Boson Security

by Steven French

Although lacking a singularity at their core, boson stars are very similar to black holes in both physics and appearance. They too have immense gravity, causing light to bend around themselves, thereby creating the shadow of an event horizon, and will also trap whatever happens to venture too close. And likewise, thanks to relativistic effects, while mere years pass on the surface of such an exotic object, aeons will sweep by out beyond its tidal reach. Which, as the creature imprisoned there reflected, sadly and not for the first time, adds a whole new dimension to the understanding of loneliness. 

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STEVEN FRENCH is a retired academic living in West Yorkshire, UK. His work has appeared in various places, most recently Antipodean SF, Spank the Carp, and Suburban Witchcraft.

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