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Wednesday, May 14, 2014

"New Worlds" by Lawrence Watt-Evans

First appeared in Asimov's.

The probably plays into readers' affections for New Worlds, a British magazine with multiple reincarnations--most famously with Michael Moorcock at the helm, captain of the New Wave.  Unfortunately, the current zine appears to be in its death-throes with no submissions, registration required to view anything, and difficult to retrieve lost passwords.  Ah, technology.  So wonderful yet such a pain.

Beings from a different universe arrives via crosstime gate to investigate a spaceport and other technologies.  However, they are immediately arrested.  The different Earth beings discuss trading technologies, but not their most valuable.  Stalemate.

*spoiler* The crosstime people exit and blow up the gate, thinking the other more powerful with access to alien technologies.  The faster-than-light crowd is jealous of the zero-time travel....

It's hard to tell how much this tale is a tribute to that magazine, but there is a nice contrast between high technologies--both deathly afraid of the other's technology thinking the other superior.  The grass is always greener.  But they both decide to pursue technologies they now know is possible

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