Home Computer, Eh?

by Liberty and Power

In my comments in the infamous sci-fi thread, I noted that the failures of most sci-fi are not purely "technological" but social, in that they can't get right the ways in which technology will be integrated into daily life. Well here's a good example of scientists not getting the future very right, precisely because they underestimated the power of their own disciplines and the speed of technological advance. It's also a good cautionary tale about extrapolating from the present to the future when we cannot even imagine the sorts of changes that will occur in the interim. Competition as a discovery process indeed.

(Hat tip to The Shape of Days)

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Max Schwing - 9/20/2004

This is a question, which really bothered me, because post-apocalyptic movies have certain criteria of sci-fi-movies.

They mostly play in the future and deal with a new form of society (Mad Max, f.e.) and with their use of technology.

In this respect, I'd name Jeremiah (TV-Show on Showtime) that is a very interesting example and not very unlikely, given the gambling of Dutch scientists with the merging of the SARS and Influenza virus.

I think that most of J. M. Strazynski's shows have a lot to do with science fiction (Babylon 5 and Jeremiah, to name 2) and they are certainly better thought-out than Star Wars and deeper into society engineering than the Star Trek series. (perhaps except Deep Space Nine).

But, meh, that's a bit off topic again ;)