Eight fabulous sci-fi stories from 1952 – 1958. In this volume: Student Body, F.L. Wallace: Earth colonists on the planet Glade battle an ever-changing ‘omnimal’ which can mutate and reproduce in order to combat any threat. Crucifixus Etiam, Walter M. Miller: Manue Nanti has contracted to work on Mars for five years to save a decent ‘nest egg’. But it seems that the company that employs him and others have not been exactly truthful…  Noise Level, Raymond F. Jones: In their effort to discover anti-gravity,  Dr. Martin Nagle and Kenneth Berkeley discover new laws of nature, and a new way of learning -but refuse to disclose their findings unless they can obtain patents on their discoveries. Grandpa, James H. Schmitz: Teenager Cord is with the Colonial Team on the outback world of Sutang and often ducks work to go exploring. His local leader wants to send him home – but a visit from the Planetary Regent may be his big chance to impress those who control his destiny.  Mother of Invention, Tom Godwin: Five fortune hunters are marooned on Aurora – a hitherto-unknown world full of diamonds. But the world only has seven months of existence left…  The Far Look, Theodore L. Thomas: Two astronauts return from the Moon prematurely aged and scientists can find no logic for the transformation. Big Sword, Paul Ash (Pauline Ashwell): A tale of biology, telepathy and space exploration in a first contact/coming of age story.  Commencement Night, Richard Ashby: A group of babies are isolated on a Pacific island and allowed to develop independent of human contact and interference in hopes the secret of eliminating man’s warlike tendencies can be deduced. But what happens when an alien interferes?