Hitting the Books: What exactly did Jodi Foster hear in 'Contact'?

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 ]

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Here are the finalists for the 59th Annual Nebula Awards.

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How Chinese science fiction went from underground magazines to a Netflix blockbuster

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The Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy Book Deals for February 26

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Some Authors Were Left Out of Awards Held in China. Leaked Emails Show Why.

When some books, including best sellers, were conspicuously absent from the science fiction Hugo Awards last year, writers and fans became suspicious. Continue reading at The New York Times

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Authors ‘excluded from Hugo awards over China concerns’

Leaked emails reveal organisers of leading science fiction and fantasy awards flagged works of a ‘sensitive political nature’Leaked emails from the organisers of the prestigious Hugo awards for science fiction and fantasy suggest several authors were excluded from shortlists last year after they... Continue reading at The Guardian

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A Summary and Analysis of J. G. Ballard’s ‘My Dream of Flying to Wake Island’

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The Physics of Fiction: How Art and Science Inspire Each Other

While much science fiction is based on theoretical physics, occasionally literature returns the favor and inspires scientific ideas. A perfect symbiosis between the two came about in the early 1980s, when astronomer-turned-novelist Carl Sagan was researching his fictional work Contact and turned... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

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House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J Maas races to the top of bestseller chart

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The Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy Deals of January 29, 2024

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Science fiction awards held in China under fire for excluding authors

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8 Gothic Science Fiction Novels That Will Chill and Thrill You

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Apple just dropped a mysterious trailer for its latest sci-fi series Constellation

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The 10 Categorically Best Comics of 2023

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Terry Bisson, Award-Winning Sci-Fi Author, Dies at 81

The award-winning science fiction author, whose short story “Bears Discover Fire” swept the genre's major awards in 1990, died on January 10 following a recent cancer diagnosis. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

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The Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy Book Deals for January 15, 2023

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The 10 Absolute Best Science Fiction Books of 2023

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Peregrine spacecraft experiences ‘anomaly’ that could threaten moon landing

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