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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Looking for your new favorite science fiction podcasts? We've got you covered, from sci-fi podcast dramas to podcasts about science fiction books. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-05-11 10:39:41 UTC ]
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Ursula K. Le Guin’s Earthsea novels, Christopher Priest’s “The Islanders” and more Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2020-05-04 14:00:00 UTC ]
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This 1956 article by renowned science-fiction writer Richard Matheson explains his thoughts about the limitless possibilities in the genre. The post Richard Matheson: Science Fiction Is Unlimited by Amy Jones appeared first on Writer's Digest. Continue reading at Writer's Digest
[ Writer's Digest | 2020-04-30 10:57:16 UTC ]
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These 20 feel-good science fiction books will suit different tastes and moods, but they’re all comfort food of some variety. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-04-14 10:34:55 UTC ]
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Fall into the matriarchal worlds of these science fiction and fantasy books for Women's History Month and beyond. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-03-16 10:34:17 UTC ]
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‘The Man in the High Castle” and other alternative-history novels make us wonder. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2020-03-12 16:00:00 UTC ]
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The book is a sumptuous scrapbook of photographs, magazine covers, artwork and hundreds of articles. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2020-03-04 17:19:27 UTC ]
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It’s an exciting year for the Los Angeles Times Book Prizes! This will be its 40th year of celebrating the literary community. The Times announced their 2019 Book Prize finalists today; the winners will be announced at a ceremony in Los Angeles on April 17th. Additionally, bestselling crime... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-02-19 17:41:26 UTC ]
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A reader new to science fiction and fantasy embraces the genre and explores some of the great new works of SFF on shelves now. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-02-17 11:40:18 UTC ]
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We're in a new golden age of science fiction, especially science fiction short stories. These are some of the best stories you can read right now online. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-01-09 11:35:44 UTC ]
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Yes, much of it looks at how we will survive the apocalypse. But we also have the more hopeful genre of solarpunk Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2020-01-06 23:50:02 UTC ]
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If you're in the mood for a ragtag spaceship crew or queer superheroes living their best lives, check out this list of the best LGBT science fiction books. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-01-06 11:39:51 UTC ]
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Since I did a lot of camping in the last year, I've been noticing camping in sci-fi and fantasy all over the place! Let's take a tour. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-01-02 11:37:49 UTC ]
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Science fiction writers, gazing into the future, envision space-based cargo movers and robots that may eliminate the need for humans to work. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2019-12-31 13:53:59 UTC ]
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Science fiction writers, gazing into the future, envision space-based cargo movers and robots that may eliminate the need for humans to work. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2019-12-31 13:53:59 UTC ]
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Science fiction writers, gazing into the future, envision space-based cargo movers and robots that may eliminate the need for humans to work. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2019-12-31 13:53:59 UTC ]
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From The New Yorker’s archive, pieces about science fiction and fantasy, by John Seabrook, Julie Phillips, Colson Whitehead, Margaret Atwood, and Joyce Carol Oates. Continue reading at New Yorker
[ New Yorker | 2019-12-15 11:00:00 UTC ]
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How William Gibson keeps his science fiction real Joshua Rothman, The New Yorker While a lot of sci-fi is obsessed with the distant future, one of the best authors of the genre takes a different approach. The New Yorker explains how William Gibson... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2019-12-14 17:30:00 UTC ]
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Chinese science fiction is a rich world of diverse, engaging stories that expand one's mind. But with all that is out there, where should you start? Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2019-11-27 11:39:41 UTC ]
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There were too many to choose from. Our reviewers explain their picks, from “The Hanging Artist” to “The Night Tiger” Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2019-11-21 14:12:00 UTC ]
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