I like science fiction. It is perhaps because I am forever trying to imagine the near future – the long future is an extension! I like the world creation of Tolkien and Asimov. More recently, I discovered “The Expanse” (TV series). It is even better than the Foundation series on Apple TV a few months ago. The Expanse imagines a future far out – planets in the solar system have been colonised, and the beyond beckons. Another good series is Andor, part of the Star Wars stories.
There is something magical about good science fiction – it lets the imagination roam free far away from the present. Eventually, all good science fiction is about people and their stories and relationships. My earliest memory of science fiction is of listening to “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” on BBC World Service. The humour brought to life by voices over the airwaves left a dent, er, mark. (For those who didn’t get it, Arthur Dent is one of the key characters.) Like many of my generation, I grew up watching “Star Trek” and being fascinated with space. I would listen to the live broadcasts of space shuttle take-offs and landings on either BBC or Voice of America. Then of course, there were the timeless Star Wars movies. (I watched all of them again a year ago with Abhishek.) And of course, the space-themed rides in the theme parks!
Maybe it was the pandemic, but over the past two years, I have started reading more science fiction – old and new. I read Asimov’s Foundation trilogy, Fahrenheit 451 (Ray Bradbury) and 1984 (George Orwell). I watched Dune, and bought the book (haven’t started reading it as yet). I read Andy Weir’s books – The Martian and Project Hail Mary. I know there’s so much more to read and wonder.
With commercial space travel a reality, space will no longer be just something in the sky for our children (or perhaps their children). And so it is with technology – that which was once impossible is becoming available, first to a few, then to many, and finally to all. Sci-fi shows us glimpses of a future that we will not live to see, but one which is within the realm of possibility.
I recommend reading science fiction to let our imagination roam free and let authors take our minds to new worlds – either the microscopic or the telescopic!
