Science fiction has been defined in many different ways over the years, although no clear definition has emerged. There are many different aspects to science fiction and what it consists of. The most popular and recognizable features are science, technology, time travel, scientific method, different worlds, and catastrophe. Including them helps the reader identify the story as a work of science fiction. Since the main focus of science fiction is science, it is natural that it becomes the main focus of the story. How an author decides to describe the use of science varies greatly from story to story. Some may choose to use science in a positive way, while others may show the negative impacts science could have. In Ursula Le Guin's “Nine Lives” and Nathaniel Hawthorne's “Rappaccini's Daughter,” each author shows how characters can be connected or separated by science. “Nine Lives” is a story that takes place on the planet Libra, where two men, Pugh and Martin, go to work. There they are joined by a Tenclone, a group of ten clones sent to aid them in their mission. They are created from human cells and are able to perform tasks much more quickly and efficiently than humans. Ultimately, nine of the ten clones die, leaving Kaph as the only remaining clone. Le Guin leads the reader to believe that clones can have feelings, and ultimately shows the connection between the three main characters. In “Nine Lives,” the reader knows that the clones are not real, but a product of science. This leads the reader to wonder whether or not this product of science is capable of feelings. Darko Suvin states that Le Guin's writing “lies in the search and outline of a new collectivist system of no more alienation... middle of paper......awthorne, the important aspect of her story is for readers understand that science, if used improperly, can destroy relationships. Works Cited Huntington, John. "Public and Private Imperatives in Le Guin's Novels." Studies in Science Fiction 2.3 (1975): 237-243. JSTOR. Network. November 3, 2011. Rosenberry, Edward H. “Hawthorne's Allegory of Science: 'Rapaccini's Daughter.'” American Literature 32.1 (1960): 39-46. JSTOR. Network. November 3, 2011. Suvin, Darko. “Parables of Disalienation: Le Guin's Dance of the Widdershins.” Studies in Science Fiction 2.3 (1975): 265-274. JSTOR. Network. November 3, 2011. Uroff, M.D. “The Doctors in 'Rappaccini's Daughter'.” Nineteenth-Century Fiction 27.1 (1972): 61-70. JSTOR. Network. November 3, 2011.Le Guin, Ursula. “Nine lives”. 2011. PDF file. Hawthorne, Nathaniel. “Rapaccini's daughter”. Electronic Text Center, University of Virginia, n.d. Web. 8 November. 2011.