"Beyond the End of Time" edited by Frederik Pohl

Beyond the End of Time was a very influential book for the field in the early 1950s for several reasons. First, it was probably the first anthology of obviously science fiction genre stories to be readily available in bookstores and on newsstands in a low-cost but durable format. There were other modern science fiction anthologies in print, notably the ones Groff Conklin edited, but they were large, hardbound books, whereas this one was pocket-sized and only cost 35 cents. It lent something of an air of respectability to stories that had originally appeared, for the most part, in large and lurid pulp magazines, yet it was quite accessible and sold quite well. It inspired other publishers to bring out their sf lines.

"The Hunted" by  John D MacDonald: alien overlords hunt feral men on a conquered earth.  Trite now but probably arresting to readers at the time, and solidly written.  "Heredity" aka "Twins by Isaac Asimov: a pair of identical twins, Allen and George Carter, have been separated at birth as part of a twin study to settle the nature versus nurture question. Allen is raised on a highly developed Earth, while George has been raised in the provincial frontier society of Ganymede. On their twenty-fifth birthday, they are introduced to each other and given the task of running the family farm on Mars, where they have to work together in both day-to-day matters and unusual events. They find that they are forced to co-operate and also utilise 'primitive' technology in order to survive a major dust storm. After their initial mutual dislike, they develop a deep friendship.  "Rock Diver" by Harry Harrison, originally entitled "I Walk Through Rock" is about miners, claim-jumping, and a most unusual method for digging through rock. "The Little Black Bag" by CM Kornbluth: a doctor in the far future sends his medical bag by mistake to our present and quickly forgets about it.  It is found by Dr. Full, a former doctor who was forced to retire in disgrace and turned to heavy drinking.  He scams the tenants of a poor quarter for money to fuel his thirst.  But when the bag appears in his room and he successfully treats a little girl, he begins to hope that he could start helping people again.  Unfortunately, he is blackmailed by the girl’s sister, Angie, who realized the bag isn’t his and threatens to report him to the police.  She first tries to sell the bag, and when there are no takers, she forces Full to partner with her to run a clinic.  Full not only recovers from alcoholism, but becomes a highly respected doctor, able to help all his patients.  However, he is an idealist, and so he decides to present the bag to the medical council upon his retirement.  Angie has different plans.  “The Lonely Planet” by Murray Leinster is somewhat expository in nature, but gives us the unique concept of a planet that is a single gigantic, living organism, and shows how poorly mankind might treat such a marvel. John Wyndhams "Operation Peep" aka "Pawley's Peephole" deals with the amusing consequences of time travelling tourism.  "Let the Ants Try" by Frederik Pohl: Redeemed in the end, with a quite pleasant double twist ending, this tale of apocalypse and time travel [that tale being: chrononaut causes ants to become dominant species, immediately regrets it]. Interesting here: that ‘Golden Age’ total willingness to create an Other otherwise completely alien and irredeemable and malign (the friend’s death was quite brutal); the fatalism and sadness underlying all of this (my family is dead, so why not just destroy us all); and time travel, generally (sucker there). Interesting, in a different way: one of the most clear cut examples of “let’s-assume-whiteness-as-a-matter-of-course-for-both-narrative-and-audience-alike” racialism you’re bound to find in mid-century sf (the “ghettos and Harlem” line). Come for the ants; stay for the ants. Ray Bradbury's beautiful "There Will Come Soft Rains", Cordwainer Smith's groudbreaking "Scanners Live in Vain", Jack Finney's "Such Interesting Neighbors" offers an intriguing scenario of time travelling refugees and their affect on the very future they're trying to escape. "Bridge Crossing" by David Dryfoos: In an dystopian future, a boy grown in the robot central area meets an unarmed rebel girl his own (teen) age. "Letter from Space" aka "Dear Pen Pal" by A.E. Van Vogt:  An alien convict convinces a human to exchange consciousnesses with it because it wants to be free.  "Rescue Party" by Arthur C. Clarke: The mile-long Galactic Survey Ship S9000, product of an ancient interstellar civilization, is racing toward a star about to go nova. Her mission is to save as much as possible of the native civilization. Because the existence of this culture was unsuspected until very recently, there will not be enough time to save more than a tiny fraction of its population, but the noble Galactic Federation must at least try. The star is Sol, and it is the human race which is about to die.  "Stepson of Space" by Raymond Z. Gallun: An alien on the Moon persuades an Earth boy to build a gadget, accidentally electrocuting the boy's father, who disbelieves the machine can work with no visible power-source. The alien telepathically communicates instructions to the thrilled boy, who's reluctant to be candid with his family, referring to the hideous creature merely as Mr. White, a handyman helping him with a basement science project.  "Death Is The Penalty" by Judith Merrill: Tells a sad tale of love in a paranoid era. David encounters Janice while she swims in a stream. He sees her book and knows her profession–a scientist. Janice works at the California Open Labs. She quickly infers that he is higher up, restricted, forbidden to exchange knowledge with those of a lower classification. But he makes a fatal mistake. Filled with dread and melodrama, Merril crafts a memorable story of a doomed love affair where every word and movement is monitored. A remarkably vivid encapsulation of the American fury at the “secrecy” and “classification” in the early stages of the Cold War (written pre-September 3, 1949 Soviet atomic test and September 23rd announcement to the American public).