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Petard

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Is this really what MIT is like? Or, rather, what it will be like in ten years or so?

I’m talking about Cory Doctorow’s science fiction story, “Petard: A Tale of Just Deserts.” Perhaps, like the author of an otherwise competent review, you are confused by the word petard, so I’d better take a quick detour to comment on it. Like many people, I had first heard it in the phrase hoist by your own petard, and I wondered at the time what a petard is.

So, of course, I looked it up:

A petard is a small, bell-shaped explosive device used in warfare, primarily to breach fortifications like gates and walls. It’s a type of ancient bomb that was used to force an opening through a door or wall. The term “petard” also appears in the idiom “hoist with his own petard,” which means being harmed or destroyed by one’s own plan or action.

Now that we’ve cleared that up, you’re wondering what’s special about this story. After all, I don’t normally review stories. Books yes, but not short stories. Well, I happen to know a large number of MIT alums, even though I am not one myself. Among them, my friend Brian would probably approve of this story, IMHO — though I’ll have to ask him how realistic it is, keeping in mind that it’s science fiction, so it’s not likely to be literally realistic. Also, of course, it takes place in the future, so no one can really judge how realistic it is.

By this point you’ve realized that I’m not going to tell you what the story is about! That’s because I don’t know how to do so without committing spoilers. The story is not very long, so just read it or listen to it yourself. You can do the latter in three parts, which include the entire story as well as an intro and related commentary:

OK, so I lied: apparently it’s four parts, not three. But who’s counting? Three is close enough for science fiction, as they say.

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