4 ms·
Science Fiction by Scientists
- DanBC 10y agoHas anyone read any of these? Are they any good?
- dsr_ 10y agoI would like to think that I am exceptionally well read in SF... and I have never heard of any of these folks. They may be great. I dunno. I was expecting: Asimov (biochemist), Sagan (physicist), Brin (astrophysics, space science), Forward (physicist), Czerneda (biologist), Watts (biologist), Benford (astrophysicist), Taylor (physics, space science), Brotherton (astrophysicist), Asaro (physics and chemistry), Kondo (astrophysicist), Landis (physics), Rajaniemi (mathematical physics)... those are the ones off the top of my head, I'm certainly missing many. I can vouch for all of the above authors being able to tell a story.
- GFK_of_xmaspast 10y ago> I have never heard of any of these folks I also read a lot and I haven't heard of any of them either.
- egeozcan 10y agoI'm not sure how I feel about such marketing. A more believable sci-fi novel does sound more interesting, but isn't it like promoting a movie involving a plane crash as "directed by aviation personnel".
- ianai 10y agoStating a movie is based on an actual account from witnesses/survivors/etc generally makes it sell better.
- JadeNB 10y ago> Stating a movie is based on an actual account from witnesses/survivors/etc generally makes it sell better. Although, which is perhaps egeozcan's point, it doesn't necessarily make it actually better.
- dmckeon 10y agoTry this writer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_L._Forward https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_L._Forward
- UncleSlacky 10y agoI recently read Dragon's Egg - quite thought-provoking and well-written, except for the somewhat clichéd human characters.
- johnfjacobi 10y agoI wonder if other people share my perception that most science fiction written by scientists is not excellent fiction (especially when the first desire is realism). It seems to me that crafting a story is a quite different tool set from being an engineer, physicist, etc., which is why at least seems rare to find a great physicist who is also a great writer. Perhaps the best balance, then, would be achieved by someone who writes stories deferring to actual scientists for review...? Also, I'm interested in being refuted here. These are unexamined perceptions I'm writing out here.
- danschuller 10y agoI very much enjoy anything by Vernor Vinge, who's a computer scientist. He explores the idea of a universe where, in some areas of space, p=np. But it's not a dry read, it's fun stuff. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/77711.A_Fire_Upon_the_Deep https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/77711.A_Fire_Upon_the_De...
- ridgeguy 10y agoSecond Vernor Vinge as a recommended author. A Deepness in the Sky is one of my all-time favorites.
- kwhitefoot 10y agoPerhaps I should try again, I thought it was totally unreadable last time I ploughed through the first few pages.
- ridgeguy 10y agoI'll suggest it's worth a retry. Those first few pages are a slightly cryptic intro to a complex, intelligent, and thought-provoking tale. YMMV, of course.
- zem 10y agofred hoyle wrote a couple of good novels back in the day. also my favourite anthologist, groff conklin, put together a collection of sf shorts by scientists that is really good: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1179648.Great_Science_Fiction_by_Scientists http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1179648.Great_Science_Fic...
- mrob 10y agoI recommend "Blindsight" by Peter Watts, who was a marine biologist before he was an author. He's the only author I can think of who uses academic style citations for hard scifi credibility. You can read Blindsight online or download ebook versions here: http://www.rifters.com/real/Blindsight.htm http://www.rifters.com/real/Blindsight.htm He also shared his Rifters trilogy, which I enjoyed although it's not as good as Blindsight, as well as several short stories: http://www.rifters.com/real/shorts.htm http://www.rifters.com/real/shorts.htm
- shagie 10y agoRobert Forward. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_L._Forward https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_L._Forward In the preface to Timemaster (which features time travel and various paradoxical events), he states anyone who wishes to argue against his hard science use of time travel must first have a published article in a peer reviewed journal refuting a particular paper.
- wyager 10y ago> He's the only author I can think of who uses academic style citations for hard scifi credibility. Greg Egan. He writes mostly "one big lie" hard sci-fi, but it is always grounded in hard science or math and often extensively cited.
- danthewireman 10y agoYou might enjoy "Echopraxia", his sequel to "Blindsight."
- jstelly 10y agoI usually agree with other posts here that too much science makes for fiction that I enjoy less. Blindsight was an exception for me. I liked the science ideas and the fiction. If you like this kind of thing you may also like Darwin's Radio by Greg Bear. He wrote an article about the science ideas here: http://gregbear.com/pages/newbiology.php http://gregbear.com/pages/newbiology.php I didn't enjoy this one as much, but the hard-science part was done fairly well.
- outworlder 10y ago
- rayalez 10y agoI'm working on a similar project, http://rationalfiction.io http://rationalfiction.io, where you can read hard scifi written mostly by hackers.
- yazr 10y agoRevelation Space - by Alastair Reynolds – 2000 An epic volume 1 Volume 2 - Chasm City - brilliant with a dark and heart stopping culmination Reynolds is a British astro-physicists I dont know if he is popular in the US as he is in the UK
- weerd 10y agoRevelation Space is excellent! I came here to recommend it. Chasm City is good but it almost felt like a mediocre action movie. The hero wielding the big guns, flat dialog, an obligatory and passionless sex scene... but the environment and society really make it interesting.
- yazr 10y agoI agree Chasm City feels very pedestrian and long. But i got a real thrill when it finally converged.. It was well worth the wait ;)
- flukus 10y agoThe two main sequels, redemption ark and absolution gap. Especially absolution gap.
- abrookewood 10y agoYes, Alastair Reynolds is excellent.