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Hollywood has plucked the next Paul Verhoeven classic for a remake. And this time it's our beloved bug killing classic Starship Troopers. But before you freak out, just wait until you hear who's writing the script. Could we be due for a grittier version that's closer to Robert A. Heinlein's original novel — including more Mobile Infantry Power Suit action? Perhaps. More »
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We've all been there: your first meeting with a member of another culture, or your first attempt at real communication in a foreign language. More often than not, disaster results. Learning to cope with other ways of speaking, and other cultural contexts, can be a major challenge — but science fiction is here to help! More »
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Nowadays, we take for granted the idea that if you go travel back in time and interact with your own past, you can create a huge crazy time paradox. But who first came up with this idea? More »
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Joel Rosenberg, who died yesterday, was a civil libertarian who wrote about liberty in his fantasy novels. For example, in his first novel The Sleeping Dragon, a group of students travel to a magical world and work to end slavery. More »
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The Register asked its readers to name the best science fiction books that haven't been turned into movies, and hundreds of nominations came in. Now the Register has whittled the list down to the 50 that got the most votes. More »
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Looking for an antidote to Star Trek's utopian but overbearing Federation? Like your science fiction with a bigger emphasis on personal liberties? Then check out our list of the greatest libertarian science fiction. More »
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Most long-time science fiction fans consider the Golden Age to have started with the July 1939 issue of Astounding Science Fiction. That issue contained Isaac Asimov's first Astounding story ("Trends") as well as A.E. Van Vogt's first story, "Black Destroyer." More »
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Over at Shelfari, they're discussing "the worst books of the good authors" in science fiction. Including lone clunkers by Asimov, Heinlein and Niven. What are your least favorite books by your favorite authors? [Shelfari] More »
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It's election day, and all indications are that the GOP will sweep Congress. What's the worst that can happen under the Republicans? Science fiction has the answer, with a wealth of stories about right-wing policies taken to horrendous extremes. More »
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You can learn an amazing amount about how to write science fiction from reading Robert A. Heinlein. But his most often quoted bit of writing advice won't help you at all. If anything, it'll mess you up. More »
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It's hard to imagine a generation of science-fiction readers growing up without the looming presence of Robert A. Heinlein. William H. Patterson's long-awaited biography of Heinlein sheds light on how he rose to prominence. More »
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In honor of Banned Books Week, Geekosystem's Susana Polo looks at 10 great science fiction novels that have been banned, or at least threatened with removal from libraries and schools. Including some major classics of the genre! More »
]]> http://io9.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5653504&view=rss&microfeed=true Ralph Vicinanza, a literary agent who specialized in foreign rights, died suddenly at his home on Saturday. For two decades, he represented such high-powered authors as Stephen King, Philip K. Dick, Carl Sagan, Robert A. Heinlein, George R.R. Martin, Terry Pratchett and Kim Stanley Robinson, primarily in overseas deals. In 1998, Vicinanza formed Created By, an L.A.-based production/management company that works mostly with science fiction. [Publishers Lunch] More »
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Why should you be reading more science fiction? Not just for the thrills or awesome science. You should read SF to explore ideas about society that academics and pundits won't talk about, writes Walter Russell Mead in The American Interest. More »
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It's hard enough to define science fiction — but what makes for truly great SF? What's the crucial element, the X-factor? TimeSplash author Graham Storrs argues it's all about exploring who we are as humans. More »
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Great science fiction and fantasy novels don't just expose us to other worlds and alternate timelines — they expand our minds and give us compass to steer by. Here are our favorite bits of advice and maxims from SF books. More »
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It's the July 4 weekend, so naturally our thoughts turn to independence, and bloody, lovely revolution. Unfortunately, overturning your colonial rulers is hard work. So we've collected tips from the ten greatest science fiction revolutionaries, to help you prevail. More »
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When will the Venusian colonists declare independence, according to Robert Heinlein's early stories? Now you can consult this handy future history chart, first published in the 1941 Astounding Science Fiction, and find out. Click to make huge. [Potrzebie] More »
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Robert A. Heinlein's novel The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress is a seminal libertarian text, and Heinlein inspired many people to become libertarians. But Heinlein's own views were more varied, and his work dabbles in many different political philosophies. [Mises.org] More »
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With 1967's The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress, we bid a fond adieu to Robert A. Heinlein's Hugo winners. And there's just no getting out of it: We're not that sorry to see him go. More »
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We've had one divisive big-time feature film, a handful of shitty sequels, a better-than-you'd-think animated series — but nothing has lived up to the jingoistic brilliance of Heinlein's military-sci-fi classic. More »
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Is Stranger in a Stranger Land by Robert Heinlein the Catcher in the Rye for the science-fiction set? Yes, I think you could say that about the 1962 Hugo winner in one important sense. More »
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Starship Troopers is one of Robert Heinlein's most famous books, and one of the most famously controversial in SF. And the 1960 Hugo winner has its problems — but that's probably why it's a classic. More »
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The busier you get, the more stuff you forget, and navigating that mental clutter can be worse than steering through an asteroid field. Luckily, lots of intrepid galactic heroes have faced faulty memories, and created some handy techniques for remembering. More »
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People are complaining that Stargate Universe is becoming a soap opera, but don't worry — it's got a ways to go before it reaches the levels of science fiction/fantasy's most demented, silliest soap operas. More »
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Most of us would have no problem being seen in public reading a science-fiction novel... unless it had a cover so hideous, or so wrong, that you might get arrested. Here are the cheesiest and most disturbing science-fiction book covers. More »
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The original Grand Master brings us the first Hugo-winning novel truly worthy of the award. Hot jets, kiddies! It's Double Star, by Robert Anson Heinlein, from 1956. More »
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The most frustrating, annoying thing about the opposite sex is that they're not you. Why can't you just meet your exact duplicate — except for sex? You'd be a perfect match. Luckily, science fiction suggests 3 ways it could happen. More »
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Everywhere you look nowadays, there are young, fresh-faced vampires. But they're not the only heroes out there who stay eternally young. Some of our favorite science-fiction heroes are blessed (cursed?) with Alphaville's reward. Here are the 10 greatest forever-young heroes. More »
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At 220,000 words, Heinlein's Stranger In A Strange Land is one of the most famous doorstoppers in science-fiction history. (There's an edited version, which loses about 60,000 words.) Now a biologist has explained it could be much shorter. More »
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Orbit Books is trying to create the worst science fiction book cover of all time — but they're up against stiff competition. Details, and a gallery of some of our fave bad covers, are below. More »
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Science fiction is all about discovery and invention, but only a few books have actually created whole new genres. Here are 10 books that pioneered a new type of science-fictional story. Do you have what it takes to join them? More »
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When humans finally conquer space, we'll still want to keep other creatures as pets. Some science-fiction pets are among our favorite characters, but others, you just want to flush out the airlock. Here's our list of the best and worst. More »
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Stories of valiant spacefarers are making a comeback in science-fiction publishing, while space-war novels still have a healthy niche. Both space opera and military science fiction share similar icons, so why are they considered separate? More »
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Now, if I could travel through time, I'd head for the future, but for some reason, people just keep heading for the not-so-distant past where they run into their own mothers.
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Science fiction is literature of ideas - it's just that sometimes, those ideas are lifted from elsewhere. Some of the genre's greatest creators have gotten ripped off, or been accused of plagiarism. Here's our list. More »
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Are you wasting thousands of dollars in therapy unraveling your horrendous upbringing? Check out 10 science fiction books about kids who really had it rough, and put your issues into proportion. It'll be cheaper! More »
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Science fiction's best authors chart a vast and unpredictable cosmos - but they're not above making a little wager here and there on earthly matters. Here are SF authors' weirdest (and most productive) bets. More »
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Life Magazine sent a photographer to take pictures on the set of Destination Moon, the 1950 film that Robert Heinlein worked on. They include on-set clowning, like this lunar ballet, but also stunning props. More »
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What's the worst that can happen if you vote Republican in November? Science fiction has the answer, with a wealth of stories about right-wing policies taken to their most horrendous extremes. We already recounted the scariest dystopias where liberals triumph, and now here's our list of the most awesome dark futures where Sarah Palin holds sway. More »
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