The Thirst Quenchers

by Rick Raphael

With the age of nuclear power, the need for hydroelectric sources vanished and with it went the great dams and reservoirs with their vast, wasteful surfaces of open water that evaporated by the thousands of acre-feet before ever being utilized by man. The beds of the great rivers were dry and the cities spread upon them together with the new controlled auto-farms. Only the smaller rivers and streams continued to flow until they reached a predesignated flow force. Then they vanished, spilling down into tunnels and flowing for hundreds of miles along subterranean aqueducts into great storage reservoirs beneath the surface of the land and protected from the drain of the sun and wind. From these, each precious drop of water was rationed upwards to meet the increasing needs of the people. And still there was never enough.

Genres: Science Fiction

Paperback

First published January 1, 1966

Reviews

[Manuel Alfonseca · Rating 3 out of 5]

ENGLISH: Fourth of the four stories by Rick Raphael I downloaded from project Gutenberg after reading one of his stories ("Code three") included with the sci-fi anthology "The world turned upside down."

This story is the longest (about 40 pages long), published in 1963. It's a sample of hard sci-fi by Raphael. The use of fresh water has been increasing, until just about everything is in use, and it must be distributed with great care. This scenario is depply worrysome, as it could become true not so far away in the future.

ESPAÑOL: El cuarto de los cuatro relatos de Rick Raphael que descargué del proyecto Gutenberg después de leer uno de sus cuentos ("Code three") que fue incluido en la antología de ciencia ficción "The world turned upside down".

Este cuento es el más largo (unas 40 páginas) y se publicó en 1963. Es un ejemplo de ciencia ficción dura. El uso de agua dulce ha ido aumentando hasta que casi toda está en uso y debe distribuirse cuidadosamente. Este escenario es bastante preocupante, ya que podría hacerse realidad no muy lejos en el futuro.

[Joachim Boaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Full review: https://sciencefictionruminations.com...

"Between 1959 and 1981 Rick Raphael produced one fix-up novel—Code Three (1967), expanded from two previously published novellas—and ten other short fictions. The Thirst Quenchers (1965) gathers together three novelettes that appeared in Analog and one new novelette.

In my review of Code Three I wrote that it “charms with its realism.” The first two stories of this collection, although lacking the emotional heft of the novel, manage to present the daily lives and travails of the workers of the future [...]"