Nicholas Solntseff's parents immigrated to Australia from Shanghai in 1946 and moved to a chicken farm in Girraween, five miles west of Parramatta. Already in his mid-teens, Solntseff attended Technical High in Randwick, which demanded a steam-train trip to and from school each day. Sometime between 1947 and 1948, he discovered the existence of Astounding Science Fiction. With a great deal of reading time available before and after school, he became an avid reader of the magazine and other science-fiction publications. In 1949, Solntseff began a B.Sc. (Physics) programme at Sydney University, and soon afterwards joined a regular weekly meeting of science-fiction fans at Repin's Quality Inn. In 1950, he joined the Futurian Society of Sydney. Within a short period, he was elected to the dual positions of director and secretary. During the next three years, he also found time to edit the science-fiction fanzine Woomera, but was forced to suspend his commitment to the society in 1953, when he began working on his postgraduate degree in High Energy Physics. After obtaining his Ph.D. in May 1958, Solntseff moved to England to become a nuclear physicist and engineer.
