Trade shows and conventions are among the other events that draw visitors throughout the year. The best known of these is the biannual gathering of the Society of Research Technicians, Henchpersons, and Laboratory Assistants. At this convention the Society convenes to present papers, review new methods and procedures, and award their prestigious award - the "Igor" - to the year's most prominent laboratory assistant.
The convention floor at this event is open to the general public and is generally considered safe for visitors. Still we cannot recommend attendance unless you are highly motivated to visit the show, and are both agile and quick.
These things are not true of the annual trade show of the Experimental Research Fellowship, Unlimited. Typically these scientists are the employers of the above-mentioned laboratory assistants.
Visitors are not welcome at that event. You must interpret that phrase "not welcome" in the strongest possible terms, remembering that these scientists have inventive and lasting ways in which to demonstrate their preference for privacy.
Indeed, survivors of the event have described the show floor as a seething mass of individual egos, each approximately the size of an airship, each eyeing its colleagues with a mixture of disdain and dismay. The annual show gives these inventive citizens an opportunity to show off their most impressive projects of the year in savage competition. The constant threat that someone else's project may be more interesting than one's own can cause even the smallest disagreement to escalate into a lifelong feud or, more often, a very brief and dramatic incident.
Emergency calls from the convention floor are, sadly, not answered. This is due to the nature of the Fellowship's agreements with the authorities.
Many visitors gather at a respectful distance from the proceedings. From time to time these brave tourists are treated to sights like the Giant Robot Challenge, which was so widely reported in the newsreels during the gathering of 2027. In general, the balconies of the Hanging Towers are considered about as close as one should venture, and they do offer a good - and remote - view of the spectacl
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June 15th, 2012 at 1:17 am
the Hanging Towers….I missed that one, have to go back and get pictures!
September 22nd, 2012 at 1:28 am
This website is fantastic. There should be a new genre with these retro-future tales. It’s like steam punk with a future and 1940’s art deco twist. When I look at the images I think this should be part of a feature film! It’s that good!
