Anybody read this story? It's a very clever story about a man who works for the World Encyclopedia and inserts fake information. His reasoning is that it is hard to prove that something didn't happen. (Reminds me of the narration in Plan Nine From Outer Space "Can you say that it didn't happen?", although these events are somewhat more plausible).
Highly recommended. I found it "The Years Best Science Fiction" Vol 1 edited by Jonathan Strahan

On Fri, 22 Oct 2021 07:29:17 -0700, artyw2@yahoo.com wrote:

> Anybody read this story? It's a very clever story about a man who works
> for the World Encyclopedia and inserts fake information. His reasoning
> is that it is hard to prove that something didn't happen. (Reminds me of
> the narration in Plan Nine From Outer Space "Can you say that it didn't
> happen?", although these events are somewhat more plausible).
> Highly recommended. I found it "The Years Best Science Fiction" Vol 1
> edited by Jonathan Strahan

According to a summary I found, he finds that others have been
doing that before him and is inducted into their secret society.
How is that resolved?

On Friday, 22 October 2021 at 15:29:20 UTC+1, artyw2@yahoo.com wrote:
> Anybody read this story? It's a very clever story about a man who works for the World Encyclopedia and inserts fake information. His reasoning is that it is hard to prove that something didn't happen. (Reminds me of the narration in Plan Nine From Outer Space "Can you say that it didn't happen?", although these events are somewhat more plausible).
> Highly recommended. I found it "The Years Best Science Fiction" Vol 1 edited by Jonathan Strahan

In 2007, when Wikipedia had been going for six years.

Interfering with Wikipedia would have been going for...
six years.

This may have reminded me before of the satirically
imagined club that dumps major litter on the British
countryside, allegedly considering it an improvement.
This is their song.
<http://www.monologues.co.uk/Comic_Songs/Bedstead_Men.htm>

In article <a4f78881-2ab9-47d4-b862-794b6f69b3f5n@googlegroups.com>,
Robert Carnegie <rja.carnegie@excite.com> wrote:
>On Friday, 22 October 2021 at 15:29:20 UTC+1, artyw2@yahoo.com wrote:
>> Anybody read this story? It's a very clever story about a man who
>works for the World Encyclopedia and inserts fake information. His
>reasoning is that it is hard to prove that something didn't happen.
>(Reminds me of the narration in Plan Nine From Outer Space "Can you say
>that it didn't happen?", although these events are somewhat more
>plausible).
>> Highly recommended. I found it "The Years Best Science Fiction" Vol 1
>edited by Jonathan Strahan
>
>In 2007, when Wikipedia had been going for six years.
>
>Interfering with Wikipedia would have been going for...
>six years.
>
>This may have reminded me before of the satirically
>imagined club that dumps major litter on the British
>countryside, allegedly considering it an improvement.
>This is their song.
><http://www.monologues.co.uk/Comic_Songs/Bedstead_Men.htm>

Ah, yes, Flanders and Swann. "Watch the wall, my darling, when
the bedstead men go by."

--
Dorothy J. Heydt
Vallejo, California
djheydt at gmail dot com
Www.kithrup.com/~djheydt/

On Saturday, October 23, 2021 at 2:59:01 AM UTC-5, Charles Packer wrote:
> On Fri, 22 Oct 2021 07:29:17 -0700, art...@yahoo.com wrote:
>
> > Anybody read this story? It's a very clever story about a man who works
> > for the World Encyclopedia and inserts fake information. His reasoning
> > is that it is hard to prove that something didn't happen. (Reminds me of
> > the narration in Plan Nine From Outer Space "Can you say that it didn't
> > happen?", although these events are somewhat more plausible).
> > Highly recommended. I found it "The Years Best Science Fiction" Vol 1
> > edited by Jonathan Strahan
> According to a summary I found, he finds that others have been
> doing that before him and is inducted into their secret society.
> How is that resolved?

Let's just say that he finds out, that in the big picture of things, his "offenses" are rather minor.
Note that "The Secret Life Of Doors" is a work of fiction which exists in our world. It does not exist in the world of the story, except in the mind of the protagonist. So it is a real work of fiction, about a fictional work of fiction.
This is a bit like "Counterfactual" about a writer who writes alternate history. I can't remember the author and searches haven't helped.

On 24/10/21 12:40 am, Robert Carnegie wrote:
> On Friday, 22 October 2021 at 15:29:20 UTC+1, artyw2@yahoo.com
> wrote:
>> Anybody read this story? It's a very clever story about a man who
>> works for the World Encyclopedia and inserts fake information. His
>> reasoning is that it is hard to prove that something didn't happen.
>> (Reminds me of the narration in Plan Nine From Outer Space "Can you
>> say that it didn't happen?", although these events are somewhat
>> more plausible). Highly recommended. I found it "The Years Best
>> Science Fiction" Vol 1 edited by Jonathan Strahan
>
> In 2007, when Wikipedia had been going for six years. Interfering
> with Wikipedia would have been going for... six years.
>
snip
Is it easy to interfere with Wikipedia? (I doubt it). Anyway, in
relation to the actual story, your post is irrelevant. The World
Encyclopedia is updated only by the totalitarian government and the
story's protagonist was so closely supervised with regard to his work,
attitude and behaviour, that I was sure he would be caught despite his
reasoning. I enjoyed reading it but am not so enthusiastic as artyw2.

On Saturday, October 23, 2021 at 7:43:08 PM UTC-4, Titus G wrote:
> On 24/10/21 12:40 am, Robert Carnegie wrote:
> > On Friday, 22 October 2021 at 15:29:20 UTC+1, art...@yahoo.com
> > wrote:
> >> Anybody read this story? It's a very clever story about a man who
> >> works for the World Encyclopedia and inserts fake information. His
> >> reasoning is that it is hard to prove that something didn't happen.
> >> (Reminds me of the narration in Plan Nine From Outer Space "Can you
> >> say that it didn't happen?", although these events are somewhat
> >> more plausible). Highly recommended. I found it "The Years Best
> >> Science Fiction" Vol 1 edited by Jonathan Strahan
> >
> > In 2007, when Wikipedia had been going for six years. Interfering
> > with Wikipedia would have been going for... six years.
> >
> snip
> Is it easy to interfere with Wikipedia? (I doubt it). Anyway, in
> relation to the actual story, your post is irrelevant. The World
> Encyclopedia is updated only by the totalitarian government and the
> story's protagonist was so closely supervised with regard to his work,
> attitude and behaviour, that I was sure he would be caught despite his
> reasoning. I enjoyed reading it but am not so enthusiastic as artyw2.

In one of Neal Stephenson's novels, there is a sub rosa group called
the 'Secret Admirers' who work to restore online privacy by flooding
online sources with false-but-plausible biographic data about people,
so as to make identifying the real info difficult or impossible.

I've actually seen this happen in real life, with conspiracy theorists
posting nonsense, and then requoting each other in a form of
citogenesis, to the point that the real info on a topic can't be
identified from online sources.

Pt

In article <17b0b15a-55bd-4fbf-8d3e-46d930a2bdf0n@googlegroups.com>,
"artyw2@yahoo.com" <artyw2@yahoo.com> wrote:

> On Saturday, October 23, 2021 at 2:59:01 AM UTC-5, Charles Packer wrote:
> > On Fri, 22 Oct 2021 07:29:17 -0700, art...@yahoo.com wrote:
> >
> > > Anybody read this story? It's a very clever story about a man who works
> > > for the World Encyclopedia and inserts fake information. His reasoning
> > > is that it is hard to prove that something didn't happen. (Reminds me of
> > > the narration in Plan Nine From Outer Space "Can you say that it didn't
> > > happen?", although these events are somewhat more plausible).
> > > Highly recommended. I found it "The Years Best Science Fiction" Vol 1
> > > edited by Jonathan Strahan
> > According to a summary I found, he finds that others have been
> > doing that before him and is inducted into their secret society.
> > How is that resolved?
>
> Let's just say that he finds out, that in the big picture of things, his
> "offenses" are rather minor.
> Note that "The Secret Life Of Doors" is a work of fiction which exists in our
> world. It does not exist in the world of the story, except in the mind of the
> protagonist. So it is a real work of fiction, about a fictional work of
> fiction.
> This is a bit like "Counterfactual" about a writer who writes alternate
> history. I can't remember the author and searches haven't helped.

Gardner Dozois wrote a story with that title (I glanced at it and it
fits your brief description), see
<http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?293871>

--
"We have advanced to new and surprising levels of bafflement."
Imperial Auditor Miles Vorkosigan describes progress in _Komarr_.
—-----------------------------------------------------
Robert Woodward robertaw@drizzle.com

On Saturday, October 23, 2021 at 10:49:05 PM UTC-6, Robert Woodward wrote:
> In article <17b0b15a-55bd-4fbf...@googlegroups.com>,
> "art...@yahoo.com" <art...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> > On Saturday, October 23, 2021 at 2:59:01 AM UTC-5, Charles Packer wrote:
> > > On Fri, 22 Oct 2021 07:29:17 -0700, art...@yahoo.com wrote:
> > >
> > > > Anybody read this story? It's a very clever story about a man who works
> > > > for the World Encyclopedia and inserts fake information. His reasoning
> > > > is that it is hard to prove that something didn't happen. (Reminds me of
> > > > the narration in Plan Nine From Outer Space "Can you say that it didn't
> > > > happen?", although these events are somewhat more plausible).
> > > > Highly recommended. I found it "The Years Best Science Fiction" Vol 1
> > > > edited by Jonathan Strahan
> > > According to a summary I found, he finds that others have been
> > > doing that before him and is inducted into their secret society.
> > > How is that resolved?
> >
> > Let's just say that he finds out, that in the big picture of things, his
> > "offenses" are rather minor.
> > Note that "The Secret Life Of Doors" is a work of fiction which exists in our
> > world. It does not exist in the world of the story, except in the mind of the
> > protagonist. So it is a real work of fiction, about a fictional work of
> > fiction.
> > This is a bit like "Counterfactual" about a writer who writes alternate
> > history. I can't remember the author and searches haven't helped.
> Gardner Dozois wrote a story with that title (I glanced at it and it
> fits your brief description), see
> <http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?293871>

Thanks, I can probably find it at the library.

On Friday, October 22, 2021 at 9:29:20 AM UTC-5, artyw2@yahoo.com wrote:
> Anybody read this story? It's a very clever story about a man who works for the World Encyclopedia and inserts fake information. His reasoning is that it is hard to prove that something didn't happen. (Reminds me of the narration in Plan Nine From Outer Space "Can you say that it didn't happen?", although these events are somewhat more plausible).
> Highly recommended. I found it "The Years Best Science Fiction" Vol 1 edited by Jonathan Strahan

Something like this was used by Fred Saberhagen in one of his _Berserker_ stories. The Berserkers are immense
self-repairing robotic warships built millions of years ago by a vanished race, programed to seek out and destroy
all life, deployed as weapons in a war against another vanished race. What could possibly go wrong with a plan
like that? Having destroyed both races the Berserker machines go into a waiting mode and attack new sentient
species as they evolve and emerge on the galactic scene. Now it's our turn.

In the story a Berserker has engaged a human task force, boarded one of the human ships using its combat robots,
seized a variety of items including a vast "Encyclopedia Galactica", and fled into space. The human commanders
believe that the Berserker is too badly damaged to travel far, but the encyclopedia contains the location and description
of a human colony world within the Berserker's range and with resources enough to enable it to repair itself.
However, there happens to be aboard one of the editors of the encyclopedia who informs the commanders that the
Berserker is doomed because the colony world in question does not actually exist. The entry is one of the fabrications
that have been incorporated into encyclopedias since they were first invented as a protection against knock-offs. If
a publisher without their own research staff tries to print one on the cheap by copying existing encyclopedias, they
would have no way of knowing which entries were bogus, and the fact that they copied them blindly would be evidence
of their plagiarism. The editor happened to know about this particular entry because it was one he had written himself.
Mr. Saberhagen had worked on the _Encyclopedia Britannica_ as a science writer and editor and was familiar
with this practice.

Peter Wezeman
anti-social Darwinist