Random Sci Fi Thoughts
This is a collection of every non-franchise-specific random Sci-Fi thought and post on Thoughts and Fiction.
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Why go to Space? Narrative Reasons for Humanity Settling in the Solar System
In a previous article, about the settlement of the Asteroid Belt, I briefly mentioned that why humanity moves to the Belt will be a big question. An asteroid is a very inhospitable place to live. In fact, all of the presently un-terraformed planets, moons and worlds are. People might enjoy visiting them, but I can’t…
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Humanity in the Asteroid Belt: An Awesome Sci-Fi Setting
It’s been a while since I’ve written any sci-fi stuff, so let’s talk about the Asteroid Belt! I love the idea of a fully inhabited Solar System. It’s an awesome narrative setting: a sci-fi frontier with, relatively, grounded technology and limitations. There’s less of a fantastical blurring between magic and science, which you get with…
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The Moons of Jupiter are Awesome and Their Narrative Potential Immense
I once heard it said, I think on a forum, that the Jovian System (Jupiter and its moons) is an empire waiting to exist. That has stuck in my mind. Its narrative potential, as well, is almost endless. There is so much world-building that you could do, and so many cool Sci-Fi themes you could…
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What Will Humanoid Robots Actually Do? What Sci-Fi Predicts.
What will humanoid robots/androids actually do? I’m guessing they’re meant to be generalist machines, able to do anything we need. But I can’t imagine generalist machines would be that good at any specific task, and if they were, humanity might object. This is explored in a lot of great Sci-Fi stories, and there is a…
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Using real science to speculate about alien ecosystems.
Just some random thoughts about alien ecosystems Recently, I’ve noticed loads of documentaries and videos that use real-world science to make predictions about how alien plant and animal life would evolve on other planets and environments. I say ‘loads’, I’ve seen two: a Netflix documentary and a Kurzgesagt video. Admittedly, they’re not really ‘science’ documentaries,…
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An In-Universe Explanation for Retro Technology in Sci-Fi
In the Science Fiction movies and TV shows of the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s, there’s often a strange blend of futuristic equipment and non-futuristic aesthetics. They even have technology that’s outdated in our time. From Star Trek to Alien, future technology is bulky and obsolete; they don’t have graphical computers, and everything is controlled with…
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The Fermi Paradox: Maybe The Aliens Just Haven’t Invented Capitalism.
An excessively political solution to the Fermi Paradox. I don’t normally talk about politics or economic theory on this blog (it crops up occasionally but never too explicitly). But when I was doing my MA in Political Economics, I heard about a relatively novel theory about the origins of capitalism, and it naturally got me…
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Terraform the Solar System!
Because it would be cool! Also, it has narrative potential. I like Space. In both the galactic and personal sense (this is about the former). Who wouldn’t love the idea of exploring and settling alien worlds? It’s the next obvious step in humanity’s journey and would open up a near-infinite pool of resources. But space…
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