The Gold at the Starbow's End

"The Gold at the Starbow's End" is a science fiction novella written by American author Frederik Pohl. It was first published in March 1972 in Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact. This story was recognized for its quality and was nominated for two big awards in 1973: the Hugo Award for Best Novella and the Nebula Award for Best Novella. It even won the Locus Award for Best Novella that same year.

Experts who studied science fiction said that Pohl’s writing became much better after he stopped editing two magazines in 1969. They thought this story was very important because it showed how Pohl’s style was changing before he wrote even more famous books later on. Another person who collected Pohl’s stories called it a “wild adventure” that also talked about big questions, like how to balance doing good science with having enough money to finish projects.

Later, Pohl turned this novella into a full novel called Starburst, which came out in 1982.

Plot summary

The story is told through reports from the crew of the US Starship Constitution and descriptions of events on Earth. The main character on Earth is Dr. Dieter von Knefhausen, the scientist leading the US space program.

In the first report from the starship, we learn that the ship is about one month into a long trip to the Alpha Centauri star system. The crew plans to colonize a planet called Alpha-Aleph. On Earth, society is struggling, and the idea of colonizing Alpha-Aleph gives people hope for a better future.

As the story continues, it is revealed that the planet Alpha-Aleph does not actually exist. This was a trick created by Knefhausen. He wanted the crew to have nothing to do but study mathematics, believing this would lead to important scientific discoveries that could help Earth. His idea works, but the crew soon loses interest in technology and starts using math to explore art and philosophy. By the end of the story, the crew gains amazing powers over the physical world.

Two important math ideas in the story are Carnap-Ramsey sentences and Godel encoding.

The word "starbow" in the story’s title was created by one of the starship’s characters. It describes a rainbow-like effect seen when stars shift due to a relativistic Doppler effect.

Extension to novel length

In the longer version of the story, the crew of the Constitution takes action against Earth. They send a special beam of particles that makes all nuclear materials melt down safely. This leaves Earth without nuclear power, making life very hard for the people there. The story ends with the crew’s children going back to Earth.

Main article: [strange]

Publication history

After first appearing in Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact, "The Gold at the Starbow's End" was chosen as the title story for a collection of works by the author. It was also featured in two special year-end books: Best Science Fiction of 1972 and The 1973 Annual World's Best SF.

The story has been included in many more books since then, at least six times, including once in Italian where it was called "Alpha Aleph". It can also be found in two special collections of the author's work: The Gold at the Starbow's End from 1972 and Platinum Pohl from 2005.

Short story collection

The Gold at the Starbow's End is a collection of stories written by Frederik Pohl. It was first published in the United States and Canada by Ballantine Books in August 1972. Later, it was released in Britain by Gollancz Science Fiction in June 1973, and a paperback version came out from Panther Books in January 1975. The book includes these stories:

• "The Gold at the Starbow's End", 1972
• "Sad Solarian Screenwriter Sam", 1972
• "Call Me Million", 1970
• "Shaffery Among the Immortals", 1972
• "The Merchants of Venus", 1972