Project Gutenberg 2019-10-09 Public domain in the USA. 131 Fontenay, Charles L. 1917 2007 Fontenay, Charles Louis Orban, Paul 1896 1974 Conservation Produced from Worlds of If Science Fiction, April 1958 Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net "Conservation" by Charles L. Fontenay is a science fiction novella written in the mid-20th century. The narrative explores themes of technological regression and human survival in a post-apocalyptic Earth, where vast advancements in power and technology are present but largely unutilized. The story is set after a period of catastrophic warfare, presenting a society that has adopted stringent conservation measures to guard against potential threats while neglecting to fully harness their technological capabilities. The plot follows a crew led by Executive Officer John Gray as they return to Earth after a 258-year absence due to their mission to colonize a planet elsewhere in the galaxy. Upon landing, they encounter a military society that lives amidst advanced machinery yet chooses to use a rudimentary lifestyle reminiscent of earlier centuries. The crew grapples with local customs, governance, and a poorly understood legal system focused on conservation. As they uncover the motivations behind the society's apparent technological hostility, they learn that the Earth has been occupied and had a long struggle against alien invaders. Ultimately, their knowledge and skills from the Deneb III colony may offer a path to rebuilding Earth’s lost technological prowess and help restore a more sustainable future. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 74.2 (7th grade). Fairly easy to read. en Science fiction Short stories Regression (Civilization) -- Fiction Technology -- Fiction PS Text Category: Science-Fiction & Fantasy 63759 2025-07-24T06:33:57.957770 text/html 40026 2024-10-17T14:08:54 text/html 249675 2025-07-24T06:33:59.930833 application/epub+zip 248511 2025-07-24T06:33:58.330796 application/epub+zip 90080 2025-07-24T06:33:58.121793 application/epub+zip 289130 2025-07-24T06:34:01.207826 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 281883 2025-07-24T06:33:59.724784 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 123718 2022-09-27T10:02:35.711681 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 56812 2025-07-24T06:33:57.839782 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 37075 2024-10-17T14:08:54 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 17268 2025-07-24T06:34:01.371777 application/rdf+xml 26985 2025-07-24T06:33:58.200800 image/jpeg 4783 2025-07-24T06:33:58.159842 image/jpeg 386311 2025-07-24T06:33:57.971822 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