ISFDB 23857. OCLC 41941257.

An above-average collection for its time, with a number of stories with innovative ideas or innovative treatments of familiar ideas.

Poseidon Project - John Rackham

A future community is attempting to be self-sufficient below the sea for a year. Things begin to go wrong. All I can say about the outcome is that it suggests that we would all be better off using computer dating agencies than leaving such stuff to chance.

Folly To Be Wise - Douglas R. Mason

A post-apocalyptic society. A boy and girl are out in the wilds, going through their rite of passage to adulthood. They come across a relic of the past - an android, with abilities beyond anyone's dreams. The outcome may surprise you.

One of the better stories, in ideas and execution.

Gift of the Gods - Arthur Sellings

Some odd things start appearing in gardens in Framley, Surrey. At first some seem to find handy way to make money from them. But this rapidly fails. Finally our protagonist reasons why this stuff is ending up here, and what the implications are.

The Long Memory - William Spencer

A future society where cameras capture every detail of everyone's lives, all of which is recorded and stored for ever. So far, it feels just like 21st century Britain. But the authorities continually want to record more - in the infrared, in ultrasonics, you name it. The problem is, these records take space and the world is running out of it.

One of the more interesting stories in this collection for me, not least because of its prescience both about surveillance and information storage. The arithmetic around the latter is a bit awry but this is the first treatment of this problem I've seen in SF. I wish a little more attention had been paid to the moral dilemmas of universal surveillance - nonetheless, a good story.

Guardian Angel - Gerald W Page

Our protagonist is a successful artist in an age where wealth conveys privileges (such as a vote) that few have. One is the Guardian Angel, an AI that advises its owner. The owner gets one day a week off, though, and stuff happens on one of those days.

Fairly heavy-handed stuff and with a setting that isn't well explained. The computers are bad, they are going to take over unless we fight back, etc etc

Second Genesis - Eric Frank Russell

The first human to travel to the stars made the journey alone, and time dilation meant that 2000 years would pass on Earth before he returned. The story describes his final approach to Earth and what he discovers. The title is a heavy clue to the final paragraphs.

Unusually, this isn't a new story for this collection but a reprint of one from the late 1950s. It's well-written but middling overall.

Defence Mechanism - Victor King

A setting that's familiar enough - a decaying, automated self-contained mega-city that contains a few humans fighting for survival. In this case, they fight against other human clans and the Aliens. We discover in the end what the Aliens are and how the cities came to be as they are.

One of the better stories - I'll look for more by this author, whose name is new to me. ( )