Martian (The Martian Chronicles)

Martians come from Ray Bradbury's book ''The Martian Chronicles. ''This book is a collection of short stories about Martian society, human's invasion of Mars, and a redefinition of the term Martian, as humans slowly incorporate themselves into the desolate landscape of the red planet. This collection of science fiction short stories range from the year 1999 to 2057.

Physiology
Martians have fair, brownish skin, thin and slender wrists and necks, and six fingers. They also have large yellow coin eyes and soft musical voices. These Martians live on Mars, but call their planet Tyrr. They have adjusted to an atmosphere with thin oxygen. They can also swim, but do it out of leisure in their canals filled with sand. They have adapted to living in an atmosphere with low oxygen levels.

Martians see humans as large misshapen giants, and find it odd that humans have black hair and blue eyes. They also find their spacecrafts unnerving, describing spaceships humans use as round and alien. ( February 1999: YLLA). They have taken to drinking green liquors from wine trees during festivities. Their children play with golden spiders commanded by telepathy.

When Martians die, they melt and seem to dissolve into white ash, ash that is easily blown away by the wind. Chickenpox is deadly to them, as they die almost instantly from the chickenpox virus, leaving only ashy charred remains in their wake. Martians are telepathic. They are even able to project images unto others telepathically. Martians who are unable to control their telepathy are put in an insane asylum. (April 2000: THE THIRD EXPEDITION). These Martians can change shape, project images, and influence olfactory and auditory images through their telepathy. They can even access the memories of earth men (August 1999: THE SUMMER NIGHT). Sometimes, a Martian's telepathy can foretell events (February 1999: YLLA).

Fashion
Martians use mist coming from Phials as their scarves and accessories. Similarly, some Martians have thick blind blue crystals over his yellowish eyes. They often wearing golden, blue and crimson mask, masks with silver lips and bronze eyebrows, masks that smile or masks that frown, according to the owners' dispositions. These masks are cut from glass and fitted over thin necks. They also wear billowing loose robes. Special leaders of Martians wear diamond-encrusted gloves.

Domestic Activities
They have houses with crystal pillars and triangular doors. They clean their houses with magnetic dust which attracts dirt, and blows away in the hot wind. They sleep on fog beds which evaporate with the coming day.

Education, Culture and Art
Martians read from metal book with raised hieroglyphs, much like Braille. The pages of these books are tissue-thin and made of pure silver. They are hand-painted in black and gold. To read, Martians brush their fingers over these painted and raised images. When Martians brush their hands against the pages of their books, a soft ancient voice sings. One such book that Yll, (found in the short story February 1999: YLLA) a Martian, reads tells of the red steam on the shores, ancient men and metal insects which carry electric spiders into battle. They paint using chemical fire as well.

Martian weapons consist of long yellowish tubes ending in bellows and a trigger. This weapon hums, for it contains hordes of poisonous golden bees. These bees are flung out from the Martian's weapons with a high shriek and at high speeds. After being flung out, these bees die.

Geography
The major Martian city is Xi City. Martials also places named after their physical description, such as Green Valley and Blue Mountain

Transportation
Martians use flame birds to travel. A Martian may strap white canopy-like structures tied by a thousand green ribbons to the feet of said flame birds. Vocal commands from Martians make these birds move. Similarly, ancient Martians have ridden Spider-like creatures into battle.

To cross their seas, Martians have blue-sailed Martian sand ships.

Philosophy
Martians are said to blend art and religion into their living. They have combined science and religion in such a way that both are able to work side by side, as one enriches the other. They do not question their existence, for their answer for living is the fact that they exist. For them, living is enough. Their answer to questions regarding their existence is the fact that they are alive, and the fact that they must live good lives.

Source:

Bradbury, Ray. The Martian Chronicles. New York: Doubleday, 1958.