Laboratory for Xenobiological Research— A lab on Down where circa 2646 Garvey discussed Grogs with Dr. Fuller. ["The Handicapped"]

languages— see Heroes' Tongue, Interworld, translator, Wunderlander

Laskin, Peter and Sonya— The Human crew of the first attempt of a flyby survey of neutron star BVS-1, in 2641. They did not survive. ["Neutron Star"]

Lazy Eight II— A slowboat colony vessel, intended destination Sirius (Jinx). Apparently an early, failed experimental attempt at a safe ramscoop vessel, it was shaped like a circular flying wing. It had a crew of four and 50 passengers in suspended animation. Probably launched some years prior to 2106 [1], it never slowed on approaching Sirius. The Outsiders found it and traded information on its location, negotiating with Beowulf Shaeffer. The date of this trade is unclear, but probably was before 2641 [2]. Note the name "Lazy Eight" is a reference to the infinity symbol (). ["Flatlander"]

Editorial Note: Continuity

Lensman— Beowulf Shaeffer took passage on this starship in 2645, traveling from Jinx to Earth. ["Flatlander"]

Editorial Note: Literary

life expectancy— Boosterspice was first marketed circa 2325. But longevity in Human Space predates boosterspice; by 2385, Human medical science was so advanced there were men and women on Earth approaching 400 years old [3]. Theoretically, an advanced autodoc could keep someone young indefinitely. By by 2878, visible signs of aging were so rare as to be almost unknown in Human space [4]; and by 2882, boosterspice had kept some hale and sapient for 500 years, sometimes more. ["The Ethics of Madness", The Ringworld Throne: Prologue]

lifesystem— The inhabitable area of a spaceship. On one safe ramscoop starship in 2354, the lifesystem could be released as an escape pod. ["The Ethics of Madness"]

"Lift Belt" by James Clouse copyright © 1994, Bill Fawcett & Associates

lift belt— A device which, by 2641, was used by Humans to "fly". The lift motor was worn on the back, wth controls mounted on the chest. Lift motors had a standardized power output. Presumably lift is provided by antigravity, although this is undocumented. Thrust is felt by the user. See also flycycle. ["Neutron Star", "A Relic of the Empire", "Flatlander"]

lift unit— A device which, by 2647, was used on human-built cars, allowing them to "fly". Presumably antigravity provides the lift, but this is undocumented. See also lift belt. ["Grendel"]

light-sail— A method of space propulsion using light pressure on a very large, very thin parachute-like "sail" to gently propel a spaceship. Light-sails may be driven by natural sunlight/ starlight, or with laser cannon. Starseeds are propelled by light-sail, and in Human space in the era before hyperdrive technology, ramscoops were accelerated to minimum operating velocity using light-sails driven by laser cannon [5]. ["Madness Has Its Place", "Grendel"]

Lindstrom, Piet— Human male, in 2647 an associate of Larchmont Bellamy. [Spoiler alert: "Grendel"] He was an accomplice in the kidnapping of Lloobee. ["Grendel"]

liquor & alcoholic drinks— see Bloody Marriage, Blue Fire 2728, Verguuz

Little Mira— The smaller star of Mira, a binary pair. See Mira Ceti-T. ["A Relic of the Empire"]

Lloobee Copyright © 1997 by The Icon Factory

Lloobee— A famous Kdatlyno touch-sculpture artist. [Spoiler alert: "Grendel"] In 2647 he was kidnapped from the Argos, and later freed by negotiation with his kidnappers. In 2649 the Institute of Knowledge on Jinx displayed a series of normal sculptures (not touch-sculptures) by Lloobee, relating to his kidnapping. See "Grendel" (story summary). ["Grendel"]

Loeffler, Greg— Human male Flatlander, designer of the first safe ramscoop starship, completed 2326. An employee of Skyhook Enterprises and an associate of Douglas Hooker. [Spoiler alert: "The Ethics of Madness"] In 2354 he left Earth with his wife Joanna, his daughter Marcia and her husband Tom, moving to Plateau. Later his family was murdered by Hooker, whom he engaged in a deadly chase using safe ramscoop ships, moving at near-lightspeed into the far future. ["The Ethics of Madness"]

Loeffler, Joanna— Human female Flatlander, Greg Loeffler's wife. ["The Ethics of Madness"]

Loeffler, Marcia— Human female Flatlander, Greg Loeffler's daughter. ["The Ethics of Madness"]

Lois— Human female Downer, with whom Garvey had dinner circa 2646. ["The Handicapped"]

Detail of Long Shot above the Ringworld by Stephan Martiniere, copyright © 2004

Long Shot— A prototype Quantum II hyperdrive starship completed in 2645, and as late as 2893 believed to be the only one. The experimental hyperdrive was so large that even using the enormous No. 4 General Products hull, the living quarters were cramped and spartan, lacking artificial gravity generators, with room for only a single pilot. A Puppeteer executive of General Products said it cost seven billion stars and centuries of research to complete. Named the Long Shot by Beowulf Shaeffer, who in 2645 piloted it on a mission to survey the galactic core. [Spoiler alert: Ringworld] In 2850 Louis Wu piloted it to the Fleet of Worlds at the start of the First Ringworld Expedition. ["At the Core", Ringworld chs. 4-5]

Los Angeles— One of Earth's three spaceports in 2645, with a population of 64 million. Beowulf Shaeffer landed there after traveling from Jinx. ["Flatlander"]

Loughery— Human male Flatlander, a UN agent who in 2367 investigated an apparent theft of a safe ramscoop starship, which turned out to be Douglas Hooker's unauthorized takeoff. He later moved to Plateau, arriving in 2386. ["The Ethics of Madness"]

A city on Luna: "City Lights" by Chris Butler Copyright © 1995

Luna— Earth's moon.

"Lying Bastard", copyright © 2008 by Aerospace Imagineering & Aldo Spadoni

Lying Bastard— The starship which carried the First Ringworld Expedition to the Ringworld. [Ringworld]

Footnotes

[2] Beowulf Shaeffer says "I was almost to Wunderland, and I caught the offer. When I dropped my passengers, I went back" ("Flatlander", Neutron Star p. 145). Clearly this happened when Bey was piloting a passenger starship, as he did for Nakamura Lines until sometime in 2640-1. There's no indication he ever piloted a passenger starship after that.

[3] "The oldest living man had been short of four hundred years old when that machine [an autodoc] was made" ("The Ethics of Madness", Neutron Star p. 206).

[4] "The City Builder woman climbed briskly... But her hands and face were wrinkled as if worn too long. [paragraph] An unsettling sight. Louis wasn't used to that. Intellectually he knew what it was: the sign of age..." (Ringworld Engineers ch. 19, p. 187).

[5] "...giant laser cannon in the outer asteroids. These had been used to launch light-sail craft to Bussard ramjet speeds..." (interstitial notes, Tales of Known Space p. 153)