24 pages • 48 minutes read
The Cold Equations
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Summary: “The Cold Equations”
“The Cold Equations” is a science fiction short story by American author Tom Godwin, which originally appeared in a 1954 edition of Astounding magazine. The story stood out long after its publication and was considered one of the best science fiction short stories published before 1965. It was also reprinted in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume One, 1929-1964.
The pilot of an Emergency Dispatch Ship (EDS) launched from a larger ship, the Stardust, is on his way to deliver a curative serum to six ailing men on the planet Woden, whose own supply of serum was destroyed by a tornado. When the pilot realizes that he has a stowaway, he judges that he will have to jettison the transgressor into space. If he doesn’t, their excess weight will cause the EDS to go into freefall, killing the pilot and ultimately the men on Woden, who need the serum to survive. According to the pilot, “the stowaway had signed his own death warrant when he concealed himself on the ship; he could not be permitted to take seven others with him” (Location 8487).
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