Episode
Einstein's Planetoid, by C M Kornbluth, Robert A W Lowndes, and Frederick Pohl
- Podcast
- Golden Age Fiction
- Published
- Feb 12, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 3984
- Processing state
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Summary
They were the heirs of space-flight: They planned to be the first humans to land on Alpha Centauri, but the original Hartnett expedition had been lost and they had to find it first. They followed the signals and found that they led to what looked like a one-way excursion to the screwiest planetoid in the galaxy! "Einstein's Planetoid" appeared in "Science Fiction Quarterly," Spring 1942, pages 99 to 117. ----- Cyril M Kornbluth Cyril M Kornbluth (July 2, 1923 – March 21, 1958) was an American science fiction author and a member of the Futurians. He used a variety of pen-names, including Cecil Corwin, S D Gottesman, Edward J Bellin, Kenneth Falconer, Walter C Davies, Simon Eisner, Jordan Park, Arthur Cooke, Paul Dennis Lavond, and Scott Mariner. As a teenager, he became a member of the Futurians, an influential group of science fiction fans and writers. While a member of the Futurians, he met and became friends with Frederik Pohl, Donald A Wollheim, Robert A W Lowndes, and his future wife Mary Byers. He also participated in the Fantasy Amateur Press Association. Robert A W Lowndes Robert Augustine Ward "Doc" Lowndes (September 4, 1916 – July 14, 1998) was an American science fiction author, editor and fan. He was known best as the editor of Future Science Fiction, Science Fiction, and Science Fiction Quarterly, among many other crime-fiction, western, sports-fiction, and other pulp and digest sized magazines for Columbia Publications. Among the most famous writers he was first to publish at Columbia was mystery writer Edward D Hoch, who in turn would contribute to Lowndes's fiction magazines as long as he was editing them. Lowndes was a principal member of the Futurians. His first story, "The Outpost at Altark" for Super Science in 1940, was written in collaboration wit…