Waterclap
Encyclopedia
Waterclap is a science fiction
short story
by Isaac Asimov
. The story was written at the request of a movie company and was intended to serve as the basis of a film treatment. However, the author disliked the proposed characters and storyline and deliberately set out to write a story that he hoped would be rejected. The story was indeed rejected by the studio and was later published in the May 1970 issue of If
and reprinted in the 1976 collection The Bicentennial Man and Other Stories
.
, visits Earth
and takes a trip by bathyscape to Ocean-Deep, an experimental colony at the base of the Puerto Rico Trench
, where he meets its chief, John Bergen, and his wife Annette.
Ostensibly on a visit to exchange views on safety issues, Demerest is in fact planning to destroy Ocean-Deep. He reasons that if the project is found to be unsafe and thereby abandoned, more funding will be directed by the Planetary Project Commission (PPC) to the lunar colonies and space exploration
.
When he finds that Annette is pregnant, he has his first pang of guilt. Nevertheless, he proceeds with his objective and overrides the safety systems that control the airlocks, whilst holding the Bergens hostage with a low-power laser
.
The Bergens try to talk him out of his object, and feed him a not-entirely-untrue story that Ocean-Deep is in fact an experimental precursor to colonizing Jupiter
and other planets. Demerest, realizing that his planned destruction will have the opposite effect to what he intends, surrenders.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
by Isaac Asimov
Isaac Asimov
Isaac Asimov was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000...
. The story was written at the request of a movie company and was intended to serve as the basis of a film treatment. However, the author disliked the proposed characters and storyline and deliberately set out to write a story that he hoped would be rejected. The story was indeed rejected by the studio and was later published in the May 1970 issue of If
If (magazine)
If was an American science fiction magazine launched in March 1952 by Quinn Publications, owned by James L. Quinn. Quinn hired Paul W. Fairman to be the first editor, but early circulation figures were disappointing, and Quinn fired Fairman after only three issues. Quinn then took over the...
and reprinted in the 1976 collection The Bicentennial Man and Other Stories
The Bicentennial Man and Other Stories
The Bicentennial Man and Other Stories is a science fiction anthology written and edited by Isaac Asimov . Following the usual form for Asimov collections, it consists of eleven short stories and a poem surrounded by commentary describing how each came to be written...
.
Plot summary
Steven Demerest, a safety engineer at Luna City, a colony on the MoonMoon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
, visits Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
and takes a trip by bathyscape to Ocean-Deep, an experimental colony at the base of the Puerto Rico Trench
Puerto Rico Trench
The Puerto Rico Trench is an oceanic trench located on the boundary between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The trench is associated with a complex transition between the subduction zone to the south along the Lesser Antilles island arc and the major transform fault zone or plate boundary...
, where he meets its chief, John Bergen, and his wife Annette.
Ostensibly on a visit to exchange views on safety issues, Demerest is in fact planning to destroy Ocean-Deep. He reasons that if the project is found to be unsafe and thereby abandoned, more funding will be directed by the Planetary Project Commission (PPC) to the lunar colonies and space exploration
Space exploration
Space exploration is the use of space technology to explore outer space. Physical exploration of space is conducted both by human spaceflights and by robotic spacecraft....
.
When he finds that Annette is pregnant, he has his first pang of guilt. Nevertheless, he proceeds with his objective and overrides the safety systems that control the airlocks, whilst holding the Bergens hostage with a low-power laser
Laser
A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation...
.
The Bergens try to talk him out of his object, and feed him a not-entirely-untrue story that Ocean-Deep is in fact an experimental precursor to colonizing Jupiter
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...
and other planets. Demerest, realizing that his planned destruction will have the opposite effect to what he intends, surrenders.