Science Fact And Science Fiction

Publisher description

Compares what writers over the centuries have written about an imaginary future with the reality revealed by time.

Science fiction is a literary genre based on scientific speculation. Works of science fiction use the ideas and the vocabulary of all sciences to create valid narratives that explore the future effects of science on events and human beings. Science Fact and Science Fiction examines in one volume how science has propelled science-fiction and, to a lesser extent, how science fiction has influenced the sciences. Although coverage will discuss the science behind the fiction from the Classical Age to the present, focus is naturally on the 19th century to the present, when the Industrial Revolution and spectacular progress in science and technology triggered an influx of science-fiction works speculating on the future. As scientific developments alter expectations for the future, the literature absorbs, uses, and adapts such contextual visions. The goal of the Encyclopedia is not to present a catalog of sciences and their application in literary fiction, but rather to study the ongoing flow and counterflow of influences, including how fictional representations of science affect how we view its practice and disciplines. Although the main focus is on literature, other forms of science fiction, including film and video games, are explored and, because science is an international matter, works from non-English speaking countries are discussed as needed.

Science Fiction, Science Fact! Ages 8–12 is a book for story-loving primary teachers who want to find a creative way to teach science. Contextualising science in a story that pupils know and love, the book contains a wide range of activities and investigations to help Key Stage 2 pupils engage in science learning, while also extending aspects of the English national curriculum. The book offers valuable support to busy teachers and, by ensuring science lessons are enjoyable and accessible for pupils, helps children get involved in investigations in a way that is memorable for them. Using coloured illustrations and diagrams throughout, the book contains: the relevant scientific context alongside a link to one of nine exciting children’s stories clever and unique suggestions to ‘storify the science’ instructions for teachers to give to their pupils tips on how to deliver the lesson in an immersive way guidance on assessing pupils’ level of understanding Science Fiction, Science Fact! Ages 8–12 is packed full of ideas for weaving science into cross-curricular lessons, and is an invigorating and essential resource for Key Stage 2 teachers and science co-ordinators seeking to inject some creativity into their science lessons.

The Flow Genome Project director and award-winning author of The Rise of Superman charts the world-changing transformation of fictional scientific concepts into real-world technologies. Original. 10,000 first printing.

A rich visual history of science fiction's impact on real-world technologies, this book is perfect for lovers of H. G. Wells, Star Trek, Isaac Asimov, Jules Verne, Aldous Huxley, and 2001: A Space Odyssey. Have you ever wished for a personal jet pack or a robot butler? Do you wonder how you would fare as an interplanetary traveler? Are you eagerly awaiting driverless cars? Reality Ahead of Schedule explores how what we imagine about the future has influenced our ability to make those ideas into reality. There are many vital technologies that science fiction not only predicted, but also helped bring into being. Through lively narration and lavish illustrations, the book presents technological developments in the military, consumer, space exploration, medical, and communications fields. It explores the writers, futurists, and far-sighted inventors whose visions became realities, from the direct influence of H. G. Wells on the atomic bomb and the tank, to the ambitious prototypes created by inventors ahead of their time, such as Nikola Tesla's remote-controlled drone ship. The history and development of each technology is related in context, exploring the road from prescient fictional representation to real-life technology. Reality Ahead of Schedule offers readers the chance to meet and understand the impact of some of the greatest names and works in sci-fi, from Jules Verne and Aldous Huxley to Arthur C. Clarke and Isaac Asimov, Star Trek to the Bionic Man, alongside visionary inventors such as Tesla and Wernher von Braun.