000 02496cam a22003493u 4500
001 23931
003 UtSlPG
005 20260610133541.0
006 m
007 cr n
008 260607r2007||||utu|||||o|||||||||||||| d
040 _aUtSlPG
041 7 _aen
_2iso639-1
050 4 _aPS
100 1 _aSmith, George O.
_q(George Oliver),
_d1911-1981
245 1 0 _aInstinct
264 1 _aSalt Lake City, UT :
_bProject Gutenberg,
_c2007
300 _a1 online resource :
_bmultiple file formats
336 _atext
_btxt
_2rdacontent
337 _acomputer
_bc
_2rdamedia
338 _aonline resource
_bcr
_2rdacarrier
490 1 _aProduced from Astounding Science Fiction March 1959.
500 _aRelease date is 2007-12-20
508 _aGreg Weeks, Bruce Albrecht, Stephen Blundell and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team
520 _a"Instinct" by George O. Smith is a science fiction novella penned in the late 1950s. The story revolves around the themes of communication, human nature, and the cyclical rise and fall of civilizations, specifically reflecting on the interactions between humans from Earth (referred to as Terra) and a more advanced alien race. The narrative explores the difficulties that arise when different species attempt to understand each other's motivations and behaviors. The plot centers on Jerry Markham, a Terran astronaut, who is captured by an alien race after landing on a foreign planet. The aliens, led by Chelan, are intrigued but perplexed by the Terrans' propensity for conflict and their relentless drive to push boundaries despite past failures. As Markham finds himself isolated from communication and subjected to experimental isolation to uncover the secrets of human instinct, he begins to reflect deeply on memory and communication. Ultimately, the aliens learn that despite shutting off his sensory inputs, the essence of Markham's being—the drive to connect and communicate—remains unyielding, prompting a recognition of humanity’s persistent will to thrive, even when faced with adversity. The story concludes with the aliens reconsidering their approach to humanity, acknowledging its resilience and intrinsic nature. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
534 _nOriginal publication data not identified
653 _aScience fiction
653 _aShort stories
700 1 _aMartinez
830 0 _aProduced from Astounding Science Fiction March 1959.
856 4 0 _uhttps://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/23931
999 _c64953
_d64953