View source for The Cold Equations

{{Short description|Science fiction short story by Tom Godwin}}
{{About|the science fiction story|the New Twilight Zone episode based on the story|The Cold Equations (The Twilight Zone)}}
{{Infobox short story
| name                = The Cold Equations
| image               = <!-- include the [[file:]] and size -->
| caption             = 
| author              = [[Tom Godwin]]
| title_orig          = 
| translator          = 
| country             = 
| language            = 
| series              = 
| genre               = [[science fiction]]
| published_in        = [[Astounding (magazine)|''Astounding'']]
| publication_type    = magazine
| publisher           = 
| media_type          = 
| pub_date            = {{dts|1954|08}}
| english_pub_date    = 
| preceded_by         = 
| followed_by         = 
| preceded_by_italics = 
| followed_by_italics = 
}}

"'''The Cold Equations'''" is a [[science fiction]] short story by American writer [[Tom Godwin]] (1915–1980), first published in ''[[Astounding (magazine)|Astounding Magazine]]'' in August 1954. In 1970, the [[Science Fiction Writers of America]] selected it as one of the best science-fiction short stories published before 1965, and it was therefore included in ''[[The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume One, 1929–1964]]''. It has been widely anthologized and dramatized.

==Plot summary==
In the year 2178, a small Emergency Dispatch Ship (EDS) is launched from the interstellar cruiser ''Stardust'' to deliver desperately needed medicine to the frontier planet Woden. The EDS pilot, Barton, soon discovers a stowaway: 18-year-old Marilyn Lee Cross.

By law, all EDS stowaways are to be jettisoned because an EDS carries only enough fuel to complete its mission with the pilot as sole occupant; any excess mass jeopardizes the mission and pilot. Marilyn wanted merely to visit her brother Gerry on the remote planet and was unaware of the law. When she saw the "UNAUTHORIZED PERSONNEL KEEP OUT!" sign while she was sneaking onboard, she thought that at most she would have to pay a fine if caught.

Barton sadly explains to her that her additional weight would make it impossible to land safely; they would crash on the planet, killing both them and the colonists needing the medicine. After recovering from her shock and horror, and contacting Gerry, Marilyn willingly climbs into the airlock and is ejected into space.

==Development==
The story was shaped by ''[[Astounding Science Fiction]]'' editor [[John W. Campbell]], who sent "Cold Equations" back to Godwin three times before he got the version he wanted because "Godwin kept coming up with ingenious ways to save the girl!"<ref>{{cite magazine |author=Green, J.L. |author-link=Joseph L. Green |date=Fall 2006 |title=Our five days with John W. Campbell |others=[[John W. Campbell|Campbell, J.W.]] (interviewee) |magazine=[[The Bulletin of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America]] |number=171 |page=13 |url=http://www.challzine.net/23/23fivedays.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060618204513/http://www.challzine.net/23/23fivedays.html |archive-date=18 June 2006}}</ref>
Campbell's biographer [[Alec Nevala-Lee]] noted in 2016 that the story was published at a time when Campbell had embraced [[contrarianism]] on the basis that (in Campbell's words) there was "no viewpoint that has zero validity—though some have very small validity, or very limited application."
Nevala-Lee also revealed that Campbell described the story as a "gimmick on the proposition {{'}}''[[human sacrifice]] is absolutely unacceptable''{{'}}. So we deliberately, knowingly and painfully sacrifice a young, pretty girl... and make the reader accept that it is valid!"<ref name=Nevala-Lee2016>{{cite magazine |author=Nevala-Lee, A. |author-link=Alec Nevala-Lee |date=6 July 2016 |title='The Cold Equations' |magazine=[[Astounding Stories]] |volume=13|via=NevalaLee.wordpress.com |url=https://nevalalee.wordpress.com/2016/07/06/astounding-stories-13-the-cold-equations/ |access-date=7 November 2020}}</ref>

==Reception==
Richard Harter wrote a detailed analysis of the story in 1977, with special attention to the possible negligence of those who designed the situation in which dilemmas like this could occur, and how this paralleled similar concerns involving industrial safety legislation.<ref>In 1999 Richard Harter posted his 1977 critical study in a [[Usenet]] [[discussion group]], and reprinted it on a personal web page:<br/>
{{cite web |author=Harter, R. |date=December 1999 |orig-year=1977 |title='The Cold Equations': A critical study |website=RichardHartersWorld.com |url=http://www.richardhartersworld.com/cri_d/cri/1999/coldeq.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131208103213/http://www.richardhartersworld.com/cri_d/cri/1999/coldeq.html |archive-date=8 December 2013 |url-status=dead}}
:
{{cite web |author=Harter, R. |orig-year=1977 |date=30 November 1999 |title='The Cold Equations': A critical study (1977) |website=rec.arts.sf.written |url=https://groups.google.com/g/rec.arts.sf.written/c/fmkd7wjSPu0 |via=Google Groups}}</ref>

Writer [[Don Sakers]]' short story "The Cold Solution"<ref>{{cite magazine |author=Sakers, Don |date=July 1991 |title=The Cold Solution |magazine=[[Analog Science Fiction and Science Fact|Analog]] |others=[[Dell Harris (illustrator)|Harris, Dell]] (illustrations) |pages=211–219}}</ref> deconstructs the premise. In 1992 it was awarded "the readers' favorite" [[Analog Science Fiction and Science Fact|''Analog'']] short story of 1991.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Cold Solution |website=[[Internet Speculative Fiction Database]] |url=http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?47806 |access-date=29 April 2021}}</ref>

In 1996, critic and engineer [[Gary Westfahl]] wrote that because the story's premise is based on systems that were built without adequate [[factor of safety|margin for error]], the story is "good [[physics]]", but "lousy [[engineering]]", and that it frustrated him so much he decided it had been "not worth [his] time".<ref>{{cite book |first=G. |last=Westfahl |author-link=Gary Westfahl |year=1996 |title=Cosmic Engineers: A study of hard science fiction |publisher=Praeger |isbn=9780313297274}}</ref>

In 2014, writer [[Cory Doctorow]] made a similar argument: he sees the situation presented in the story as an example of a "[[moral hazard]]". Doctorow notes that the constraints under which the characters operate are decided by the writers, and not "the inescapable laws of physics". He argues that the decision of the writer to give the vessel no margin of safety and a critical supply of fuel, and to focus readers' attention onto the necessity of tough decisions at a time of crisis rather than mulling over the responsibility for proper planning from the outset, is intellectually dishonest and that this and other stories "about how we can't afford to hew to our values in time of crisis are a handy addition to every authoritarian's playbook".<ref>{{cite magazine |author=Doctorow, C. |author-link=Cory Doctorow |date=2 March 2014 |title=Cold equations and moral hazard |magazine=[[Locus (magazine)|Locus]] |department=Perspectives |url=http://www.locusmag.com/Perspectives/2014/03/cory-doctorow-cold-equations-and-moral-hazard/}}</ref> Five years later, as part of a wider essay criticizing Campbell's views, Doctorow condemned him for "lean[ing] hard" on Godwin to turn the story "into a parable about the foolishness of women and the role of men in guiding them to accept the cold, hard facts of life".<ref>{{cite magazine |author=Doctorow, C. |author-link=Cory Doctorow |date=4 November 2019 |title=Jeannette Ng was right: John W. Campbell ''was'' a fascist |magazine=[[Locus (magazine)|Locus]] |lang=en-US |url=https://locusmag.com/2019/11/cory-doctorow-jeannette-ng-was-right-john-w-campbell-was-a-fascist/ |access-date=2019-11-05}}</ref>

==Precursors==
There was a similar concept in a number of earlier stories:

''[[The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction]]'' points to ''[[A Plunge into Space]]'' ([[Robert Cromie]], 1890)<ref>{{cite book |url=https://static.torontopubliclibrary.ca/da/pdfs/37131098477466d.pdf |title=A Plunge into Space |author=Cromie, Robert |author-link=Robert Cromie |date=1890 |publisher=Frederick Warne and Co. |location=London |access-date=28 April 2021}}</ref> as having a subplot very similar to "The Cold Equations".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/cromie_robert |title=Cromie, Robert |date=November 13, 2019 |website=The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction |access-date=29 April 2021}}</ref> "A Weighty Decision" ([[Al Feldstein]] in [[Weird Science (comics)|''Weird Science'']], 1952)<ref>{{cite magazine |title=A Weighty Decision |author=Feldstein, Al |author2=Wood, Wally (pencils) |date=May 1952 |magazine=Weird Science |volume=1 |number=13}}</ref> and the story "Precedent" ([[Edwin Charles Tubb|E. C. Tubb]] in [[New Worlds (magazine)|''New Worlds'']], 1952)<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://archive.org/details/New_Worlds_015v05_1952-05/page/n29/mode/2up |title=Precedent |author=Gray, Charles |author2=Clothier (illus.) |author1-link=Edwin Charles Tubb |date=May 1952 |magazine=New Worlds |volume=5 |number=15 |access-date=28 April 2021 |pages=28–39}}</ref> also have been cited as potential inspirations. In all three, as in "The Cold Equations", a stowaway must be ejected from a spaceship because the fuel aboard is only sufficient for the planned mission mass.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/nonfiction/the-cold-legacies/ |title=The Cold Legacies |author=Brotherton, Mike |date=July 2011 |magazine=Lightspeed |access-date=28 April 2021}}</ref>

[[David Drake]] stated "The plot is lifted directly from 'A Weighty Decision,' a story in the May–June, 1952, issue of the EC [[Weird Science (comics)|comic ''Weird Science'']]. I don't believe that coincidence could have created plots so similar in detail" and ends with "The plot is such an obvious steal from the comic that I think Godwin would have concealed it better if he hadn't intended to use a completely different ending. I can also imagine that Godwin wouldn't have expressed his qualms at changing the ending to Campbell, who wouldn't have winked at direct plagiarism. (Not that EC had any legitimate gripe: [[Bill Gaines]] laughed in later years about the way he and his staff at EC stole plots from SF stories and ran them without credit.)"<ref>Godwin, Tom (2003). ''The Cold Equations & Other Stories''. "Afterword: Sometime It All Works". {{ISBN|9780743436014}}.</ref>

==Dramatic adaptations==
===Radio plays===
* The story was also adapted into an episode of the radio program ''[[X Minus One]]'' in 1955. In a 1958 episode of ''[[Exploring Tomorrow]]'', the stowaway is a woman trying to visit her husband to make amends for an affair.
* Another adaptation featured as a part of ''Faster Than Light'' on [[CBC Radio]]'s ''Sunday Showcase'' in September 2002 by Joe Mahoney. The program was hosted by science fiction writer [[Robert J. Sawyer]].

===Film and television===
* An adaptation of the story aired on the 1962 British [[anthology television series|anthology]] series ''[[Out of This World (British TV series)|Out of This World]]'' and starred [[Peter Wyngarde]] and [[Jane Asher]].  The episode was [[Lost television broadcast#Wiping|lost]] soon after broadcast, but an audio-only recording has survived and is available on DVD.<Ref>[https://www.amazon.co.uk/This-World-Boris-Karloff-Host/dp/B00M0NASW0/ref=sr_1_1?crid=33T21FVRURCFI&keywords=out+of+this+world&qid=1666337250&qu=eyJxc2MiOiIzLjA5IiwicXNhIjoiMi44NCIsInFzcCI6IjIuOTAifQ%3D%3D&s=dvd&sprefix=out+of+th%2Cdvd%2C73&sr=1-1 Out of This World (DVD)]</ref><Ref>[https://www.cinemaparadiso.co.uk/rentals/out-of-this-world-172833.html DVD details] at [[Cinema Paradiso]]</ref>
* [[The Cold Equations (The Twilight Zone)|Another television adaptation]] aired as part of the  [[The Twilight Zone (1985 TV series)|1985–1989 revival]] of ''[[The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)|The Twilight Zone]]''.
*Episode 8 of the anime ''[[Martian Successor Nadesico]]'' is named for and takes elements from the story.
* The story formed the basis for a 1996 [[made-for-TV movie]] starring [[Billy Campbell]] and [[Poppy Montgomery]], which aired on the [[Sci Fi Channel (United States)|Sci-Fi Channel]].<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115921/ | title=The Cold Equations (TV Movie 1996) - IMDb | website=[[IMDb]] | accessdate=September 23, 2015}}</ref>
* It is the basis of the award-winning 2014 short film, "The Stowaway",<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4131856/ The Stowaway]</ref> which was released on [[YouTube]].<ref>{{YouTube |id=9VkUjGQuSuA |title=Sci-Fi Short film 'The Stowaway' {{!}} DUST}}</ref>
* A similar premise is used for the 2021 film ''[[Stowaway (2021 film)|Stowaway]]''.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://observer.com/2021/04/stowaway-netflix-review-the-cold-equations/ |title=How 'Stowaway' Solves a 67-Year Old Sci-Fi Problem |author=Berlatsky, Noah |date=April 22, 2021 |work=Observer |access-date=28 April 2021}}</ref>

==Awards==
Tied for 9th place in ''Astounding/Analog'' magazine's 1971 All-Time Poll short fiction category.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/AsfAT1971.html |title=1971 Astounding/Analog All-Time Poll |author=<!--Not stated--> |work=Locus |via=[[Wayback Machine]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080706071900/http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/AsfAT1971.html |access-date=December 8, 2019|archive-date=2008-07-06 }}</ref>

Placed 8th in the 1999 [[Locus Awards]] for best novelette.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/LocusAT1999.html |title=1999 Locus All-Time Poll |author=<!--Not stated--> |work=Locus |via=[[Wayback Machine]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080706082409/http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/LocusAT1999.html |access-date=December 8, 2019|archive-date=2008-07-06 }}</ref>

==Publication history==

Original publication:
* {{cite magazine |url=https://archive.org/details/Astounding_v53n06_1954-08_Sirius-Starhome/page/n59/mode/2up |title=The Cold Equations |first1=Tom |last1=Godwin |last2=Freas (illus.) |author1-link=Tom Godwin |author2-link=Kelly Freas |date=August 1954 |volume=LIII |number=6 |magazine=Astounding Science Fiction |publisher=Street & Smith Publications |location=New York City |pages=62–84}}
 
The following anthologies have included "The Cold Equations":

*''[[The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume One, 1929–1964]]'' (1970) edited by [[Robert Silverberg]].
*''Modern Science Fiction'' ([[Doubleday (publisher)#Imprints|Anchor Books]], 1974) edited by [[Norman Spinrad]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.sfadb.com/Spinrad_Modern_SF  |title=Modern Science Fiction |date=August 23, 2014 |website=Science Fiction Awards Database}}</ref>
*''In Dreams Awake: A Historical-Critical Anthology of Science Fiction'' (Dell, 1975) edited by [[Leslie A. Fiedler]].
*''[[The Road to Science Fiction#Volume 3: From Heinlein to Here|The Road to Science Fiction #3: From Heinlein to Here]]'' ([[Signet Books|Signet]], 1979) edited by [[James E. Gunn (writer)|James E. Gunn]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.sfadb.com/Gunn_Road_SF_3 |title=The Road to Science Fiction #3: From Heinlein to Here |date=August 21, 2014 |website=Science Fiction Awards Database}}</ref>
*''[[Issac Asimov Presents The Great SF Stories 16 (1954)|The Great SF Stories: 16 (1954)]]'' ([[DAW Books]], 1987) edited by [[Isaac Asimov]], [[Martin H. Greenberg]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sfadb.com/Asimov_GreatSF |title=Asimov/Greenberg: Great SF Stories |date=November 28, 2018 |website=Science Fiction Awards Database}}</ref>
*''[[The Ascent of Wonder: The Evolution of Hard SF]]'' ([[Tor Books]], 1994) edited by [[David G. Hartwell]] and [[Kathryn Cramer]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sfadb.com/Hartwell_Cramer_Ascent |title= The Ascent of Wonder: The Evolution of Hard SF |date=August 19, 2014 |website=Science Fiction Awards Database}}</ref>
*''[[The World Turned Upside Down (anthology)|The World Turned Upside Down]]'' ([[Baen Books]], 2005) edited by [[David Drake]], [[Eric Flint]] and [[Jim Baen]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.sfadb.com/Drake_World_Upside_Down |title=The World Turned Upside Down |date=August 23, 2014 |website=Science Fiction Awards Database}}</ref>

==See also==
{{portal|Novels|Science fiction|Spaceflight}}
* [[Factor of safety]]
* [[Trolley problem]]
* [[Tunnel problem]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{isfdb title|id=55860|short=yes}}
* [https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/the-cold-equations/ Text of the story], at ''[[Lightspeed (magazine)|Lightspeed]]''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cold Equations, the}}
[[Category:1954 short stories]]
[[Category:Science fiction short stories]]
[[Category:Short stories about stowaways]]
[[Category:Works set in the 2170s]]
[[Category:Works originally published in Analog Science Fiction and Fact]]