Sci-fi story about aliens with cells based on arsenic or nitrogen, poisoned by oxygenLooking for a story about a girl and her experience with technological advances throughout her life who becomes immortalShort story about planet deemed uninhabitable due to poisonous oxygen clouds around itShort Story: Space probe (Voyager?) discovered by aliens?Short story about astronauts landing on a planet of shapeshiftersLooking for a classic sci-fi short story about a boy who discovers pods growing in a fieldShort story: aliens with easy FTL travel but flintlock-type weaponsSci Fi Capital Punishment Story With Execution by Apartment DeathtrapPoul Anderson short story about sentient dolphin-like race with green bloodShort story with schizo-tech aliens and “hydrogen fusers”?

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Sci-fi story about aliens with cells based on arsenic or nitrogen, poisoned by oxygen


Looking for a story about a girl and her experience with technological advances throughout her life who becomes immortalShort story about planet deemed uninhabitable due to poisonous oxygen clouds around itShort Story: Space probe (Voyager?) discovered by aliens?Short story about astronauts landing on a planet of shapeshiftersLooking for a classic sci-fi short story about a boy who discovers pods growing in a fieldShort story: aliens with easy FTL travel but flintlock-type weaponsSci Fi Capital Punishment Story With Execution by Apartment DeathtrapPoul Anderson short story about sentient dolphin-like race with green bloodShort story with schizo-tech aliens and “hydrogen fusers”?






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margin-bottom:0;









13


















I'm looking for a science-fiction short story, probably written by either Isaac Asimov or Poul Anderson. (I was binging on short stories collections from these two authors around the same time, 5 to 10 years ago, and I'm pretty sure the story I'm looking for came from one of these books.)



I recall from this story that an alien species has met with humanity, but they originated from a very different kind of world. On their planet, life evolved in another direction, and is based on nitrogen and/or arsenic (I think, it might be something else), whereas Earth-like life is based on carbon and oxygen.



To this alien species, these elements are poison, pretty much like arsenic and nitrogen are poison to humans, and this information plays a role in the story: there is an attempted murder on an alien or a suspicion of murder attempt, maybe at a dinner party. Before that, the relationship between the two species seemed relatively okay.










share|improve this question



























  • I read it at most 10 years ago, probably only 5 ago. Sadly it won't help narrowing down the stories for these two authors. I read the wikipedia entry for "In a Good Cause" and it's not the story I'm looking for, but I wrote it on my to-read list ;)

    – Daneel
    Sep 26 at 20:44






  • 1





    @user14111: The attempt to kill to Diaboli ambassadors fails in that story. The Earth security agents delayed the Diaboli from leaving the negotiations on that day, and sent mechanical fakes out as decoys. The decoys were destroyed by the group that wanted to kill the Diaboli. The assasins were then captured and put in prison.

    – JRE
    Sep 26 at 22:14











  • @jre Thanks for the correction. Must be over 60 years since I read it. Should have reread it before I posted that comment.

    – user14111
    Sep 27 at 0:15











  • @JRE. Which strotry? It appears that the original comment is gone, and now I want to find and read it based on your description :)

    – Mad Physicist
    Sep 27 at 15:09











  • @MadPhysicist: That was "In a Good Cause-"

    – JRE
    Sep 27 at 15:24

















13


















I'm looking for a science-fiction short story, probably written by either Isaac Asimov or Poul Anderson. (I was binging on short stories collections from these two authors around the same time, 5 to 10 years ago, and I'm pretty sure the story I'm looking for came from one of these books.)



I recall from this story that an alien species has met with humanity, but they originated from a very different kind of world. On their planet, life evolved in another direction, and is based on nitrogen and/or arsenic (I think, it might be something else), whereas Earth-like life is based on carbon and oxygen.



To this alien species, these elements are poison, pretty much like arsenic and nitrogen are poison to humans, and this information plays a role in the story: there is an attempted murder on an alien or a suspicion of murder attempt, maybe at a dinner party. Before that, the relationship between the two species seemed relatively okay.










share|improve this question



























  • I read it at most 10 years ago, probably only 5 ago. Sadly it won't help narrowing down the stories for these two authors. I read the wikipedia entry for "In a Good Cause" and it's not the story I'm looking for, but I wrote it on my to-read list ;)

    – Daneel
    Sep 26 at 20:44






  • 1





    @user14111: The attempt to kill to Diaboli ambassadors fails in that story. The Earth security agents delayed the Diaboli from leaving the negotiations on that day, and sent mechanical fakes out as decoys. The decoys were destroyed by the group that wanted to kill the Diaboli. The assasins were then captured and put in prison.

    – JRE
    Sep 26 at 22:14











  • @jre Thanks for the correction. Must be over 60 years since I read it. Should have reread it before I posted that comment.

    – user14111
    Sep 27 at 0:15











  • @JRE. Which strotry? It appears that the original comment is gone, and now I want to find and read it based on your description :)

    – Mad Physicist
    Sep 27 at 15:09











  • @MadPhysicist: That was "In a Good Cause-"

    – JRE
    Sep 27 at 15:24













13













13









13


4






I'm looking for a science-fiction short story, probably written by either Isaac Asimov or Poul Anderson. (I was binging on short stories collections from these two authors around the same time, 5 to 10 years ago, and I'm pretty sure the story I'm looking for came from one of these books.)



I recall from this story that an alien species has met with humanity, but they originated from a very different kind of world. On their planet, life evolved in another direction, and is based on nitrogen and/or arsenic (I think, it might be something else), whereas Earth-like life is based on carbon and oxygen.



To this alien species, these elements are poison, pretty much like arsenic and nitrogen are poison to humans, and this information plays a role in the story: there is an attempted murder on an alien or a suspicion of murder attempt, maybe at a dinner party. Before that, the relationship between the two species seemed relatively okay.










share|improve this question
















I'm looking for a science-fiction short story, probably written by either Isaac Asimov or Poul Anderson. (I was binging on short stories collections from these two authors around the same time, 5 to 10 years ago, and I'm pretty sure the story I'm looking for came from one of these books.)



I recall from this story that an alien species has met with humanity, but they originated from a very different kind of world. On their planet, life evolved in another direction, and is based on nitrogen and/or arsenic (I think, it might be something else), whereas Earth-like life is based on carbon and oxygen.



To this alien species, these elements are poison, pretty much like arsenic and nitrogen are poison to humans, and this information plays a role in the story: there is an attempted murder on an alien or a suspicion of murder attempt, maybe at a dinner party. Before that, the relationship between the two species seemed relatively okay.







story-identification short-stories isaac-asimov poul-anderson






share|improve this question















share|improve this question













share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited Sep 27 at 14:11









TheLethalCarrot

92k38 gold badges559 silver badges595 bronze badges




92k38 gold badges559 silver badges595 bronze badges










asked Sep 26 at 19:37









DaneelDaneel

3032 silver badges7 bronze badges




3032 silver badges7 bronze badges















  • I read it at most 10 years ago, probably only 5 ago. Sadly it won't help narrowing down the stories for these two authors. I read the wikipedia entry for "In a Good Cause" and it's not the story I'm looking for, but I wrote it on my to-read list ;)

    – Daneel
    Sep 26 at 20:44






  • 1





    @user14111: The attempt to kill to Diaboli ambassadors fails in that story. The Earth security agents delayed the Diaboli from leaving the negotiations on that day, and sent mechanical fakes out as decoys. The decoys were destroyed by the group that wanted to kill the Diaboli. The assasins were then captured and put in prison.

    – JRE
    Sep 26 at 22:14











  • @jre Thanks for the correction. Must be over 60 years since I read it. Should have reread it before I posted that comment.

    – user14111
    Sep 27 at 0:15











  • @JRE. Which strotry? It appears that the original comment is gone, and now I want to find and read it based on your description :)

    – Mad Physicist
    Sep 27 at 15:09











  • @MadPhysicist: That was "In a Good Cause-"

    – JRE
    Sep 27 at 15:24

















  • I read it at most 10 years ago, probably only 5 ago. Sadly it won't help narrowing down the stories for these two authors. I read the wikipedia entry for "In a Good Cause" and it's not the story I'm looking for, but I wrote it on my to-read list ;)

    – Daneel
    Sep 26 at 20:44






  • 1





    @user14111: The attempt to kill to Diaboli ambassadors fails in that story. The Earth security agents delayed the Diaboli from leaving the negotiations on that day, and sent mechanical fakes out as decoys. The decoys were destroyed by the group that wanted to kill the Diaboli. The assasins were then captured and put in prison.

    – JRE
    Sep 26 at 22:14











  • @jre Thanks for the correction. Must be over 60 years since I read it. Should have reread it before I posted that comment.

    – user14111
    Sep 27 at 0:15











  • @JRE. Which strotry? It appears that the original comment is gone, and now I want to find and read it based on your description :)

    – Mad Physicist
    Sep 27 at 15:09











  • @MadPhysicist: That was "In a Good Cause-"

    – JRE
    Sep 27 at 15:24
















I read it at most 10 years ago, probably only 5 ago. Sadly it won't help narrowing down the stories for these two authors. I read the wikipedia entry for "In a Good Cause" and it's not the story I'm looking for, but I wrote it on my to-read list ;)

– Daneel
Sep 26 at 20:44





I read it at most 10 years ago, probably only 5 ago. Sadly it won't help narrowing down the stories for these two authors. I read the wikipedia entry for "In a Good Cause" and it's not the story I'm looking for, but I wrote it on my to-read list ;)

– Daneel
Sep 26 at 20:44




1




1





@user14111: The attempt to kill to Diaboli ambassadors fails in that story. The Earth security agents delayed the Diaboli from leaving the negotiations on that day, and sent mechanical fakes out as decoys. The decoys were destroyed by the group that wanted to kill the Diaboli. The assasins were then captured and put in prison.

– JRE
Sep 26 at 22:14





@user14111: The attempt to kill to Diaboli ambassadors fails in that story. The Earth security agents delayed the Diaboli from leaving the negotiations on that day, and sent mechanical fakes out as decoys. The decoys were destroyed by the group that wanted to kill the Diaboli. The assasins were then captured and put in prison.

– JRE
Sep 26 at 22:14













@jre Thanks for the correction. Must be over 60 years since I read it. Should have reread it before I posted that comment.

– user14111
Sep 27 at 0:15





@jre Thanks for the correction. Must be over 60 years since I read it. Should have reread it before I posted that comment.

– user14111
Sep 27 at 0:15













@JRE. Which strotry? It appears that the original comment is gone, and now I want to find and read it based on your description :)

– Mad Physicist
Sep 27 at 15:09





@JRE. Which strotry? It appears that the original comment is gone, and now I want to find and read it based on your description :)

– Mad Physicist
Sep 27 at 15:09













@MadPhysicist: That was "In a Good Cause-"

– JRE
Sep 27 at 15:24





@MadPhysicist: That was "In a Good Cause-"

– JRE
Sep 27 at 15:24










5 Answers
5






active

oldest

votes


















16



















The story you are looking for might be "Hostess" by Isaac Asimov.



The Hawkinsites are from a planet that has hydrogen cyanide in the atmosphere. The Hawkinsites need it. Part of their matabolism depends on the cyanide. While on Earth, they have a kind of "oxygen mask" that trickles a small amount of hydrogen cyanide into their respiration system through a tube that runs into the corner of the mouth.



There is a scene in the story where a Hawkinsite has supper with the human couple he is staying with on Earth. The human male of the pair is in some high position in the Earth government's security forces. He ends up taking away the Hawkinsite's cyanide cylinder to force him to explain the real reason behind the Hawkinsite's visit to the Earth. The security guy then kills the Hawkinsite after he reveals that he is there for the reason the security guy suspected.



Here's why the security guy killed the Hawkinsite:




The Hawkinsite suspected that the Earth was the source of an infection that had begun killing Hawkinsites and other intelligent beings, but not Earth humans. His suspicion was correct, and the Earth security guy knew it. Earth was not attacking the other planets. There was some intelligent parasite that lived on Earth (in humans) so humans were adapted and lived normal lives. The parasite was, however, deadly to the other races. The parasite needed humans to live and reproduce, but liked to inhabit the other races for the novelty. The security guy killed the Hawkinsite because the infection was known to the Earth government, but there was no cure. The Hawkinsite was the first alien to figure it out. The security guy killed him to keep the secret from spreading.







share|improve this answer

























  • My first thought as well.

    – Mad Physicist
    Sep 27 at 15:10






  • 1





    Thank you for finding the story I was looking for ! I'm accepting your answer since it's more detailed than @Seretba's (I upvoted both), thanks to both of you :)

    – Daneel
    Sep 30 at 7:24


















10



















The alien species might the Ymirites, brainchildren of Poul Anderson. They are a race of hydrogen breathers, who normally don't get into contact with oxygen breathers that much. In the short story Hunters of the Sky Cave, the agent of the Terran Empire Dominic Flandry is investigating an attack on the planet Vixen. The evidence seems to point to the Ymirites als culprits, but are they really?



This short story has also been expanded into a novel first published as We Claim These Stars!.






share|improve this answer

























  • This is not the story I'm looking for, but I upvoted your answer since it's a good guess !

    – Daneel
    Sep 26 at 20:46


















6



















Hostess by Asimov?



Starring alien needs low concentrations of cyanide in the air he breathes, so he carries a small cylinder of it with him, and takes a breath from time to time. However oxygen is not poisonous. He is is shot and killed at the end of the story, at the end of a dinner he had been invited to.






share|improve this answer

























  • That's the story !! Thanks a lot ! :) I mixed up some elements but it definitely rings a bell !

    – Daneel
    Sep 30 at 7:21


















6



















I think is C-Chute by Asimov.
Plot (Wikipedia):




During Earth's first interstellar war, a civilian transport traveling to Earth is captured by the Kloros, a chlorine-breathing race of intelligent beings. The ship is commandeered by two Kloros along with six human civilians as prisoners of war. The humans fall into argument and dispute, some coming to blows, with contradictory feelings on what should be done. Opinions range from a violent counteroffensive to a passive acceptance of their situation. Stuart, who has previously spent time as a guest of the Kloros, where he was provided with prosthetic hands when his own were damaged in an accident, posits that the Kloros are masters of chemistry (thus easily able to maintain an atmosphere and provide food for the captives) but less proficient at engineering, hence prefer to steal human ships to use in the war.



Only Mullen, a shy, mild-mannered, short bookkeeper, is willing to make an attempt to take back control of the ship, which he does by exiting via the C-Chute (short for "casualty chute", normally used for launching corpses for burial in space) and entering the control room via the navigational steam-tubes. He successfully kills the two Kloros by spraying them with oxygen.



As an unlikely hero, Mullen admits that he was not motivated by bravery, anger, or fear, but by homesickness for Earth (specifically his hometown, Richmond, Virginia), where he has not returned for 17 years, and that he could not face the prospect of waiting out the war in captivity when on the cusp of returning home.







share|improve this answer




















  • 3





    No dinner party in "C-Chute." Relations between Earth and the Kloros were not good up to the point where Mullen killed the two Kloros - there was a war on and the Kloros had killed the crew and at least one passenger while capturing the ship Mullen was in.

    – JRE
    Sep 27 at 7:44


















4



















Probably not the story you're looking for, but I think it's still worthy as an answer since it matches some of the elements.



The 2001 movie Evolution is a sci-fi comedy about a meteor that crashes into Earth that brings an alien lifeform that begins to evolve on Earth itself. Their molecules are nitrogen-based, and the logic is that, since carbon lifeforms are vulnerable to arsenic, then nitrogen lifeforms are vulnerable to selenium. Then they proceed to kill the aliens with Head & Shoulders because it has selenium sulfide as an ingredient. (that's one weird sponsor, but I guess it works for the plot).











share|improve this answer




















  • 1





    The OP is looking for a short story not a film.

    – TheLethalCarrot
    Sep 27 at 14:06






  • 1





    @TheLethalCarrot : There's a junior novelization (so kinda novella length) based on the movie. And it's the only one so far that has a nitrogen-based lifeform and specifically calls out arsenic. (and it's a pretty funny movie, but no murders during dinner parties that I remember). Of course, regular Head & Shoulders doesn't actually use Selenium ... that would be Selson Blue, or Head & Shoulders Clinical Strength

    – Joe
    Sep 28 at 1:34












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5 Answers
5






active

oldest

votes








5 Answers
5






active

oldest

votes









active

oldest

votes






active

oldest

votes









16



















The story you are looking for might be "Hostess" by Isaac Asimov.



The Hawkinsites are from a planet that has hydrogen cyanide in the atmosphere. The Hawkinsites need it. Part of their matabolism depends on the cyanide. While on Earth, they have a kind of "oxygen mask" that trickles a small amount of hydrogen cyanide into their respiration system through a tube that runs into the corner of the mouth.



There is a scene in the story where a Hawkinsite has supper with the human couple he is staying with on Earth. The human male of the pair is in some high position in the Earth government's security forces. He ends up taking away the Hawkinsite's cyanide cylinder to force him to explain the real reason behind the Hawkinsite's visit to the Earth. The security guy then kills the Hawkinsite after he reveals that he is there for the reason the security guy suspected.



Here's why the security guy killed the Hawkinsite:




The Hawkinsite suspected that the Earth was the source of an infection that had begun killing Hawkinsites and other intelligent beings, but not Earth humans. His suspicion was correct, and the Earth security guy knew it. Earth was not attacking the other planets. There was some intelligent parasite that lived on Earth (in humans) so humans were adapted and lived normal lives. The parasite was, however, deadly to the other races. The parasite needed humans to live and reproduce, but liked to inhabit the other races for the novelty. The security guy killed the Hawkinsite because the infection was known to the Earth government, but there was no cure. The Hawkinsite was the first alien to figure it out. The security guy killed him to keep the secret from spreading.







share|improve this answer

























  • My first thought as well.

    – Mad Physicist
    Sep 27 at 15:10






  • 1





    Thank you for finding the story I was looking for ! I'm accepting your answer since it's more detailed than @Seretba's (I upvoted both), thanks to both of you :)

    – Daneel
    Sep 30 at 7:24















16



















The story you are looking for might be "Hostess" by Isaac Asimov.



The Hawkinsites are from a planet that has hydrogen cyanide in the atmosphere. The Hawkinsites need it. Part of their matabolism depends on the cyanide. While on Earth, they have a kind of "oxygen mask" that trickles a small amount of hydrogen cyanide into their respiration system through a tube that runs into the corner of the mouth.



There is a scene in the story where a Hawkinsite has supper with the human couple he is staying with on Earth. The human male of the pair is in some high position in the Earth government's security forces. He ends up taking away the Hawkinsite's cyanide cylinder to force him to explain the real reason behind the Hawkinsite's visit to the Earth. The security guy then kills the Hawkinsite after he reveals that he is there for the reason the security guy suspected.



Here's why the security guy killed the Hawkinsite:




The Hawkinsite suspected that the Earth was the source of an infection that had begun killing Hawkinsites and other intelligent beings, but not Earth humans. His suspicion was correct, and the Earth security guy knew it. Earth was not attacking the other planets. There was some intelligent parasite that lived on Earth (in humans) so humans were adapted and lived normal lives. The parasite was, however, deadly to the other races. The parasite needed humans to live and reproduce, but liked to inhabit the other races for the novelty. The security guy killed the Hawkinsite because the infection was known to the Earth government, but there was no cure. The Hawkinsite was the first alien to figure it out. The security guy killed him to keep the secret from spreading.







share|improve this answer

























  • My first thought as well.

    – Mad Physicist
    Sep 27 at 15:10






  • 1





    Thank you for finding the story I was looking for ! I'm accepting your answer since it's more detailed than @Seretba's (I upvoted both), thanks to both of you :)

    – Daneel
    Sep 30 at 7:24













16















16











16









The story you are looking for might be "Hostess" by Isaac Asimov.



The Hawkinsites are from a planet that has hydrogen cyanide in the atmosphere. The Hawkinsites need it. Part of their matabolism depends on the cyanide. While on Earth, they have a kind of "oxygen mask" that trickles a small amount of hydrogen cyanide into their respiration system through a tube that runs into the corner of the mouth.



There is a scene in the story where a Hawkinsite has supper with the human couple he is staying with on Earth. The human male of the pair is in some high position in the Earth government's security forces. He ends up taking away the Hawkinsite's cyanide cylinder to force him to explain the real reason behind the Hawkinsite's visit to the Earth. The security guy then kills the Hawkinsite after he reveals that he is there for the reason the security guy suspected.



Here's why the security guy killed the Hawkinsite:




The Hawkinsite suspected that the Earth was the source of an infection that had begun killing Hawkinsites and other intelligent beings, but not Earth humans. His suspicion was correct, and the Earth security guy knew it. Earth was not attacking the other planets. There was some intelligent parasite that lived on Earth (in humans) so humans were adapted and lived normal lives. The parasite was, however, deadly to the other races. The parasite needed humans to live and reproduce, but liked to inhabit the other races for the novelty. The security guy killed the Hawkinsite because the infection was known to the Earth government, but there was no cure. The Hawkinsite was the first alien to figure it out. The security guy killed him to keep the secret from spreading.







share|improve this answer














The story you are looking for might be "Hostess" by Isaac Asimov.



The Hawkinsites are from a planet that has hydrogen cyanide in the atmosphere. The Hawkinsites need it. Part of their matabolism depends on the cyanide. While on Earth, they have a kind of "oxygen mask" that trickles a small amount of hydrogen cyanide into their respiration system through a tube that runs into the corner of the mouth.



There is a scene in the story where a Hawkinsite has supper with the human couple he is staying with on Earth. The human male of the pair is in some high position in the Earth government's security forces. He ends up taking away the Hawkinsite's cyanide cylinder to force him to explain the real reason behind the Hawkinsite's visit to the Earth. The security guy then kills the Hawkinsite after he reveals that he is there for the reason the security guy suspected.



Here's why the security guy killed the Hawkinsite:




The Hawkinsite suspected that the Earth was the source of an infection that had begun killing Hawkinsites and other intelligent beings, but not Earth humans. His suspicion was correct, and the Earth security guy knew it. Earth was not attacking the other planets. There was some intelligent parasite that lived on Earth (in humans) so humans were adapted and lived normal lives. The parasite was, however, deadly to the other races. The parasite needed humans to live and reproduce, but liked to inhabit the other races for the novelty. The security guy killed the Hawkinsite because the infection was known to the Earth government, but there was no cure. The Hawkinsite was the first alien to figure it out. The security guy killed him to keep the secret from spreading.








share|improve this answer













share|improve this answer




share|improve this answer










answered Sep 26 at 22:29









JREJRE

7,7041 gold badge34 silver badges39 bronze badges




7,7041 gold badge34 silver badges39 bronze badges















  • My first thought as well.

    – Mad Physicist
    Sep 27 at 15:10






  • 1





    Thank you for finding the story I was looking for ! I'm accepting your answer since it's more detailed than @Seretba's (I upvoted both), thanks to both of you :)

    – Daneel
    Sep 30 at 7:24

















  • My first thought as well.

    – Mad Physicist
    Sep 27 at 15:10






  • 1





    Thank you for finding the story I was looking for ! I'm accepting your answer since it's more detailed than @Seretba's (I upvoted both), thanks to both of you :)

    – Daneel
    Sep 30 at 7:24
















My first thought as well.

– Mad Physicist
Sep 27 at 15:10





My first thought as well.

– Mad Physicist
Sep 27 at 15:10




1




1





Thank you for finding the story I was looking for ! I'm accepting your answer since it's more detailed than @Seretba's (I upvoted both), thanks to both of you :)

– Daneel
Sep 30 at 7:24





Thank you for finding the story I was looking for ! I'm accepting your answer since it's more detailed than @Seretba's (I upvoted both), thanks to both of you :)

– Daneel
Sep 30 at 7:24













10



















The alien species might the Ymirites, brainchildren of Poul Anderson. They are a race of hydrogen breathers, who normally don't get into contact with oxygen breathers that much. In the short story Hunters of the Sky Cave, the agent of the Terran Empire Dominic Flandry is investigating an attack on the planet Vixen. The evidence seems to point to the Ymirites als culprits, but are they really?



This short story has also been expanded into a novel first published as We Claim These Stars!.






share|improve this answer

























  • This is not the story I'm looking for, but I upvoted your answer since it's a good guess !

    – Daneel
    Sep 26 at 20:46















10



















The alien species might the Ymirites, brainchildren of Poul Anderson. They are a race of hydrogen breathers, who normally don't get into contact with oxygen breathers that much. In the short story Hunters of the Sky Cave, the agent of the Terran Empire Dominic Flandry is investigating an attack on the planet Vixen. The evidence seems to point to the Ymirites als culprits, but are they really?



This short story has also been expanded into a novel first published as We Claim These Stars!.






share|improve this answer

























  • This is not the story I'm looking for, but I upvoted your answer since it's a good guess !

    – Daneel
    Sep 26 at 20:46













10















10











10









The alien species might the Ymirites, brainchildren of Poul Anderson. They are a race of hydrogen breathers, who normally don't get into contact with oxygen breathers that much. In the short story Hunters of the Sky Cave, the agent of the Terran Empire Dominic Flandry is investigating an attack on the planet Vixen. The evidence seems to point to the Ymirites als culprits, but are they really?



This short story has also been expanded into a novel first published as We Claim These Stars!.






share|improve this answer














The alien species might the Ymirites, brainchildren of Poul Anderson. They are a race of hydrogen breathers, who normally don't get into contact with oxygen breathers that much. In the short story Hunters of the Sky Cave, the agent of the Terran Empire Dominic Flandry is investigating an attack on the planet Vixen. The evidence seems to point to the Ymirites als culprits, but are they really?



This short story has also been expanded into a novel first published as We Claim These Stars!.







share|improve this answer













share|improve this answer




share|improve this answer










answered Sep 26 at 20:24









Henning KockerbeckHenning Kockerbeck

5962 silver badges4 bronze badges




5962 silver badges4 bronze badges















  • This is not the story I'm looking for, but I upvoted your answer since it's a good guess !

    – Daneel
    Sep 26 at 20:46

















  • This is not the story I'm looking for, but I upvoted your answer since it's a good guess !

    – Daneel
    Sep 26 at 20:46
















This is not the story I'm looking for, but I upvoted your answer since it's a good guess !

– Daneel
Sep 26 at 20:46





This is not the story I'm looking for, but I upvoted your answer since it's a good guess !

– Daneel
Sep 26 at 20:46











6



















Hostess by Asimov?



Starring alien needs low concentrations of cyanide in the air he breathes, so he carries a small cylinder of it with him, and takes a breath from time to time. However oxygen is not poisonous. He is is shot and killed at the end of the story, at the end of a dinner he had been invited to.






share|improve this answer

























  • That's the story !! Thanks a lot ! :) I mixed up some elements but it definitely rings a bell !

    – Daneel
    Sep 30 at 7:21















6



















Hostess by Asimov?



Starring alien needs low concentrations of cyanide in the air he breathes, so he carries a small cylinder of it with him, and takes a breath from time to time. However oxygen is not poisonous. He is is shot and killed at the end of the story, at the end of a dinner he had been invited to.






share|improve this answer

























  • That's the story !! Thanks a lot ! :) I mixed up some elements but it definitely rings a bell !

    – Daneel
    Sep 30 at 7:21













6















6











6









Hostess by Asimov?



Starring alien needs low concentrations of cyanide in the air he breathes, so he carries a small cylinder of it with him, and takes a breath from time to time. However oxygen is not poisonous. He is is shot and killed at the end of the story, at the end of a dinner he had been invited to.






share|improve this answer














Hostess by Asimov?



Starring alien needs low concentrations of cyanide in the air he breathes, so he carries a small cylinder of it with him, and takes a breath from time to time. However oxygen is not poisonous. He is is shot and killed at the end of the story, at the end of a dinner he had been invited to.







share|improve this answer













share|improve this answer




share|improve this answer










answered Sep 26 at 22:25









SeretbaSeretba

1,3763 silver badges10 bronze badges




1,3763 silver badges10 bronze badges















  • That's the story !! Thanks a lot ! :) I mixed up some elements but it definitely rings a bell !

    – Daneel
    Sep 30 at 7:21

















  • That's the story !! Thanks a lot ! :) I mixed up some elements but it definitely rings a bell !

    – Daneel
    Sep 30 at 7:21
















That's the story !! Thanks a lot ! :) I mixed up some elements but it definitely rings a bell !

– Daneel
Sep 30 at 7:21





That's the story !! Thanks a lot ! :) I mixed up some elements but it definitely rings a bell !

– Daneel
Sep 30 at 7:21











6



















I think is C-Chute by Asimov.
Plot (Wikipedia):




During Earth's first interstellar war, a civilian transport traveling to Earth is captured by the Kloros, a chlorine-breathing race of intelligent beings. The ship is commandeered by two Kloros along with six human civilians as prisoners of war. The humans fall into argument and dispute, some coming to blows, with contradictory feelings on what should be done. Opinions range from a violent counteroffensive to a passive acceptance of their situation. Stuart, who has previously spent time as a guest of the Kloros, where he was provided with prosthetic hands when his own were damaged in an accident, posits that the Kloros are masters of chemistry (thus easily able to maintain an atmosphere and provide food for the captives) but less proficient at engineering, hence prefer to steal human ships to use in the war.



Only Mullen, a shy, mild-mannered, short bookkeeper, is willing to make an attempt to take back control of the ship, which he does by exiting via the C-Chute (short for "casualty chute", normally used for launching corpses for burial in space) and entering the control room via the navigational steam-tubes. He successfully kills the two Kloros by spraying them with oxygen.



As an unlikely hero, Mullen admits that he was not motivated by bravery, anger, or fear, but by homesickness for Earth (specifically his hometown, Richmond, Virginia), where he has not returned for 17 years, and that he could not face the prospect of waiting out the war in captivity when on the cusp of returning home.







share|improve this answer




















  • 3





    No dinner party in "C-Chute." Relations between Earth and the Kloros were not good up to the point where Mullen killed the two Kloros - there was a war on and the Kloros had killed the crew and at least one passenger while capturing the ship Mullen was in.

    – JRE
    Sep 27 at 7:44















6



















I think is C-Chute by Asimov.
Plot (Wikipedia):




During Earth's first interstellar war, a civilian transport traveling to Earth is captured by the Kloros, a chlorine-breathing race of intelligent beings. The ship is commandeered by two Kloros along with six human civilians as prisoners of war. The humans fall into argument and dispute, some coming to blows, with contradictory feelings on what should be done. Opinions range from a violent counteroffensive to a passive acceptance of their situation. Stuart, who has previously spent time as a guest of the Kloros, where he was provided with prosthetic hands when his own were damaged in an accident, posits that the Kloros are masters of chemistry (thus easily able to maintain an atmosphere and provide food for the captives) but less proficient at engineering, hence prefer to steal human ships to use in the war.



Only Mullen, a shy, mild-mannered, short bookkeeper, is willing to make an attempt to take back control of the ship, which he does by exiting via the C-Chute (short for "casualty chute", normally used for launching corpses for burial in space) and entering the control room via the navigational steam-tubes. He successfully kills the two Kloros by spraying them with oxygen.



As an unlikely hero, Mullen admits that he was not motivated by bravery, anger, or fear, but by homesickness for Earth (specifically his hometown, Richmond, Virginia), where he has not returned for 17 years, and that he could not face the prospect of waiting out the war in captivity when on the cusp of returning home.







share|improve this answer




















  • 3





    No dinner party in "C-Chute." Relations between Earth and the Kloros were not good up to the point where Mullen killed the two Kloros - there was a war on and the Kloros had killed the crew and at least one passenger while capturing the ship Mullen was in.

    – JRE
    Sep 27 at 7:44













6















6











6









I think is C-Chute by Asimov.
Plot (Wikipedia):




During Earth's first interstellar war, a civilian transport traveling to Earth is captured by the Kloros, a chlorine-breathing race of intelligent beings. The ship is commandeered by two Kloros along with six human civilians as prisoners of war. The humans fall into argument and dispute, some coming to blows, with contradictory feelings on what should be done. Opinions range from a violent counteroffensive to a passive acceptance of their situation. Stuart, who has previously spent time as a guest of the Kloros, where he was provided with prosthetic hands when his own were damaged in an accident, posits that the Kloros are masters of chemistry (thus easily able to maintain an atmosphere and provide food for the captives) but less proficient at engineering, hence prefer to steal human ships to use in the war.



Only Mullen, a shy, mild-mannered, short bookkeeper, is willing to make an attempt to take back control of the ship, which he does by exiting via the C-Chute (short for "casualty chute", normally used for launching corpses for burial in space) and entering the control room via the navigational steam-tubes. He successfully kills the two Kloros by spraying them with oxygen.



As an unlikely hero, Mullen admits that he was not motivated by bravery, anger, or fear, but by homesickness for Earth (specifically his hometown, Richmond, Virginia), where he has not returned for 17 years, and that he could not face the prospect of waiting out the war in captivity when on the cusp of returning home.







share|improve this answer














I think is C-Chute by Asimov.
Plot (Wikipedia):




During Earth's first interstellar war, a civilian transport traveling to Earth is captured by the Kloros, a chlorine-breathing race of intelligent beings. The ship is commandeered by two Kloros along with six human civilians as prisoners of war. The humans fall into argument and dispute, some coming to blows, with contradictory feelings on what should be done. Opinions range from a violent counteroffensive to a passive acceptance of their situation. Stuart, who has previously spent time as a guest of the Kloros, where he was provided with prosthetic hands when his own were damaged in an accident, posits that the Kloros are masters of chemistry (thus easily able to maintain an atmosphere and provide food for the captives) but less proficient at engineering, hence prefer to steal human ships to use in the war.



Only Mullen, a shy, mild-mannered, short bookkeeper, is willing to make an attempt to take back control of the ship, which he does by exiting via the C-Chute (short for "casualty chute", normally used for launching corpses for burial in space) and entering the control room via the navigational steam-tubes. He successfully kills the two Kloros by spraying them with oxygen.



As an unlikely hero, Mullen admits that he was not motivated by bravery, anger, or fear, but by homesickness for Earth (specifically his hometown, Richmond, Virginia), where he has not returned for 17 years, and that he could not face the prospect of waiting out the war in captivity when on the cusp of returning home.








share|improve this answer













share|improve this answer




share|improve this answer










answered Sep 27 at 6:29









AstrinusAstrinus

1611 bronze badge




1611 bronze badge










  • 3





    No dinner party in "C-Chute." Relations between Earth and the Kloros were not good up to the point where Mullen killed the two Kloros - there was a war on and the Kloros had killed the crew and at least one passenger while capturing the ship Mullen was in.

    – JRE
    Sep 27 at 7:44












  • 3





    No dinner party in "C-Chute." Relations between Earth and the Kloros were not good up to the point where Mullen killed the two Kloros - there was a war on and the Kloros had killed the crew and at least one passenger while capturing the ship Mullen was in.

    – JRE
    Sep 27 at 7:44







3




3





No dinner party in "C-Chute." Relations between Earth and the Kloros were not good up to the point where Mullen killed the two Kloros - there was a war on and the Kloros had killed the crew and at least one passenger while capturing the ship Mullen was in.

– JRE
Sep 27 at 7:44





No dinner party in "C-Chute." Relations between Earth and the Kloros were not good up to the point where Mullen killed the two Kloros - there was a war on and the Kloros had killed the crew and at least one passenger while capturing the ship Mullen was in.

– JRE
Sep 27 at 7:44











4



















Probably not the story you're looking for, but I think it's still worthy as an answer since it matches some of the elements.



The 2001 movie Evolution is a sci-fi comedy about a meteor that crashes into Earth that brings an alien lifeform that begins to evolve on Earth itself. Their molecules are nitrogen-based, and the logic is that, since carbon lifeforms are vulnerable to arsenic, then nitrogen lifeforms are vulnerable to selenium. Then they proceed to kill the aliens with Head & Shoulders because it has selenium sulfide as an ingredient. (that's one weird sponsor, but I guess it works for the plot).











share|improve this answer




















  • 1





    The OP is looking for a short story not a film.

    – TheLethalCarrot
    Sep 27 at 14:06






  • 1





    @TheLethalCarrot : There's a junior novelization (so kinda novella length) based on the movie. And it's the only one so far that has a nitrogen-based lifeform and specifically calls out arsenic. (and it's a pretty funny movie, but no murders during dinner parties that I remember). Of course, regular Head & Shoulders doesn't actually use Selenium ... that would be Selson Blue, or Head & Shoulders Clinical Strength

    – Joe
    Sep 28 at 1:34















4



















Probably not the story you're looking for, but I think it's still worthy as an answer since it matches some of the elements.



The 2001 movie Evolution is a sci-fi comedy about a meteor that crashes into Earth that brings an alien lifeform that begins to evolve on Earth itself. Their molecules are nitrogen-based, and the logic is that, since carbon lifeforms are vulnerable to arsenic, then nitrogen lifeforms are vulnerable to selenium. Then they proceed to kill the aliens with Head & Shoulders because it has selenium sulfide as an ingredient. (that's one weird sponsor, but I guess it works for the plot).











share|improve this answer




















  • 1





    The OP is looking for a short story not a film.

    – TheLethalCarrot
    Sep 27 at 14:06






  • 1





    @TheLethalCarrot : There's a junior novelization (so kinda novella length) based on the movie. And it's the only one so far that has a nitrogen-based lifeform and specifically calls out arsenic. (and it's a pretty funny movie, but no murders during dinner parties that I remember). Of course, regular Head & Shoulders doesn't actually use Selenium ... that would be Selson Blue, or Head & Shoulders Clinical Strength

    – Joe
    Sep 28 at 1:34













4















4











4









Probably not the story you're looking for, but I think it's still worthy as an answer since it matches some of the elements.



The 2001 movie Evolution is a sci-fi comedy about a meteor that crashes into Earth that brings an alien lifeform that begins to evolve on Earth itself. Their molecules are nitrogen-based, and the logic is that, since carbon lifeforms are vulnerable to arsenic, then nitrogen lifeforms are vulnerable to selenium. Then they proceed to kill the aliens with Head & Shoulders because it has selenium sulfide as an ingredient. (that's one weird sponsor, but I guess it works for the plot).











share|improve this answer














Probably not the story you're looking for, but I think it's still worthy as an answer since it matches some of the elements.



The 2001 movie Evolution is a sci-fi comedy about a meteor that crashes into Earth that brings an alien lifeform that begins to evolve on Earth itself. Their molecules are nitrogen-based, and the logic is that, since carbon lifeforms are vulnerable to arsenic, then nitrogen lifeforms are vulnerable to selenium. Then they proceed to kill the aliens with Head & Shoulders because it has selenium sulfide as an ingredient. (that's one weird sponsor, but I guess it works for the plot).




















share|improve this answer













share|improve this answer




share|improve this answer










answered Sep 27 at 14:05









Arturo Torres SánchezArturo Torres Sánchez

1,9192 gold badges14 silver badges22 bronze badges




1,9192 gold badges14 silver badges22 bronze badges










  • 1





    The OP is looking for a short story not a film.

    – TheLethalCarrot
    Sep 27 at 14:06






  • 1





    @TheLethalCarrot : There's a junior novelization (so kinda novella length) based on the movie. And it's the only one so far that has a nitrogen-based lifeform and specifically calls out arsenic. (and it's a pretty funny movie, but no murders during dinner parties that I remember). Of course, regular Head & Shoulders doesn't actually use Selenium ... that would be Selson Blue, or Head & Shoulders Clinical Strength

    – Joe
    Sep 28 at 1:34












  • 1





    The OP is looking for a short story not a film.

    – TheLethalCarrot
    Sep 27 at 14:06






  • 1





    @TheLethalCarrot : There's a junior novelization (so kinda novella length) based on the movie. And it's the only one so far that has a nitrogen-based lifeform and specifically calls out arsenic. (and it's a pretty funny movie, but no murders during dinner parties that I remember). Of course, regular Head & Shoulders doesn't actually use Selenium ... that would be Selson Blue, or Head & Shoulders Clinical Strength

    – Joe
    Sep 28 at 1:34







1




1





The OP is looking for a short story not a film.

– TheLethalCarrot
Sep 27 at 14:06





The OP is looking for a short story not a film.

– TheLethalCarrot
Sep 27 at 14:06




1




1





@TheLethalCarrot : There's a junior novelization (so kinda novella length) based on the movie. And it's the only one so far that has a nitrogen-based lifeform and specifically calls out arsenic. (and it's a pretty funny movie, but no murders during dinner parties that I remember). Of course, regular Head & Shoulders doesn't actually use Selenium ... that would be Selson Blue, or Head & Shoulders Clinical Strength

– Joe
Sep 28 at 1:34





@TheLethalCarrot : There's a junior novelization (so kinda novella length) based on the movie. And it's the only one so far that has a nitrogen-based lifeform and specifically calls out arsenic. (and it's a pretty funny movie, but no murders during dinner parties that I remember). Of course, regular Head & Shoulders doesn't actually use Selenium ... that would be Selson Blue, or Head & Shoulders Clinical Strength

– Joe
Sep 28 at 1:34


















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