat professionally known as "Jones" is holding out for a higher fee?