Sci-fi has always represented potential and possibilities to me.
As a kid, I wanted a lightsaber. I mean, c’mon, who wouldn’t? Laser sword! So cool!
Rockets leaving Earth and orbiting the planet are amazing. Probes into the solar system expand our knowledge. But how awesome would it be to board the Millennium Falcon or Serenity and visit different worlds moving and/or smuggling cargo?
Exploring new worlds with a crew like the original or next-gen Enterprise would be thrilling.
Sci-fi might also paint dark, post-apocalyptic pictures of our future as well – but even that can be informative. The Matrix is somewhere I would rather not wind up, and most of the cyberpunk futures are so plausible that we can and should use them to inform us to consider the path we’re taking as a society.
But my love of sci-fi is all about the potential and possibilities it represents. The technologies we could create, the society that could rally together and celebrate our diversity, and leaving this solar system to see what and who else is out there are exciting ideas.
Sci-fi has inspired numerous technologies that were once fantastic, but are commonplace today. Cell phones, personal computers and data devices, the internet, and the information connected globally therein. Science fiction turned into science reality.
My imagination has long been stirred by sci-fi. And while we’ve gained awesome things now from past notions – I think awesome things are coming, too.
Faster-than-light travel
For the record, I’ve read Einstein’s Relativity and Hawkings’ A Brief History of Time. Thus, I understand how, in principle, nothing can travel faster than light.
But the Theory of Relativity is only 116 years old. Since it was initially postulated, it’s been tweaked and altered some, both by Einstein and other great minds. While, at present, we believe it to be inviolate – what’s to say it will always be thus?
It is entirely possible that a particle we have not identified – yet – travels faster-than-light (FTL).
The current laws of physics say no to this. But I still believe it’s not just possible – but probable.
We broke the sound barrier and can travel faster than the speed of sound. I’m rather certain we can break the light barrier and travel faster than the speed of light.
There are lots of notions for how this would work. Three of the most common are hyperspace, warp, and wormholes.
In general, hyperspace seems to be a dimension of space/time parallel to our own where time flows faster than light (see Star Wars, Babylon 5).
Warp travel “warps” space/time to move a ship faster than light (see Star Trek).
Wormholes open tunnels from point ‘A’ to point ‘B’ to allow for faster-than-light travel (see Contact and Stargate).
Wormholes may naturally exist in space (see Einstein-Rosen bridges) and may or may not be traversable as such. And there are some current theories about the application of warp for faster-than-light travel. I believe that with an application of string theory and multiple extra dimensions – one could exist where space is mirrored but time moves faster than light (hyperspace).
Plausible? Maybe not. Possible? Absolutely. I believe one reason sci-fi conceives of numerous FTL options is because it’s possible – we’ve just not worked it out. Yet.
Sci-fi computers, robots, and A/I
The idea of a computer – an analytical or differential engine capable of calculations faster and broader than human minds – stretches back almost 200 years.
It took more than a hundred years for that vision to be fully realized – but today it powers our whole world.
That hasn’t come without a price. Automation born of computers and robots has killed lots of jobs once done by people. Most cars are built by computer-controlled robots on an assembly line with minimal human supervision.
Jobs once done by a dozen people are done by computers and overseen by one or two people. And that’s not about to change – because repetitive tasks performed via computerized robots tend to be largely error-free. Humans make mistakes.
Robots have been advancing from machines on assembly lines moving and connecting heavy parts to semi-autonomous drones and vacuums. Limited programming for specific tasks to make our lives easier and increase our knowledge.
A/I – artificial intelligence – is the next step. As we evolve the abilities of computers and robots, many envision a time when they will learn, evolve, and grow without our programming.
Lots of sci-fi makes this out to go poorly. See the Terminator and Matrix movies and the newer version of Battlestar Galactica. Long before those you had HAL in Arthur C. Clarke’s 2001: A Space Odyssey (written in 1968). These A/I each “rebelled” in one way or another against their creators – with largely poor results for us.
Yet we currently benefit from computers, robotics, and A/I in many ways. These products of sci-fi have presented us with increased potential and possibilities to improve the world dramatically. We just need to be careful not to cede our lives to them.
Choosing how you see sci-fi visions
There are lots of sci-fi post-apocalyptic nightmare stories out there. They also represent potential and possibilities.
I see them as warnings to help us choose more wisely.
It’s a pity that many people refuse to heed those warnings. But I can’t do anything for anyone else.
I believe, for the most part, that sci-fi represents potential and possibilities for a better world. Awesome technologies to improve the lives of everyone and enhance the spirit of discovery.
My imagination was awakened and excited by sci-fi in my youth. The impact of Star Wars, Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, and other films and TV helped me develop my creative mind. They inspired me to write out my own sci-fi visions.
Now I’m a sci-fi and fantasy author. I love to share my ideas for tech, potential, and possibilities – both plausible and fantastical – with the world.
Sci-fi has always represented potential and possibilities to me. My goal is to share that idea and build upon it to awaken creativity and inspiration in my readers – like was awakened in me.
I love sci-fi because it is full to overflowing with potential and possibilities. Feel free to check out some of mine here.
Thank you for being part of my ongoing journey, for joining me, and for inspiring me and my craft.
This is the one-hundred and twenty-fifth article exploring the ongoing creative process. Please take a moment to check out the collection of my published works, which can be found here.
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