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Scanners Live in Vain
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- 9 referencing feature instances
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"Scanners Live in Vain" is a Novelette written by Cordwainer Smith in 1945. After being rejected by Astounding Science Fiction and other major magazines it finally appeared in 1950 in the more obscure Fantasy Book magazine as Smith's first professional publication. It went on to be included in Science Fiction Hall of Fame: Volume One and in Robert Silverberg's Science-Fiction 101.In The 'Verse where this story takes place, mankind tried exploring space, but ran into a huge problem: Some unknown form of radiation permeated all of outer space, which would cause unbearable pain in anyone exposed to it for more than a few minutes. There was no known way to block this radiation. The only solution anyone could devise for this "Great Pain of Space" was to physically sever all the nerves that carried the pain signals to the brain. This procedure, invented by Dr. Haberman, rendered the patient incapable of feeling any sensation, good or bad, and of using any senses other than eyesight; so it was reserved for convicted criminals who would otherwise be sentenced to death.Advertisement:propertag.cmd.push(function() { proper_display('tvtropes_mobile_ad_1'); })Unfortunately, manning your starships entirely with convicted felons isn't the best way to run a space program, so these "Habermans" as they came to be known had to be watched closely by a volunteer police force who'd had the nerve-severing procedure done to them voluntarily. These volunteers (like the the other Habermans) had readouts and control panels mounted into their bodies, so that they could monitor their physical health and make sure they weren't (say) leaning against a running buzz saw without realizing it. They were trained to scan their readouts quickly and often, and so became known as Scanners.One additional perk that Scanners had was the ability to temporarily bypass their severed nerves, and thereby experience hearing/smell/taste/touch like a normal person again, by plugging in a special wire invented by Eustance Cranch. The hero of the story, a Scanner named Martel, gets "cranched" to enjoy a little sensory vacation from the space service, but is called to an emergency meeting by the Scanners Confraternity while his cranch is still in effect. There, he learns that an Adam Stone has invented a way to eliminate the Pain of Space in normal people who don't have the Haberman cuts. The rest of the Scanners, who are in their normal unfeeling state of sensory deprivation, see this as a challenge to their "labor monopoly" and vote to have Adam Stone assassinated. Martel's cranched state, on the other hand, allows him to feel how morally wrong this is, and he decides to put a stop to it.Advertisement:propertag.cmd.push(function() { proper_display('tvtropes_mobile_ad_2'); })Conflict, confrontation, and artificially-induced high-speed battle reflexes ensue.Post-1992 texts are taken from the original manuscript, restoring chapterization and some text that was cut from the original magazine publication. | |
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Artistic License – Biology | |
| Scanners Live in Vain / int_18aff462 | comment |
Artistic License – Biology: As pain is transmitted exclusively via the spinothalamic tracts and trigeminal nerves, it really shouldn't be necessary to sever other neural pathways that carry hearing, scent, taste, proprioception, or tactile sensations to render someone immune to the Great Pain. Not to mention how severing the vestibulocochlear nerves would rob the subject, not only of hearing, but of the sense of equilibrium, without which they'd suffer incapacitating vertigo and clumsiness: something that automatically disqualifies people from space flight in real life. | |
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