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« Nouveau Modèle » (« Second Variety ») est une nouvelle de science-fiction écrite par Philip K. Dick, publiée pour la première fois en mai 1953 dans « Space Science Fiction magazine ».
Philip K. Dick (1928–1982) est un écrivain américain connu pour ses romans, essais et nouvelles de science-fiction. Ses œuvres explorent souvent la perception de la réalité, l’identité et les sociétés totalitaires. Il est l’auteur de classiques tels que Les androïdes rêvent-ils de moutons électriques ? (« Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep ? »), qui servira de base au film « Blade Runner », ou encore « Ubik » et « Le Maître du Haut Château » (« The Man in the High Castle »).
L’histoire de « Nouveau Modèle » se déroule dans un contexte post-apocalyptique, suite à une guerre nucléaire entre les Soviétiques et les Américains. Cette nouvelle explore les conséquences de la guerre et de l’autonomie des machines (appelées les « griffes » dans la nouvelle). Elle a été adaptée au cinéma en 1995 sous le titre « Planète hurlante » (« Screamers »).

« About four in the afternoon they stopped to eat. Hendricks built a fire in a hollow between some slabs of concrete. He cleared the weeds away and heaped up bits of wood. The Russians' lines were not very far ahead. Around him was what had once been a long valley, acres of fruit trees and grapes. Nothing remained now but a few bleak stumps and the mountains that stretched across the horizon at the far end. And the clouds of rolling ash that blew and drifted with the wind, settling over the weeds and remains of buildings, walls here and there, once in awhile what had been a road.

Hendricks made coffee and heated up some boiled mutton and bread. "Here." He handed bread and mutton to David. David squatted by the edge of the fire, his knees knobby and white. He examined the food and then passed it back, shaking his head.

"No."

"No? Don't you want any?"

"No."

Hendricks shrugged. Maybe the boy was a mutant, used to special food. It didn't matter. When he was hungry he would find something to eat. The boy was strange. But there were many strange changes coming over the world. Life was not the same, anymore. It would never be the same again. The human race was going to have to realize that.

"Suit yourself," Hendricks said. He ate the bread and mutton by himself, washing it down with coffee. He ate slowly, finding the food hard to digest. When he was done he got to his feet and stamped the fire out.

David rose slowly, watching him with his young-old eyes.

"We're going," Hendricks said.

"All right."»