Art may imitate life but it rarely does so with realistic fidelity. As Naomi Pequette, Space Science Programs Specialist at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, argues in her essay "The Sounds of Contact" as part of The Science if Sci-Fi Cinema: Essays on the Art and Principles of Ten Films, being "based on a true story" doesn't exactly mean we're getting the whole story. McFarlandFrom The Science of Sci-Fi Cinema: Essays on the Art and Principles of Ten Films © 2021 Edited by Vincent Piturro by permission of McFarland & Company, Inc., Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640.How would you react if you found out we aren’t alone in the universe? Imagine the moment you discover a radio signal from another civilization had traveled billions of miles through interstellar space, had been detected by some of the most powerful radio telescopes in the world, and decoded by scientists. Would it matter if it was first detected by scientists from your home country? Would the content of the signal matter? Would you want the chance to be able to meet the alien civilization that sent the signal? These are all questions that the movie Contact explores.The opening sequence of Contact sets the scientific basis for the rest of the film. As the camera travels away from Earth, the audience hears a cacophony of sounds. These sounds, which are radio and television signals traveling out into space, get older and older as we zoom past planets and asteroids. Eventually there is silence as the audience... Continue reading at 'Engadget'
[ Engadget | 2021-09-04 15:30:43 UTC ]
The stories in The Rock Eaters often have an elastic relationship with reality, familiar political landscapes or emotional struggles warped by the uncanny. Some stories fall more explicitly within the bounds of science fiction or fantasy, but most show us a world nearly known, but not quite. In... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2021-08-13 11:00:00 UTC ]
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Hugo Gernsback once said SFF writers impart knowledge without out making us aware we're being taught. So what do they actually teach us? Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2021-08-12 10:37:00 UTC ]
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It’s hard to believe that in just a matter of years, foldable devices have gone from the stuff of science fiction to actual usable daily drivers. Here we are today, checking out the third generation of Samsung’s foldables, which the company just launched at its Unpacked event. The Fold 3 is the... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2021-08-11 14:00:51 UTC ]
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HarperVoyager has announced a weekend of fantasy and science fiction panels for readers and writers in September, headlined by Jay Kristoff. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-08-01 04:11:25 UTC ]
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“The World Gives Way,” “The Chosen and the Beautiful” and “Sword Stone Table” borrow from familiar stories but offer surprising readings. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2021-07-30 16:00:03 UTC ]
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Over the weekend, the Los Angeles Review of Books published a fairly wild essay by Miguel Esteban who, at the tender age of 14, commissioned a now-famous essay on race in science fiction from Octavia Butler. The whole piece is worth a read (the gall of teenage boys! the grace of Octavia!) but... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-07-26 13:40:52 UTC ]
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After COVID-related delays, Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s sweeping (and difficult to adapt) science fiction epic Dune is finally set to debut both on HBO Max and in theaters on October 1st. As the release date quickly approaches, Warner Bros has dropped a new trailer. (If you... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-07-22 16:21:07 UTC ]
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Quercus has bought British barrister and counter-terrorist expert Adam Oyebanji’s UK debut, billed as an “exhilarating blending of hard science fiction and thriller”. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-07-19 20:50:22 UTC ]
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What Borges’ science fiction got right about the importance of forgetting, according to child psychiatry. | Lit Hub Science Searching for Moby-Dick (and the elusive truths of America’s pastime): Rick White goes deep on Bill James, Herman Melville, and the whaleness of Whiteyball. | Lit Hub... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-07-17 10:30:33 UTC ]
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There is something beautiful about African languages carrying science, fictionalised of course, into imagined futures. Continue reading at The Conversation
[ The Conversation | 2021-07-07 15:04:17 UTC ]
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The Arthur C. Clarke Award, which recognizes the best science fiction novel first published in the United Kingdom during the previous year, has released their 2021 shortlist—and for the first time in the award’s 35-year history, the shortlist is entirely made up of debut novels. “As we announce... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-06-30 16:03:59 UTC ]
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Celebrate Pride with science fiction and fantasy reads! We've rounded up some out of this world SFF books with genderfluid characters. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2021-06-29 10:36:00 UTC ]
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In his short life, Howard, the master of the sword-and-sorcery novel, produced hard-boiled mysteries, an occult thriller, a science fiction novel and more. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2021-06-09 05:37:45 UTC ]
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Announcing the winners of the 56th Annual Nebula Awards, recognizing the best works of science fiction and fantasy published in the US. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2021-06-07 14:06:29 UTC ]
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Six novels feature characters who hunger for connection so strongly that they transform their environments. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2021-05-27 13:55:11 UTC ]
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Take a deep dive into fantasy and science fiction awards with Jenn, as she looks at the many out there and why you should care. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2021-05-27 10:39:00 UTC ]
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Western works of science fiction were not easily accessible in translation in South Korea until recent years. The country was ruled by a succession of military dictatorships until around 1992, and before that time, South Korean culture had been surveilled through a state censorship system that... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-05-27 08:50:01 UTC ]
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Leaving our earthly bodies and living forever as a machine isn't just a thing of modern science fiction. These transhumanist ideas date back to the 18th century. Continue reading at The Conversation
[ The Conversation | 2021-05-17 05:22:55 UTC ]
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The latest installment in MIT’s Twelve Tomorrows series toggles between utopian and dystopian. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2021-05-10 12:00:00 UTC ]
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Led by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association, several professional writers' organizations and authors have formed the #DisneyMustPay task force, petitioning Walt Disney Co. to honor author contracts. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-04-29 04:00:00 UTC ]
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