The thought war / Paul McAuley How to talk to girls at parties / Neil Gaiman Face value / Karen Joy Fowler The road not taken / Harry Turtledove The aliens who knew, I mean, everything / George Alec Effinger I am the doorway / Stephen King Recycling strategies for the inner city / Pat Murphy The 43 Antarean dynasties / Mike Resnick The gold bug / Orson Scott Card Kin / Bruce McAllister Guerrilla mural of a siren's song / Ernest Hogan Angel / Pat Cadigan The first contact with the gorgonids / Ursula K. Le Guin Sunday night yams at Minnie and Earl's / Adam-Troy Castro A midwinter's tale / Michael Swanwick Texture of other ways / Mark W. Tiedemann To go boldly / Cory Doctorow If nudity offends you / Elizabeth Moon Laws of survival / Nancy Kress What you are about to see / Jack Skillingstead Amanda and the alien / Robert Silverberg Exo-skeleton town / Jeffrey Ford Lambing season / Molly Gloss Swarm / Bruce Sterling MAXO signals / Charles Stross Last contact / Stephen Baxter