Forum Quotes

Location, Location, Location

September 10, 2014 in Forum Quotes

But we need penguins. Nobody would want to go to Antarctica and not see penguins!

Author
Geoffrey A. Landis is a scientist and a science fiction writer. As a scientist, he is a researcher at the NA SA John Glenn Research Center. He works on projects related to advanced power and propulsion systems for space and planetary exploration and is currently a member of the science team for the Mars Exploration Rover Mission. As a science fiction writer, he has won a Nebula Award, two Hugo Awards, and a Locus Award, as well as two Rhysling Awards for his poetry.

An Idea Is Born

September 10, 2014 in Forum Quotes

The big idea: a hotel in Antarctica. Why not?

Author
Geoffrey A. Landis is a scientist and a science fiction writer. As a scientist, he is a researcher at the NA SA John Glenn Research Center. He works on projects related to advanced power and propulsion systems for space and planetary exploration and is currently a member of the science team for the Mars Exploration Rover Mission. As a science fiction writer, he has won a Nebula Award, two Hugo Awards, and a Locus Award, as well as two Rhysling Awards for his poetry.

Ice as a Building Material

September 10, 2014 in Forum Quotes

Have you considered using ice as not the only, but as one of your hotel’s building materials?

Author

Through the Valley of Death

September 9, 2014 in Forum Quotes

Getting through the valley of death is the hard part. Yes, we do need bold ideas– but how do we turn them into iron realities?

Author
Geoffrey A. Landis is a scientist and a science fiction writer. As a scientist, he is a researcher at the NA SA John Glenn Research Center. He works on projects related to advanced power and propulsion systems for space and planetary exploration and is currently a member of the science team for the Mars Exploration Rover Mission. As a science fiction writer, he has won a Nebula Award, two Hugo Awards, and a Locus Award, as well as two Rhysling Awards for his poetry.

Contemporary Skyscraper Construction

September 5, 2014 in Forum Quotes

It definitely seems logical to me that one would want to place [the Tall Tower] near well-developed existing infrastructure in the way of steel mills, transportation lines, etc. But you make a good point that the scale of the project is such that it would acquire its own infrastructure as it went up.

Author
Neal Stephenson is the author of the three-volume historical epic “The Baroque Cycle” (Quicksilver, The Confusion, and The System of the World) and the novels REAMDE, Cryptonomicon, The Diamond Age, Snow Crash, and Zodiac. He lives in Seattle, Washington.

Quantum Telepathy

September 5, 2014 in Forum Quotes

I want to start a thread about telepathy, treating it as a potentially feasible future technology. One route in this direction might involve electromagnetic waves emanating from your brain. Another route could involve quantum entanglement.

Author
Rudy Rucker is a science fiction author, philosopher, mathematician, and one of the founders of the cyberpunk movement. He worked for twenty years as a computer science professor at San Jose State University and has published a number of software packages. His novels include Turing & Burroughs (2012), Jim and the Flims (2011), and Hylozoic (2009), as well as the Ware Tetralogy (1982–2000), a four-book cyberpunk series that won two Philip K. Dick awards.

Neuroplasticity, Neurobiology and the Brain

September 5, 2014 in Forum Quotes

I’ve been doing a lot of reading lately into neuroplasticity and neurobiology, and some of the cool, freaky things that brains can do–and some of the tragic ones. Favorite weird brain facts/research angles/brain hacks, anyone?

Author
Elizabeth Bear is a science fiction and fantasy author based in Massachusetts. In 2005 she won the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, and she has also won two Hugo Awards, for Best Short Story and Best Novelette. Elizabeth is an instructor at the Viable Paradise science fiction and fantasy writers’ workshop and also teaches at Clarion, Clarion West, the WisCon Writer’s Respite, and Odyssey.

Hacking the Human Mind

September 5, 2014 in Forum Quotes

It seems to me that one of the great technological revolutions ongoing around us right now involved practical neurobiology–we’re getting more and more adept at understanding how brains work, in other words, and how to hack them.

Author
Elizabeth Bear is a science fiction and fantasy author based in Massachusetts. In 2005 she won the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, and she has also won two Hugo Awards, for Best Short Story and Best Novelette. Elizabeth is an instructor at the Viable Paradise science fiction and fantasy writers’ workshop and also teaches at Clarion, Clarion West, the WisCon Writer’s Respite, and Odyssey.

Protecting Protected Land

September 5, 2014 in Forum Quotes

There are many places in the world that governments, NGOs, or a combination have protected. Many people and organizations are working for more preserved lands. So imagine a future where some large amount of land – maybe 25% is protected.

Author
Brenda Cooper is a science fiction author, futurist, and technology professional. She is the chief information officer for the city of Kirkland, Washington, and a member of the Futurist Board for the Lifeboat Foundation. Brenda is the author of seven novels, including The Silver Ship and the Sea, which won the Endeavor Award in 2008.

Methane Burps in the Arctic and Climate Change

September 5, 2014 in Forum Quotes

I’ve been following the rather ominous reports in the last few years of methane bubbling up from the Arctic ocean floor as the ocean warms.

Author
Vandana Singh is a science fiction author and assistant professor of physics at Framingham State College. Her short stories, which most recently include “Peripateia” (2013), “Cry of the Kharchal” (2013), “With Fate Conspire” (2013), and “A Handful of Rice” (2012), frequently appear in Year’s Best and other anthologies. She also writes poetry as well as novels and short stories for children.