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''The Fringe of the Unknown'' is a science book by L. Sprague de Camp, first published in hardcover by Prometheus Books in 1983. The book is a collection of articles that constitute a "study ... of controversial and often little-known happenings in science and technology, with an emphasis on the wayward activities of those who dabble in fringe science."〔("L. Sprague de Camp. ''The Fringe of the Unknown''" - description of the work at the publisher's website )〕 The material is organized in three sections, "Our Ingenious Forebears," "Beasts of Now and Then," and "Scientists, Mad and Otherwise." The first debunks extravagant occult and pseudoscientific claims regarding ancient civilizations while highlighting these cultures' actual accomplishments. The second performs much the same function in regard to biology, focusing on elephants, claims regarding the survival of dinosaurs into the present day, and past extinction events. The third explores the distinction between science and pseudoscience as illustrated in the lives of a number of scientists holding extreme views. ==Contents== Part I. Our Ingenious Forebears 1. "The Wisdom of the Ancients" (from ''Science Fiction Quarterly'', Nov. 1951) 2. "Apollonios Enlists" (from ''Astounding Science Fiction'', Jun. 1961) 3. "Appius Claudius Crassus" (original title: "Appius Claudius Crassus: Roman Builder") (from ''Science Digest'', Jun. 1962) 4. "The First Missile Launchers" (from ''Science Digest'', Oct. 1960) 5. "The Iron Pillar of Delhi" (from ''Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact'', Sep. 1972) 6. "The Mechanical Wizards of Alexandria" (from ''Science Digest'', Aug. 1962) 7. "The Landlocked Indian Ocean" (from ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'', Jun. 1969) Part II. Beasts of Now and Then 8. "Dinosaurs Today" (original title: "Dinosaurs in Today's World") (from ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'', Mar. 1968) 9. "Mammoths and Mastodons" (from ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'', May 1965) 10. "Death Comes to the Megafauna" (from ''If Worlds of Science Fiction'', Sep. 1971) 11. "Xerxes' Okapi" (original title: "Xerxes' Okapi and Greek Geography") (from ''Isis'', Mar. 1963) 12. "The Temperamental Tank" (original title: "War Elephants") (from ''Elephant'', 1964) 13. "How to Plan a Fauna" (from ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'', Oct. 1963) Part III. Scientists, Mad and Otherwise 14. "The Care and Feeding of Scientists" (original title: "The Care and Feeding of Mad Scientists") (from ''Astounding Science Fiction'', Jul. 1951) 15. "The Great Whale Robbery" (from ''The Day of the Dinosaur'', 1968) 16. "Mad Men of Science" (originally published in two parts, as "Mad Men of Science" and "More Mad Men of Science") (from ''Future Science Fiction'', Jan. and Mar. 1957) 17. "Orthodoxy in Science" (from ''Astounding Science Fiction'', May 1954) 18. "Hoaxes in Science" (original title: "Why Do They Do It?") (from ''Astounding Science Fiction'', Sep. 1950) 19. "Little Green Men from Afar" (from ''The Humanist'', Jul./Aug. 1976) 20. "The Need to Know" (original title: "Pure Science") (from ''The Book of Knowledge Annual'', 1959) "Acknowledgments" 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「The Fringe of the Unknown」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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