The pilot of an 'Emergency Dispatch Ship' delivering vital medical supplies to a colony world in urgent need of them to treat a potentially fatal sickness discovers that he has a stowaway on board. Based on a short story, 'The Cold Equations', first published in Astounding Science Fiction magazine, in August 1954; and later in Tom Godwin's short-story collection The Cold Equations & Other Stories, in 2003.

That’s the official boring description, and it’s the one I’ll stick with because there is no way to discuss this story without spoilers. Cold Equations is a famous tale, and I’m sure many of you are aware of it. This is one of the best dramatizations of it I’ve ever heard. Definitely worth 20 minutes of your time!

X Minus One was an extension of Dimension X which aired on NBC from 1950-51. The first fifteen scripts used for X Minus One were scripts used in the airing of Dimension X; however, it soon found its own little niche. The stories for the show came from two of the most popular science fiction magazines at the time; Astounding and Galaxy.

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