Science Fiction Tried to Warn Us about AI. Or Did It?, by Tom Gammarino Essay [email protected] Wed, 03/01/2023 - 03:46 Photo by NASA / Unsplash “All our AI Frankenstein stories,” the author writes, “warn us that AI will destroy us, but far louder than that, they promise that the future is going to be mind-blowing and epic.” Will we heed the warnings? Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is the literary work that most clearly established the conventions of science fiction as we know it. Not only did the 1818 novel pioneer the archetype of the mad scientist, it also established one of the genre’s most important cultural roles: to warn us about ways humans, through our hubris, might create the very beings that eventually undo us. In subtitling the novel The Modern Prometheus, Shelley harked back to the Titan who stole fire from the gods and was punished by having his regenerating liver devoured every day by an eagle (since the liver was the seat of the emotions for the Greeks, we might as well translate it as “heart”). Inspired by the experiments of Luigi Galvani, who used electric current to stimulate the leg of a dissected frog, and his nephew Giovanni Aldini, who ran a similar experiment on a hanged criminal, Shelley had her mad scientist play God by endowing a patchwork of human remains with the spark of life. Two centuries later, the resulting monstrosity serves as a stand-in for any of our runaway technologies — the internal... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'
[ World Literature Today | 2023-03-01 09:46:57 UTC ]
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Science Fiction Tried to Warn Us about AI. Or Did It?, by Tom Gammarino Essay [email protected] Wed, 03/01/2023 - 03:46 Photo by NASA / Unsplash “All our AI Frankenstein stories,” the author writes, “warn us that AI will destroy us, but far... Continue reading at World Literature Today
[ World Literature Today | 2023-03-01 09:46:57 UTC ]
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Science fiction is fast becoming science fact, which should be cause for concern. Continue reading at The Conversation
[ The Conversation | 2019-08-27 17:03:06 UTC ]
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Aldiss helped shape and elevate the science fiction genre, but he recognized its mutability. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2017-08-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Dive into this double dose of new science fiction and fantasy releases out this week. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-07-12 16:15:00 UTC ]
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An epic fantasy inspired by Nigerian mythology, a found family wuxia fantasy, a historical fantasy set in the 1920s, and more of today's best science fiction and fantasy deals. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-07-01 14:30:00 UTC ]
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What are your favorite science fiction novels that have yet to see a film adaptation? Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-06-27 10:30:00 UTC ]
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Murder aboard a claustrophobic space ship, an island hidden by magic, a tale of blood and loyalty, and more of today's best science fiction and fantasy deals. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-04-29 13:00:00 UTC ]
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He conceived an early version of cyberspace and predicted the “technological singularity,” a tipping point at which machines would become smarter than humans. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2024-03-28 22:04:59 UTC ]
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For a few days in October 2023, the capital of the science fiction world was Chengdu, China Continue reading at ABC News
[ ABC News | 2024-02-29 02:54:58 UTC ]
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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
[ Literrary Hub | 2024-02-09 09:54:04 UTC ]
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Concerns raised about interference or censorship after documents showed writers were barred despite receiving enough nominationsA prestigious literary award for science fiction, which was hosted in China for the first time, has come under fire for excluding several authors from the 2023 awards,... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2024-01-24 15:53:48 UTC ]
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Check out these 8 gothic science fiction novels! They're sure to both terrorize and entertain you in equal measure! Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-01-24 11:34:00 UTC ]
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2023 was an incredible year for books celebrating all things science. Here are 10 of the best science fiction books of 2023. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-01-15 11:30:00 UTC ]
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The best new sci-fi and fantasy books out January 2024 feature mythological retellings, space adventures, cyberpunk ghost stories, and more! Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-01-02 11:30:00 UTC ]
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From witch stories to near-future noir, here are the year’s 10 best speculative books. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2023-12-04 10:00:38 UTC ]
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New books by Vajra Chandrasekera, Avi Silver, Cadwell Turnbull, Michael Mammay and T. Kingfisher. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2023-12-01 10:32:14 UTC ]
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Here are the sci-fi and fantasy titles getting the most recognition in best of the year lists and award shortlists! Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2023-11-28 11:38:00 UTC ]
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