star trek
Star Trek is a science fiction television series documenting the adventures of the Starship Enterprise.
The Science Fiction of Music
My first novel, Big in Japan, is about a neurotic American prog-rocker coming of age in Japan. My second, Jellyfish Dreams, is about a biologist’s quest to reanimate his dead fiancée at the instigation of a black hole beneath his sofa. Readers who’ve read both books usually remark on how different they are, but I don’t see it that way. For one thing: crazy artist, mad scientist—same difference. For another, even if you agree with (a quote I’ve seen attributed to) sf comics genius Warren Ellis that “Prog rock was sick and wrong then and it is sick and wrong now,” one can’t deny that prog drinks as liberally from the sf well as it does from the epic and fantasy ones. And so, a primer on some of history’s more salient prog-sf conjunctions:
By M. Thomas Gammarino9 years ago in Futurism
Sci-Fi Snobs and Where to Find Them: Why I Don't Pronounce it "Skiffy"
A few weeks ago I read a book to my kids called Nerdy Birdy. I first grabbed it off the shelf because, I thought to myself, I’m a nerd! Totally my thing. The plot was pretty much what I expected - at first. Nerdy Birdy is a dweeby little guy with a bird seed allergy. He likes reading, video games, and reading about video games, which immediately disqualifies him for membership in the cool crowd. When he's at his lowest point, Nerdy Birdy meets a flock just like him. Now he has friends and is furthermore amazed to discover that there are far more nerdy birdies than cool birdies in the sky.
By Sarah Quinn9 years ago in Futurism
The Sweetest Sci-Fi Treats in the Galaxy
Sometimes I look around at intensely intricate Pinterest parties that other people apparently have the time to create for their children, and the mind boggles at the lengths to which theme-ing these parties goes. Sometimes, parents put out totally normal food, but give it a cutesy name to make it match. Example: a Star Wars party with skewers of grapes next to a little homemade sign reading “LIGHTSABERS.” This “treat” would be mildly disappointing to me, but apparently not everyone is such a snob. Adam Driver, for example (aka Kylo Ren), once said that during filming of The Force Awakens, “Every day I would show up to craft services hoping there’d be some space-themed food, but there never was. Which is a shame, because I think that would’ve really boosted morale. Like, if you’re serving meatballs, just call them meat asteroids. Or, if you’re serving grapes, call them fruit asteroids. It’s not that hard.” Yes it is Adam! Yes it is! If you want results you’ve got to put in the effort! (What am I, a coach for geek food? Ok, probably.) If that wouldn’t satisfy you either, check out these amazing sci-fi treats and sweets based on Star Wars, Firefly, Star Trek, Dr. Who, and Stargate. None of them, fortunately, are “meat asteroids” (what was he THINKING?).
By Sarah Quinn9 years ago in Futurism
Sci-Fi Sidekicks You Wish Were Your BFF
Imagine this. You’re shackled to the wall in an underground alien torture chamber on an unexplored planet, light years from home. Or maybe your spaceship is being pulled into a moon-sized space station filled with storm troopers. Or you’ve got a supercomputer that needs hacked, stat. Obviously this is no time for Sam Gamgee to come to your rescue (heartwarming, loyal, and hairy-footed though he may be). You need someone with skills, someone who will risk everything to scoop you out of harm’s way, make a solid plan, and do it all again the next time you get yourself in trouble. Maybe they’re a little snarky, or a little sarcastic, or covered entirely in fur or actually a malfunctioning robot built out of trash, but when you need a best friend you can rely on, these sci-fi sidekicks won’t let you down.
By Sarah Quinn9 years ago in Futurism
Star Snacks: How Star Wars and Star Trek Feed a Galaxy
“The ship’s computer would be more efficient, but it wouldn’t allow for the subtlety needed for great cooking. It would give you all the ingredients in pre-determined measurements, but wouldn’t allow for flair or individuality. And, Data, we both know flair is what marks the difference between artistry and mere competence.” —Commander Riker
By Will Stape9 years ago in Futurism
Sci-Fi's Obsession with Ancient Greece and Rome
Sometimes science fiction returns to the past for places, people, and themes to enrich its mind-journeys into the future. Such is the case with these sci-fi movies, TV episodes, and works of fiction, each one drawing from the ancient worlds of Greece or Rome to dress its story. Brit Marling, a screenplay co-writer of Another Earth, says that this isn’t really surprising. “We’re retelling the same dramas from Ancient Greece,” Marling said. “These stories are so fundamentally old, the mythology that they come from, the hero’s journey — the way a narrative works. Science allows you to take the same story and see it from a new perspective because the science is always new and fresh.” Science fiction’s interest in the ancient world goes beyond mere allusion, as in the middle name of Captain James Tiberius Kirk (Tiberius, in case you’re wondering, was a somber, reclusive Roman ruler who nevertheless left the empire in a better state than he found it). If you’re deeply interested in how the speculative worlds of the future and the worlds of ancient Rome and Greece intersect, you may be interested in a serious paper by academic Tony Keen, “The 'T' stands for Tiberius: models and methodologies of classical reception in science fiction.” If that sounds a little heavy, enjoy the following summary of a few times when togas, laurel wreaths, aliens, and spaceships partied it up in one crazy combination.
By Sarah Quinn9 years ago in Futurism
Sci-Fi Casting That Almost Happened - 'Star Trek' Edition
Our favorite TV shows and movies and the iconic characters who populate them effectively carry us away on captivating adventures. We connect to them as an audience on many emotional levels. Often, they’re more than mere entertainment or a simple distraction. We grow up watching them as wide eyed kids, discover them in high school or maybe while living off at college. Show casts can feel as if they’re part of our own family. Soon we find that those casts of actors and actresses become a part of our collective pop culture experience, one we share with family and friends. With a TV show and movie franchise as established and beloved as StarTrek, the casting becomes all the more essential and memorable.
By Will Stape9 years ago in Futurism
The Sci-Fi Museum Lover's Bucket List
If you’re a true fan of science fiction, whether campy or classic, space opera or speculative fiction, Star Trek or Jules Verne, you probably can’t get enough of the worlds your favorite characters inhabit, the clothes they wear, and the technology they wield. Lucky you, because some of the most exciting artifacts and memorabilia are exhibited in carefully curated museums around the world, and the momentum is building for even more. Check out this bucket list of already-existing sci-fi museums and exhibits, then get ready for two world-class museums coming to Hollywood, California and Washington D.C. in the years to come.
By Sarah Quinn9 years ago in Futurism
Greatest Artificial Intelligence Characters
The Sci-Fi and Pop Culture genres are often found on vastly different paths with many light years of distance between them, but once in a while they collide. When they intertwine, we usually end up with some of the greatest Artificial Intelligence characters in history has seen. Sometimes these characters are symbolized through a grim and pessimistic future, where machines are capable of feeling a wide range of emotions. They also have a survival instinct that leads them to try and take over the world. In other instances, they are lovable and friendly and able to connect with humans. Even though they are programmed not to feel any kind of emotions, most times we feel some sort of connection to them. Whatever the case might be, these great artificial intelligence characters were designed and programed to make you remember them.
By George Gott9 years ago in Futurism
'Star Trek' Booze: 50 Years Of Drinking With The Starship Enterprise
For the proud accomplishment of lasting half a century, a 50th anniversary is golden. It deserves a celebratory toast for any species in any part of the galaxy, and in the latest Trek film, fans get a fun tip of the glass after a fashion. Early on in Star Trek: Beyond, director Justin Lin’s action packed entry in Paramount Pictures feature film franchise, Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) and Bones (Karl Urban) share a rare quiet moment by drinking together in Enterprise’s officer’s lounge. The two friends and Starfleet officers take the time to down a little Saurian Brandy—an alien drink all too familiar to fans from way back in the day of the start of the original series.
By Will Stape9 years ago in Futurism
'Star Trek' and 'Star Wars' Time Travel
Is sci-fi about going forward boldly into the future or reminiscing and reliving the past? Certainly, with time travel preoccupying science fiction as both an awesome gadget, concept, and plot device, the beauty is you can do both timelines at the touch of a blinking button or the roar of warp drive. However, as a purely solid and compelling narrative—is it better to keep reaching for the mysterious future or revisiting the well trod past?
By Will Stape9 years ago in Futurism
Balancing Fears of Artificial Intelligence with Sci-Fi
“Let me put it this way, Mr. Amor. The 9000 series is the most reliable computer ever made. No 9000 computer has ever made a mistake or distorted information. We are all, by any practical definition of the words, foolproof and incapable of error." - HAL 9000 in 2001: A Space Odyssey
By Will Stape9 years ago in Futurism
