EDITORS
SAMUEL J. STEPHENS | PHILIP J. PALACIOS | NATHAN GILMORE | DIANA MASSENGALE
ARTWORK
CHRISTINA MOORE
SPECIAL THANKS
DR. CRYSTAL HURD
MEN WITHOUT CHESTS
short story | science fiction
by CRYSTAL HURD
Guest Author
They can do more by more efficient means. But these robots are built with one additional feature: a morality protocol— they don’t simply obey, they hold deep convictions. Can moral robots function as smart weapons?
Artwork by Christina J. Moore
KAREL
ČAPEK’S R.U.R.
essay | science fiction/biography
by SAMUEL J. STEPHENS
& PHILIP J. PALACIOS
Why do they run rampant in the cultural imagination? Many of the philosophical questions associated with robots began with the Czech writer Karel Capek, and his astonishing literary legacy.
Artwork by Christina J. Moore
DRONE SKIES
short story | science fiction
by SAMUEL J. STEPHENS
Ex-cop Rodrigo Martin needs to find his missing step-daughter. In a world of labyrinthine laws enforced by robots in a clandestine police state, how far can he go?
Artwork by Christina J. Moore
SYNTHETIC SUICIDE
short story | science fiction
by TERRY K. JONES
He was made to think like them, look like them. Standing above the city skyline, he readies himself to take a final step.
Artwork by Christina J. Moore
METER’S RUNNING, MR. BOT
short story | science fiction
by PHILIP J. PALACIOS
Running on an algorithm composed of every detective in film and literature, a rented Meter Robot sets out to solve a missing persons case.
Artwork by Christina J. Moore
PROGRAMMED FOR DECAY
poetry | science fiction
by STEPHANIE STAHLMAN
A unique blend of science fiction and confessional poetry, Stephanie Stahlman’s verses explore being ‘programmed’ in a world seemingly set for decay.
Artwork by Christina J. Moore
LOST DAUGHTER
short story | science fiction
by PHILIP J. PALACIOS
Within the expanse of space a stranded cargo crew learns the nature of humanity, their personal reality, and beyond.
Artwork by Christina J. Moore
FRITZ LANG’S ‘METROPOLIS
essay | film
by NATHAN GILMORE
In a subterranean city inhabited by the poor who are ruled from above, a wild-haired scientist works feverishly. A gleaming android stares mechanically at the viewer, its lidless eyes glowing. Fritz Lang’s seminal futuristic masterpiece is at once a bombastic vehicle for political theory and a richly faceted meditation on the nature of duality.
Artwork by Christina J. Moore
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