A visual trip through the 21st Century

Via Sentient Developments, here's a speculative montage of how the 21st century could play out. Personally, I think this is all very viable, given the way technology and society is developing. The possible caveat is, of course, that as humans we may screw it up through infighting, luddism, reactionary attitudes, and good old fashioned greed.

That being said, I really do hope we get there. I can't wait until 'most conscious entities do not have a permanent physical presence'. Hopefully I'll still be around to shed my skin (or what's left of it at that point) and join the singularity.

The Ten Dimensions, explained; and a glimmer of 2012.

From the promo website for the new book, Imagining the Tenth Dimension, comes this little Flash video explaining the nature of the ten dimensions (and you thought there were only four. HA! You're soooo twentieth century- the future's all about quantuum physics and string theory, baby!). Physicists tell us that the subatomic particles that make up our universe are created within ten spatial dimensions (plus an additional dimension of time) by the vibrations of exquisitely small "superstrings". The video explains this all relatively simply, in terms that most of us can understand.

Superstring theory is yet anther instance in which science fiction has anticipated science. The idea of parallel universes and dimensions is an old one, and you don't even have to be a hard-core sci-fi geek to have been exposed to it: a screening of the Back to the Future movies will suffice to get the gist of it. According to the video, it would actually be theoretically possible to travel between parallel dimensions, or alternate realities, if you will. The only caveat is that since we, as humans, are limited to experiencing our reality within the context of the first three and a half dimensions (length, width, depth, and duration/time, but we don't really see this one as a whole, we simply experience it in a limited way as we travel through it), we don't even percieve the rest of the 'higher' dimensions.

This concept gels nicely with the subject of the book I'm currently reading, 2012: The Return of Quetzalcoatl, by Daniel Pinchbeck. He postulates that humanity is on the verge of a quantum leap in consciousness, where the paradigm of our very existence will change dramatically to encompass ideas and concepts that until now have been relegated to the realm of the spiritual, arcane, mystical, and psychedelic by mainstream, physical science. He puts forth that there are other dimensions to reality, such as the noosphere, which are out of our range of perception for now, because we are not equipped to perceive them (sort of like how we can't see light in the infrared spectrum, but in a spiritual, or quantum state), but that soon, humanity will transcend our current paradigm of existence and evolve into a higher state of being. He sets the date for this singularity event at or around 2012, according to (among other markers) the date in the Mayan calendar that corresponds to the ending of the fifth -and current- age of mankind. Hence the title of the book, as Quetzalcoatl is a Mayan deity.

It's strange that I'm coming across all this related information at the same moment. Chalk one up to synchronicity (although Pinchbeck addresses this phenomenon, albeit from a very psychedelic and mystical perspective. I don't know if I subscribe to his interpretation, but it makes for interesting reading).

Some robots, in disguise.

In keeping with what seems to be the theme for this week, here's another robot-related post. This time, it's a new picture of what is supposed to be passing for Optimus Prime on the much-anticipated (or dreaded, depending on your point of view), Michael Bay-directed 'Transformers' live-action/CGI movie coming out this summer.

Here's my take on this: if this movie were called anything other than 'Transformers' (like, say, 'Go-Bots'. . . HA!), I would have absolutely no problem with this design. In and of itself, it looks pretty badass. But as a die-hard Generation 1 Transformers fan, that is just *not* Optimus Prime (although I'm glad to see they at least kept his head). Call me a purist, but if it's not a snub-nosed tractor trailer cab, it's just not Prime. By the way, what is with these Hot-Rod / Rodimus Prime flames?? Ugh.

And don't even get me started on Megatron (below). Bay's re-imagining of Megatron is what you'd get if you stuffed HR Giger full of amphetamines and acid and shoved him into a room full of hyperactive Tribbles with loud uptempo techno playing at 300bpm.

I feel confident I speak for Transformers fans everywhere when I say: Fuck you, Michael Bay. Fuck you very very much.

More signs that the Japanese are dead serious about playing Gundam + Robotech in real life

Masaaki Nagumo, an engineer at Japan's machinery maker Sakakibara Kikai, gets into a 3.4-metre tall, two-legged robot called Land Walker for a demonstration as part of an art exhibition. Looks like a prototype Star Wars "AT-ST Scout Walker" or some kind of small Mech.

All he needs is a medium-sized plasma cannon, a big ol' energy sword, some type of anti-Ewok-attack system, and we're good to go. And a jetpack. Must never forget the jetpack.

Oh, and this thing needs to transform into something. I don't care into what, as long as it transforms. It's just not a giant Japanese robot if it doesn't transform into something.

This thing is so sweet, I just had a nerdgasm. When are these gonna be available for purchase? Now that would be a hell of a morning commute.

Grease Monkey Kudos

Grease Monkey: A Tale of Growing Up in Orbit by Tim Eldred has been selected by the American Library Association as both a "Best Book for Young Adults" and "Great Graphic Novel for Teens." Grease Monkey is one of Tor's titles –our first graphic novel, in fact– and I enjoyed it tremendously.

Congratulations to Mr. Eldred and his editor Teresa Nielson Hayden.

One Step Closer. . .

. . . to the singularity. From NewScientist.com, Neural 'extension cord' developed for brain implants:

A "data cable" made from stretched nerve cells could someday help connect computers to the human nervous system. The modified cells should form better connections with human tissue than the metal electrodes currently used for purposes such as remotely controlling prosthetics. . . Connecting the chord to electrodes outside of the brain means the reaction of neurons to non-organic material can be controlled. In future, the cord could connect an amputee's nerves to a sophisticated prosthetic, he says, and might even offer a way to connect artificial eyes or ears to the brain.

Bring it on. I've said it before and I'll say it again: I'll be the first in line to get a brain implant.

Don't fuck it up, Clooney!

From Sci Fi Wire : It seems George Clooney is going to produce an adaptation of Neal Stephenson's The Diamond Age as a six-part miniseries for the Sci Fi Channel. Now, Neal Stephenson is by far one of my favourite authors (The Barroque Cycle, Snow Crash, Cryptonomicon, etc.), and The Diamond Age is the very first novel of his that I read, so it's got a special place in my heart. From what I've seen of Clooney's work, his productions seem well thought out, and in the spirit of what/who he's trying to portray. But then again, this is sci fi –the genre, which is hard to adapt into film competently without getting silly– Sci-Fi –the network, which has a spotty track record for this kind of thing (on one end, Battlestar Galactica kicking some serious ass, on the other, the Dune miniseries and the slew of B-grade movies they spew forth every year sucking craptacularly) and it's Stephenson, to boot; a very complicated and obtuse author, who crams meaning and symbology into every fucking page, particularly in The Diamond Age.

I'm going to withold judgement on this one until I see it.

Must-know terms for the 21st Century

Via Warren Ellis' blog, a list of must-know terms for the 21st century, from the Sentient Developments blog, by George P. Dvorsky. A fascinating list, covering terms and concepts from Bayesian Rationality to the Technological Singularity (my favourite). Definitely worth a read, and makes for a good half hour of link surfing. If anyone is curious as to some of the most important concepts in modern futurology,* this is a good place to start.

* Ben, I'm thinking of Natty here, so send her this way.

Old Man's War and The Ghost Brigades

I've just finished reading Old Man's War and The Ghost Brigades, by John Scalzi (one of Tor's authors, and the man behind The Whatever). What a ride! These books rock. Scalzi rocks. Period.

The premise of the Old Man's War Universe is simple: In the future, humanity has taken to the stars, and discovered that the neighborhood is rough. Human colonists must compete for interstellar real estate with many other alien races, who seem to like to compete with ordinance, as opposed to basketballs. War is expensive, and uses up warm bodies -even in the future- so earthlings are encouraged to enlist to protect the colonies, but only after their 75th birthday. Yes, that's right, seventy-cinco. Because in the future, they've got the body-swap/conciousness transfer thing down to a science.

Scalzi's world-building is on point; he's got his shit all worked out, but he knows just when to give it to you. His pacing is nice and tight, moving you along the plot all while giving you your expository stuff in nice manageable dollops. Fans of Robert Heinlein will totally dig these books. Old Man's War feels like a one-shot novel, because while the foundations for the larger story were there, it has a very satisfying ending. Considering it was Scalzi's first novel, that makes sense. The Ghost Brigades, on the other hand, while still being a self-contained story, really drops a hell of a cliffhanger on ya towards the end.
It's a good thing we just got the first shipment of The Last Colony, the third -and I believe, final, but I could be wrong- installment in the series into the office.

The covers for all three books are illustrated by John Harris. His spacescapes are awe-inspiring, they reflect the grandeur implicit in the themes that Scalzi works with in these books. To quote Irene Gallo, Harris' illustrations "resonate a sense of awe and scope, a kind of 'big picture' science fiction." Indeed. His loose, gestural style also gives off a kineticisim which echoes the fast-paced action in these books. A great pairing of illustrator with author, in my opinion.