A term probably coined by reviewer Roz Kaveney^[1] and used in discussing science fiction, a Big Dumb Object (BDO) is a mysterious artifact (usually of extraterrestrial or otherwise unknown origin) in a story which generates an intense sense of wonder just by being there; to a certain extent, the term deliberately deflates this. Roz Kaveney is British writer and editor. ... Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology, or both, upon society and persons as individuals. ... “Green people” redirects here. ... Frequently invoked in discussions of science fiction, the sense of wonder is that experience unique to the genre. ...

The term was not in general use until it was included in The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction as a joke by Peter Nicholls^[2]. The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction is a reference work on science-fiction. ... Peter Nicholls is an Australian-born writer. ...

J.G. Ballard's short story, "Report on an Unidentified Space Station" (1982) may be regarded as an exploration of the metaphor of the BDO: in each successive report, the artifact's estimated size increases, people become lost within it, and the reader eventually realises that the mysterious artifact, of unknown purpose and origin, apparently abandoned by its unknown creator(s), is the Universe itself. James Graham Ballard (born November 18, 1930 in Shanghai) is a British novelist. ...

Appearances

• Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: The Magrathea factory floor, for example.
• Iain M. Banks' Excession
• Stephen Baxter's Bolder's Ring in the Xeelee Sequence series of novels
• Greg Bear's Thistledown asteroid-starship in Eon
• Algis Budrys' Killing Machine found on the Moon in Rogue Moon
• Arthur C. Clarke's monolith in 2001: A Space Odyssey
• Arthur C. Clarke's Rama
• Arthur C. Clarke A massive sun-blocking mirror in novel Sunstorm
• Michael Crichton's Sphere in Sphere
• Philip José Farmer's Riverworld.
• Peter F. Hamilton's Sleeping God in The Night's Dawn Trilogy
• Peter F. Hamilton's High Angel and the stars Dyson A and B in Pandora's Star
• Larry Niven's Ringworld in Ringworld
• Frederik Pohl's Gateway, in his Heechee series.
• Robert Reed's Great Ship in his Marrow books
• Alastair Reynolds' Cerberus/Hades in Revelation Space
• Bob Shaw's Orbitsville, and many other Dyson spheres
• Charles Sheffield's Heritage Universe.
• Clifford D. Simak's abandoned machine-world in Limiting Factor (1949)
• Robert Charles Wilson's Spin, in the eponymous novel.

• The Derelict and "space jockey" from the film Alien
• The Ultimate Evil from the film, The Fifth Element
• The Vorlon "thirdspace gate" in the Babylon 5 television movie Thirdspace

• The TARDIS in Doctor Who.
• The Chodak Unity Device in the Star Trek: The Next Generation video game A Final Unity
• The Dyson Sphere in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode Relics
• "The Great Machine", a planet-sized device with many abilities, including time travel in the TV series Babylon 5
• The statue of the foot in the TV series Lost
• The Medical Mechanica factory in Anime series FLCL
• The Dragon Balls in Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball GT, which used to be the original focus in the original Dragon Ball only to be out-shadowed by the concept of the Super Saiyan in its sequels.
• The Artifact in the TV series Eureka

• The Citadel from the video game Half-Life 2.
• The "Halo" ringworlds from the video game series of the same name
• The Zohar Monolith from the game Xenogears, as well as the monoliths from the related Xenosaga series.
• The Titan from the animated film Titan A.E..

Douglas Noël Adams (11 March 1952 – 11 May 2001) was an English author, comic radio dramatist, and musician. ... The cover of the first novel in the Hitchhikers series, from a late 1990s printing. ... This is a list of places featured in The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. ... Iain Menzies Banks (officially Iain Banks, born on 16 February 1954 in Dunfermline, Fife) is a Scottish writer. ... Excession is a science fiction novel by Iain M. Banks and the fourth published to feature The Culture. ... Stephen Baxter (born in Liverpool, 13 November 1957) is a British hard science fiction author. ... // The Xeelee come from the Xeelee Sequence series of books by British science fiction author Stephen Baxter. ... The Xeelee Sequence is a series of novels and short stories by British science fiction author Stephen Baxter. ... Gregory Dale Bear (born August 20, 1951) is a science fiction author. ... Thistledown is: The soft feathery material which protects the fruiting part of a thistle. ... The Way fictional universe is a trilogy of science fiction novels and one short story by Greg Bear. ... The Falling Torch (1959) Algis Budrys (born January 9, 1931) is an American science fiction author. ... Rogue Moon is a short science fiction novel by Algis Budrys, published in 1960. ... Sir Arthur Charles Clarke, CBE (born 16 December 1917) is a British science-fiction author and inventor, most famous for his novel 2001: A Space Odyssey, and for collaborating with director Stanley Kubrick on the film of the same name. ... Fans and scholars of 2001: A Space Odyssey refer to the mysterious big, black slab as The Monolith. ... Sir Arthur Charles Clarke, CBE (born 16 December 1917) is a British science-fiction author and inventor, most famous for his novel 2001: A Space Odyssey, and for collaborating with director Stanley Kubrick on the film of the same name. ... Rama is a mysterious extraterrestrial vessel that is the subject and setting of the science-fiction novel Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C. Clarke, and the later sequel trilogy by Clarke and Gentry Lee: Rama II, Garden of Rama, and Rama Revealed. ... Sir Arthur Charles Clarke, CBE (born 16 December 1917) is a British science-fiction author and inventor, most famous for his novel 2001: A Space Odyssey, and for collaborating with director Stanley Kubrick on the film of the same name. ... Sunstorm is a science fiction novel by Arthur C. Clarke. ... Michael Crichton (born October 23, 1942, pronounced [1]) is an American author, film producer, film director, and television producer. ... Sphere is a science fiction novel written by Michael Crichton and published in 1987. ... Philip José Farmer (born January 26, 1918) is an American author, principally known for his science fiction and fantasy novels and short stories. ... Riverworld is a fictional universe and the setting for a series of science fiction books written by Philip José Farmer. ... Peter F. Hamilton Peter F. Hamilton Peter F. Hamilton (born 1960, Rutland, England), is a British science fiction author. ... British author Peter F. Hamiltons The Nights Dawn Trilogy consists of three epic science fiction novels: The Reality Dysfunction (1996), The Neutronium Alchemist (1997), and The Naked God (1999). ... Peter F. Hamilton Peter F. Hamilton Peter F. Hamilton (born 1960, Rutland, England), is a British science fiction author. ... This article or section needs copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone and/or spelling. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Ringworld is a Hugo and Nebula award-winning 1970 science fiction novel by Larry Niven, set in his Known Space universe. ... Frederik George Pohl, Jr. ... The Heechee are a fictional alien race from the science fiction works of Frederik Pohl. ... Robert Reed (born October 9, 1956) is an American (Lincoln, Nebraska-based) science fiction author. ... Marrow is a science fiction novel created by author Robert Reed that was first published in 2000. ... Alastair Reynolds (born in 1966 in Barry, South Wales) is a Welsh science fiction author. ... Revelation Space is a 2000 hard science fiction space opera novel by Welsh author Alastair Reynolds. ... Bob Shaw (December 31, 1931 - February 12, 1996) was a British science fiction author and fan. ... Orbitsville (ISBN 0-330-25013-2), published in 1975, is a science fiction novel by Bob Shaw about the discovery of a Dyson Sphere. ... A cut-away diagram of an idealized Dyson shell—a variant on Dysons original concept—1 AU in radius. ... Charles Sheffield (June 25, 1935 – November 2, 2002), was an English-born mathematician, physicist and science fiction author. ... The Heritage Universe is a fictional setting created by Charles Sheffield for a series of science fiction novels. ... Clifford Donald Simak ( August 3, 1904 - April 25, 1988) was an American science fiction author. ... 1949 (MCMXLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1949 calendar). ... Robert Charles Wilson (born 1953) is a contemporary science fiction author. ... Spin is a science fiction novel by author Robert Charles Wilson. ... Alien; for other films/spin-offs see Alien (film series) Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Alien (film) Alien, a 1979 science fiction/horror film directed by Ridley Scott, became a cultural phenomenon. ... The Fifth Element (1997) is a science fantasy, action, comedy, techno thriller film, written and directed by Luc Besson, starring Bruce Willis, Gary Oldman, Milla Jovovich, Ian Holm, and Chris Tucker. ... The Vorlons are a fictional alien race in the Babylon 5 universe. ... Babylon 5 is an epic American science fiction television series created, produced, and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. ... The TNT promotional poster for Thirdspace Babylon 5: Thirdspace (1998) is a made-for-television movie that is part of the Babylon 5 science fiction franchise. ... The current TARDIS prop as seen at the BBC Wales reception in 2005. ... Doctor Who is a long-running award-winning British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The series depicts the adventures of a mysterious time-traveller known as the Doctor who travels in his TARDIS (Time And Relative Dimension(s) In Space) time ship, which appears from the exterior... The Chodak are a fictional, non-canonical race of aliens in the Star Trek universe. ... The title as it appeared in most episodes opening credits. ... A cut-away diagram of an idealized Dyson shell—a variant on Dysons original concept—1 AU in radius. ... The title as it appeared in most episodes opening credits. ... Relics is the fourth episode of the sixth season of Star Trek: The Next Generation. ... Time travel is a concept that has long fascinated humanity—whether it is Merlin experiencing time backwards, or religious traditions like Mohammeds trip to Jerusalem and ascent to heaven, returning before a glass knocked over had spilt its contents. ... Babylon 5 is an epic American science fiction television series created, produced, and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. ... Lost is an Emmy Award and Golden Globe-winning American serial drama television series that follows the lives of plane crash survivors on a mysterious tropical island, after a passenger jet flying between Australia and the United States crashes somewhere in the South Pacific. ... The main cast of the anime Cowboy Bebop (1998) “Animé” redirects here. ... Serialized in Magazine Z Original run 2000 – 2001 No. ... A Dragon Ball is a fictional artifact from the manga and anime Dragon Ball/Dragon Ball Z, as well as Dragon Ball GT. They also appear in the Akira Toriyama manga Dragon Boy (the proto-Dragon Ball one-shot series). ... Original run April 26, 1989 – January 31, 1996 No. ... Dragon Ball GT ) is the sequel to the anime Dragon Ball Z. It is said to stand for Grand Tour in the American adaptation by FUNimation, but may also be interpreted as Galaxy Touring, Great Touring, or Gran Turismo, depending on the Japanese source. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Various Saiyans in their Super Saiyan forms. ... The Artifact is a mysterious object on the TV series, Eureka. ... Eureka is an American science fiction television series (filmed in British Columbia, Canada) that premiered July 18, 2006, on the Sci Fi Channel. ... This is a list of fictional non-combat technology employed by the Combine empire in Half-Life 2, a 2004 first-person shooter. ... Half-Life 2 (HL2) is a science fiction first-person shooter computer game that is the sequel to Half-Life. ... Halos are fictional megastructures in the Halo video game series. ... Ringworld is a Hugo and Nebula award-winning 1970 science fiction novel by Larry Niven, set in his Known Space universe. ... Halo: Combat Evolved, or simply Halo, is a video game in the first-person shooter (FPS) genre, created by the Microsoft-owned Bungie Studios. ... The Zohar (Hebrew: זהר Splendor, radiance) is widely considered the most important work of Kabbalah, Jewish mysticism. ... Xenogears ) is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square Co. ... It has been suggested that List of Xenosaga cast members be merged into this article or section. ... Titan A.E. is a 2000 animated science fiction adventure film from Fox Animation Studios and Twentieth Century Fox. ...

See also

• Megastructure
• MacGuffin
• Xenoarchaeology

A megastructure, in science fiction and speculative (or exploratory) engineering, is an enormous self-supporting artificial construct. ... A MacGuffin (sometimes McGuffin or Maguffin) is a plot device that motivates the characters and/or advances the story, but has little other relevance to the story. ... Xenoarchaeology is a hypothetical form of archaeology concerned with the physical remains of past (but not necessarily extinct) alien cultures. ...

References