Project Gutenberg 2019-04-20 Public domain in the USA. 194 Anderson, Poul 1926 2001 Anderson, Poul William Craig, A. A. Craig, A.A. Karageorge, Michael Sanders, Winston P. Saunders, Winston P. Freas, Kelly 1922 2005 Freas, Frank Kelly Snowball Produced from Worlds of If Science Fiction, May 1955 Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net "Snowball" by Poul Anderson is a science fiction novel written in the mid-20th century. The story explores the profound implications of a groundbreaking invention by Simon Arch—a material with unprecedented electrical properties that can be easily produced at home. The narrative delves into the societal and economic upheaval that ensues as this new source of energy threatens established industries and exacerbates class tensions, reflecting on themes of individualism versus corporate power and the potential for both disaster and innovation. At the heart of "Snowball" is Simon Arch, a physicist who, alongside his wife Elizabeth, discovers a dielectric material known as capacitite, which can revolutionize energy storage and distribution. Their invention quickly attracts attention but also leads to unintended consequences as people begin to produce it on a massive scale, challenging the existing power structures. Amidst a backdrop of social unrest, Arch grapples with the ethical ramifications of his creation, which is increasingly used for both constructive and destructive purposes. The story culminates in a reflection on human resilience and adaptability as communities begin to rediscover autonomy and self-sufficiency, ultimately finding hope in the possibilities of new technologies. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 76.8 (7th grade). Fairly easy to read. en Science fiction Inventors -- Fiction Massachusetts -- Fiction Social change -- Fiction Spouses -- Fiction PS Text Category: Science-Fiction & Fantasy Category: Novels 113805 2025-07-23T12:47:42.566948 text/html 111305 2019-04-20T06:08:18 text/html 334018 2025-07-23T12:47:44.802949 application/epub+zip 334616 2025-07-23T12:47:42.979951 application/epub+zip 113381 2025-07-23T12:47:42.747928 application/epub+zip 386822 2025-07-23T12:47:46.354925 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 378585 2025-07-23T12:47:44.592893 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 157623 2022-09-26T22:28:21.500847 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 105735 2025-07-23T12:47:42.390914 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 105966 2019-04-20T06:08:18 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 20436 2025-07-23T12:47:46.482955 application/rdf+xml 29641 2025-07-23T12:47:42.832954 image/jpeg 4830 2025-07-23T12:47:42.790924 image/jpeg 42770 2019-04-20T06:08:24 application/octet-stream application/zip 511911 2019-04-20T06:08:24 application/octet-stream application/zip 513796 2025-07-23T12:47:42.586923 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia en.wikipedia