Tank Farm Dynamo

By David Brin

Can a sci fi story alter the course of something ponderous, like the space program? Perhaps. "Tank Farm Dynamo" sure tried! What if we found the nerve, the spirit and daring to use every resource - including those that NASA simply threw away? An unabashedly old-fashioned hard SF story with science and technology as central, problem-solving players... plus a real twist.

• Language: English
• Publisher: David Brin
• Release date: Jul 14, 2011
• ISBN: 9781466181366

David Brin

David Brin is a scientist, public speaker and world-known author. His novels have been New York Times Bestsellers, winning multiple Hugo, Nebula and other awards. At least a dozen have been translated into more than twenty languages. Novels include bold and prophetic explorations of our near future, including The Postman, Earth and Existence.His ecological thriller, Earth, foreshadowed global warming, cyberwarfare and near-future trends such as the World Wide Web. A movie, directed by Kevin Costner, was loosely based on his post-apocalyptic novel, The Postman. David's novel Kiln People has been called a book of ideas disguised as a fast-moving and fun noir detective story, set in a future when new technology enables people to physically be in more than two places at once. A hardcover graphic novel The Life Eaters explored alternate outcomes to World War II, winning nominations and high praise.David's science fictional Uplift Universe explores a future when humans genetically engineer animals to join our civilization.

Book preview

Tank Farm Dynamo

A Novella

***

by

David Brin

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2011 David Brin

1.

They finally fired Bylinsky.

I was up to my knees in agrisludge, a frothy brown mess at the bottom of my personal greenhouse tank, when I heard the remark. For a moment I thought I had imagined it. 

Your hearing plays tricks when you're wading around in mucky water, barely held to the floor by under a hundredth of a gee. I was groping in the goo, trying to find whatever had gummed up the aspirator. My breath blew up little green and brown droplets that hovered in front of my face for long seconds before slowly settling down again. 

"Ralph! Did you hear me? I said Bylinsky's out!" 

I looked up this time. Don Ishido, our communications and operations chief, hung halfway through the aft hatch of the greenhouse, twenty meters away. He was watching my reaction, maybe in order to report to the others exactly how I took the news. Probably there was money riding on it. 

I nodded. Thanks, Don. Bylinsky's days were numbered. We'll miss him, but we'll survive. 

Ishido smiled faintly. He must have bet on my poker face. What do you want me to tell the others, boss? 

I shrugged. We're still a tank farm. We buy 'em and store 'em and later we'll all get rich selling 'em back for a profit. 

Even when they cut the water ration? 

There'll be a way. We're in the future business. Now get out of here and let me finish my recreational farming. 

Don smirked at my euphemism, but withheld comment. He ducked out, leaving me alone to my recreation... and my worries. 

After clearing a clump of gelatinized algae from the input ports, I climbed onto one of the catwalk longerons rimming the pond and turned on the bubbler. The air began to fill with tiny superoxygenated green droplets. 

I took a leap and sailed across the huge chamber to alight near the exit hatch. There I stowed my waders and looked around the