Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Futurism.
Review of Westworld 1.1
If you're talking about AI science fiction—robots or androids programmed to convincingly think and act like humans, or almost like humans, or more than humans—you've got to start with Isaac Asimov and his three laws of robotics: (1) a robot can never harm a human being, or, through inaction, allow injury to befall a human, (2) a robot must follow all orders given to it by a human, except if such orders conflict with the first law, and (3) a robot should always act to preserve its own existence, except when following this third law would conflict with the first two. Thus, a robot ordered by a human to dismantle itself must follow that order, unless the robot knows that the human giving such as order was set to commit suicide, a suicide which the robot not dismantled could prevent. (This is not an exact quotation of Asimov's presentation of the three laws, but my own statement of them, with an explanatory example.)
By Paul Levinson9 years ago in Futurism
Brutalist Stories #28
Two men and 10,000 bullets, that’s all it seemed to take, on the outside at least anyway. That’s what they all reported, fed through the feeds for weeks and months afterwards, the stories of heroism of these two men that went in where no other man nor woman would go. That place where angels fear to tread. Well, a lot more went on behind the scenes.
By Brutalist Stories9 years ago in Futurism
Jodorowsky’s Dune: What Might Have Been
Frank Herbert’s Dune is largely considered the Holy Grail of science fiction novels. Serving as a cross section study of politics, religion, ecology, technology, and human emotion, it has not lost its relevancy. The scramble for the rights would culminate with David Lynch’s 1984 adaptation, but the cup he gave us left Hebert’s vision empty and almost ended the director’s career. However, an earlier production approached the futuristic envisioning on as grand a scale as the galactic stage the story covers.
By Rich Monetti9 years ago in Futurism
Invisible Magic Part 2
It wasn't long before there was a loud crashing sound coming from the kitchen back door, like someone was breaking into the house. Tom and his colleague were waiting for Mrs. Ingram to scream but nothing happened to point them to which part of the house she was in. Just as the men were leaving the study quietly, Tom pressed a button behind a picture. They were about to go a bit further as they heard Mrs. Ingram coming down the stairs sitting on Pfftten breaking the back door window. The man that was there to help whispered harshly “shh Mrs. Ingram…we have an intruder…get into the study and stay there close the door and lock it.” She wasn't impressed by how she was spoken and she was about to give him a piece of her mind when she heard the door being kicked into. So she scurried off into the study and locked herself into the study.
By Lizzy Arrow9 years ago in Futurism
Time Walker Chapter Two
As quickly as she could manage with such a weight, she continued back to her ship. The smell of burnt remains had since dulled and she felt more at ease but then thinking about the possibility that more of these pure breeds may still be about, possibly in hiding, made her pulse race.
By Dawn Marie Styles9 years ago in Futurism
Jurgens, Von Braun, & 'I Aim At The Stars'
For those of a certain age or with an interest in the history of space exploration, the name of Wernher Von Braun will be a familiar one. Von Braun was one of the fathers of NASA's rocket program, the man who helped not only to build the massive Saturn V rocket that took the Apollo missions to the moon but also helped to sell the idea of space exploration to the American public. He was also the man behind Germany's V-2 rocket program during the Second World War, an act which (along with his potential involvement in and definite awareness of the use of slave labor to build said rockets) might also make him something of a war criminal. When Von Braun was at the height of his fame in the late 1950s-early 1960s, the idea of making a film about his life was deemed to be a good idea. The result was I Aim At The Stars, released in 1960 and which stands as an interesting historical piece if nothing else.
By Matthew Kresal9 years ago in Futurism
Everything You Need to Know About Darth Vader
Formerly known as Anakin Skywalker in the first couple of movies, he became the Sith Lord known as Darth Vader. A former Jedi Knight, Vader became the partner of Emperor Palpatine, the evil emperor who rose to rule the galaxy. The original six Star Wars films are mostly about the rise and fall of Vader’s character. Vader is known to be the most feared character in the entire saga, who uses the dark side of the force to destroy anything that gets in his way. He wields a red lightsaber to kill others and is the most popular character in the Star Wars series.
By David Lasher9 years ago in Futurism
Sci-Phi
The best part about being a nerd is the childlike excitement at what tomorrow might bring. Along with this comes an eye for questions that we will have to answer as societies and as a species. The work of Philip K. Dick was laden with ideas about artificial intelligence and the post-modern idea of reality itself. This is the genre I refer to as Sci-Phi, as in Science-Philosophy, which is literature addressing the sociological and human impact of changing technology. It may not be set far in the future, and it may not have many dense scientific concepts to puzzle over. That isn’t because of ignorance. It is a result of the focus being on the human aspect of life in the future.
By Mickey Finn9 years ago in Futurism
