Explorers Into Infinity

Matter, Space, and Time

by Ray Cummings

Das Myrdoskop, die Erfindung eines amerikanischen Wissenschaftlers, leitet eine neue Ära der astronomischen Forschung ein. Erstmals gelingt es mit Hilfe des revolutionierenden Geräts, ein Universum zu beobachten, das unserem Kosmos übergeordnet ist.
Ein Fahrzeug wird ausgerüstet, das in das Superuniversum eindringen soll. Menschen der Erde überwinden die Barrieren von Raum und Zeit - und werden zu Eroberern der Unendlichkeit.

Genres: Science Fiction

45 pages, Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 1927

About the author

Raymond King Cummings. His career resulted in some 750 novels and short stories, using also the pen names Ray King, Gabrielle Cummings, and Gabriel Wilson.

See Wikipedia

Reviews

[Per · Rating 2 out of 5]

Part 1
https://archive.org/details/WeirdTale...

Part 2
https://archive.org/details/WeirdTale...

Part 3
https://archive.org/details/WeirdTale...

The story starts with a foreword from the author, mentioning the companion story "The Girl in the Golden Atom" -- where the companion story focuses on the realm of infinite smallness, this story then focuses on the realm of the infinitely large. There's been a couple of "infinitely small" stories featured in Weird Tales already, which in some cases has mentioned the possibility of the "infinitely large", but this is the first story focusing on the topic.

I would not have you fear from this foreword that my story may be some pedantic, heavily technical exposition, It is not; for it is fiction only—a romance with which to entertain you; an effort, by using fictional methods, to reduce theories purely imaginative into concrete form with as great a degree of plausibility as may be.

If only... the story takes about four fifths of pseudo-scientific rambling to get to the romance part. I would give it 1of5 stars for the story, but it's interesting to read a century old science fiction -- especially from someone dissing Einstein -- so I'm giving it an extra star for that alone.

You will find here a complete theory of the material universe as I conceive it may perhaps really be. To my own imagination—and I think very likely to your own—it is difficult to conceive of an infinite distance beyond the stars—empty Space stretching out forever. Nor is Einstein more satisfying to me, rather less so, for out beyond the Einstein system of curved Space must lie something or nothing. It is the nothingness which puzzles me. I have tried vainly to imagine a realm, infinitely large, of unending nothingness. Time is equally puzzling. I can conceive of eventful eons lying ahead of us; but rob that time of its future events and I flounder. To me at least, the conception of Time with nothing ever happening anywhere is impossible. To me also, an event presupposes the existence of something; and so, in my effort to imagine the infinitely large—Space illimitable, Time unending—I am forced to conceive what must fill that Space, what must happen to create that time.

To make this travel through space and nothingness possible, the story basis is that matter, space, time AND motion are all connected AND relative, and can be manipulated. With that premise, there's a lot of entertaining stories to be written, ... alas, this one is not that.

-----

The Giant World

NOTE--This serial, while complete in itself, is a sequel to Explorers Into Infinity, which narrated the previous adventures of Brett and Martt on the distant world.

Part 1
https://archive.org/details/WeirdTale...

Part 2
https://archive.org/details/WeirdTale...

Part 3
https://archive.org/details/WeirdTale...

[Mate K · Rating 2 out of 5]

It is... okay. The story part itself is not action packed, but interesting enough and a pleasant read. However, the book spends so much time explaining the 'science' we will see that it completely ruins the pacing. It has it's moments towards the end if you can stick with it. I'll be interested to read the second part where hopefully there is more things happening to our characters.

[Alien · Rating 1 out of 5]

So this clever scientist has built machines to travel through space, time and the micro/macro - dimensions. And off we go...
The author has come up with a rather elaborate theory about the structure of the universe. And he proudly spreads it over page after page. It's complete nonsense of course. He constantly introduces new rays and energies and what not.
After 30 pages I had enough.