# Another Short SF story ID thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 24, 2014, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-short-sf-story-id-thread/696389 "2014-08-24T17:26:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2014, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-short-sf-story-id-thread/696389/1 "2014-08-24T17:26:08Z")
Earth and her colonies are at war with a nasty enemy. As a last act of desperation, they take the Sol system and their other colonized systems _into_ hyperspace and slam the door behind them. They’re safe from the aliens forever, but these few system are all they’re ever going to have. ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2014, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-short-sf-story-id-thread/696389/2 "2014-08-27T19:09:32Z")
Was it maybe “Avoidance Situation” by James V. McConnell? Looks like that story originally in appeared in _If_ magazine back in 1956, but it was more recently anthologized in an early '80’s collection called [_Starships_](http://www.abebooks.com/STARSHIPS-Asimov-Isaac-Martin-Greenberg-Charles/1198944189/bd) (edited by Isaac Asimov, and Martin H. Greenberg and Charles G. Waugh). IIRC, the details aren’t an exact match–in the story, Earth is not actually at war–rather, it’s a “first contact” situation; an Earth starship encounters a ship from a vastly more powerful race who gives them an ultimatum (the entire human race must submit to being slaves of the alien empire or be destroyed). But it does have the element of “hiding whole systems in hyperspace”–the humans realize that by a quirk of technological development we have an FTL drive that uses a completely different principle from that of the alien ship, which leads to the “hide out in hyperspace” conclusion. ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2014, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-short-sf-story-id-thread/696389/3 "2014-08-28T02:35:06Z")
That could be it. I used to buy the Asimov/Greenberg anthologies on a pretty regular basis. I don’t know if I have that one still (or ever) because I’ve got a LOT of books. Thanks and I’ll come back if it is. ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2014, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-short-sf-story-id-thread/696389/4 "2014-08-28T02:56:00Z")
That is indeed it!! Not on my regular shelf, but in musty box in the basement. Thank you, sir. I’ve been trying to run that one down for some time. ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2014, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-short-sf-story-id-thread/696389/5 "2014-08-28T03:01:16Z")
Glad I could help!