Behind the Fiction: The science of Robopocalypse
Daniel Wilson’s much-anticipated novel Robopocalypse hits bookstores this week. It’s the hyper-realistic story of a robot uprising, and is already being made into a Steven Spielberg film slated for 2013 release. Author Wilson gives us a brief excerpt from the opening of the novel here, then explains the scientific research that went into creating a…
Alchemists, Astronomers, and Wild Men: A History of the Mad Scientist, Part One
The mad scientist is one of the standard archetypes of modern popular culture. Widespread in the pulps of the 1920s and 1930s, its modern inception dates back to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (1818). But the roots of the mad scientist go much farther back than Shelley, as we’ll see. Painting of Prometheus by Elsie Russell The…
10 Fantasy Sagas That Are Wronger Than Twilight
Soon enough we’ll get to see how legendary director Bill Condon brings to life the incredibly messed-up conclusion to Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight saga. Chances are, we’re in for one of the all-time great “did I just see that?” scenes. (For details of just what we’re in for, click here. Beware spoilers.) https://gizmodo.com/best-and-worst-childbirth-scenes-in-science-fiction-and-5633419 But hard as…
