Zero for Conduct (novelette)
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| "Zero for Conduct" | |
|---|---|
| Short story by Greg Egan | |
| Country | Australia |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Science fiction |
| Publication | |
| Published in | Twelve Tomorrows |
| Media type | |
| Publication date | September 2013 |
"Zero for Conduct" is a science-fiction short story by Australian writer Greg Egan, first published in Twelve Tomorrows (a special fiction edition of MIT Technology Review) edited by Stephen Cass in September 2013. The short story was included in the anthology The Year's Best Science Fiction: Thirty-First Annual Collection edited by Gardner Dozois in July 2014 as well as the collections The Best of Greg Egan in 2019 and Instantiation in 2020.[1][2]
Latifa is an Afghan teenager living in Iran and also a chemistry prodigy, both of which leads to her being bullied in school. By playing the virtual online game ChemFactor, used to find new molecules and new configurations, she has saved much time for its clients during the past three years. In order to stay under the radar, she has changed her virtual identity five times as her accomplishments are usually rewarded by computing power by the clients. Using this computing power and lab equipment in her school, she manages to create the first superconductor at room temperature. Due to her status, she devises a plan to gain a patent for the new material as an ordinary magnet and only reveals its secret afterwards.
Translation
The short story was translated into Chinese.[1]