Larry Niven is known as an author for his hard science fiction, using big but authentic scientific concepts. His Known Space series is one of the most popular "future history" sagas in SF and includes the epic novel Ringworld, one of the few novels to have won both the Hugo and Nebula awards, as well as the Locus and Ditmar awards, and which is recognized as a milestone in modern science fiction. Niven's science fiction the best kind, amazing for its ability to build believable societies where we see how people deal with new technologies on a day-to-day basis, while telling a compelling story. Niven's vast collection of short stories, novelettes and books, including a large number of book series, defines the essence of what science fiction as a genre is all about. He takes a handful of futuristic or technological ideas and weaves a society around them, exploring what their effects would be on the people who live with them every day. The number of such ideas seems endless; the societies he creates are at once both intimately familiar and strange, and always leave you wanting more. The worlds he has created have been adopted by other writers, who create their own stories within those settings. Some of the conepts explored in his stories include: Artificially grown organs Allowing organ transplants without the need for donors Autodocs Computers and AI-driven robotics diagnose, prescribe, and perform surgery Belters Miners and their families who have colonized the asteroid belt, harvesting minerals and water to supply Earth with needed commodities Boosterspice A chemical concoction that allows people to live for hundeds of years. His stories explore the effects of people living so long on the rest of society. Bussard ramjet An electromagnetic 'scoop' that allows large spacecraft to gather fuel from interstellar gases and achieve multigenerational travel between star systems Copseyes and Free Parks A park where you can do anything you want, as long as it doesn't hurt others. Floating police drones deal with transgressors Displacement booth Step into one, enter a number, and be transported to your destination instantly, through teleportation. (This concept has been demonstrated and is valid, at least for atoms) Dolphin's hands Dolphins are intelligent. Give them prosthetic hands and see what they are capable of! Droud A small battery-powered device that sends a constant electrical current into the pleasure centre of your brain. All the benefits of mind-altering drugs without the physical health problems. But the addiction problem causes its own set of issues for society General Products hull A spacecraft hull made from a single large molecule that is invulnerable to everything (except antimatter) Flycycle A flying motorcycle. They exist now, but not when Niven wrote about them Kzinti The first extra-terrestrial intelligent life we discover is a species of giant tiger-like creatures that is extremely warlike Launching laser Huge lasers used to launch spacecraft also make great weapons Organleggers An aging population demands organs for transplants, making the market for stolen organs a lucrative career for the unscrupulous. At least, until artificially grown organs were developed Ringworld An entire world laid out along the inner side of a huge ring encircling a star Sinclair molecule chain A chain of single molecules encapsulated in an electromagnetic force field will cut through anything Slowboat A giant spacecraft which transports settlers in suspended animation to another star system where they can colonize new planets. This idea of Niven's became the basis of the movie 'Passengers' Stepping discs After displacement booths came displacement discs ... step on one and be instantly transported anywhere in the world Stasis box A small box surrounded by an electromagnetic 'stasis field' that keeps eveything inside in a state of suspended animation, until it's opened The number of incredible 'ideas' embedded in Niven's stories and novels is amazing, but the strength of his work is not just in these new concepts, but, like in all good science fiction, it's in the exploration of how they affect future societies and the people who live there. Niven also often includes elements of detective fiction and adventure stories in his works. His fantasy writing includes his 'The Magic Goes Away' series, which makes magic a non-renewable resource. Niven also created an alien species, the Kzin, who were featured in a series of collections, the 'Man-Kzin Wars', where a multitude of other authors created their own stories in that universe. Larry Nivn has received the Nebula Award, five Hugo Awards, four Locus Awards, two Ditmars, the Prometheus, and the Robert A. Heinlein Award, among other honours. Most recently, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America have presented him with the Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Award, given for Lifetime Achievement in the field. Perhaps Niven's best known work is 'Ringworld', a 1970 science fiction novel set in his Known Space universe and considered a classic of science fiction literature. Ringworld tells the story of Louis Wu and his companions on a mission to the Ringworld, a rotating wheel artificial world, an alien construct in space 300 million kilometres in diameter. Niven later added three sequel novels and then cowrote, with Edward M. Lerner, four prequels and a final sequel; the five latter novels constitute the Fleet of Worlds series. All the novels in the Ringworld series tie into numerous other books set in Known Space. Ringworld won the Nebula Award in 1970, as well as both the Hugo Award and Locus Award in 1971 Here is a bibliography of Larry Niven's work Resources HTML, graphics & design by Bill Willis 2024