I don't recall title or author or where I read this. I think I read
this back in the 70s or early 80s, but the story may have been older
than that. It was a short story in which an exploring starship met up
with a ship of some other unknown race. While the crew were debating
how to make contact,teh other ship ejected a small object toward them.
They retrieved it and brought it inside and it appeared to be a simple
cube of unknown metal. Considering what additional tests to do on the
cube, some paranoid among the crew started arguing that it could be a
weapon of unknown power, that might destroy their ship if they cut
into it, or x-rayed it, or <whatever>. They considered ejecting it
back to space, but then wondered if it might be triggered by going
back into zero pressure. Finally they ended up <rot13>znxvat n fgrry
fcurer bs gurve bja naq rwrpgvat vg gbjneq gur nyvra fuvc.</rot13>
Anybody know this one?
