Science Fiction and Computing: Essays on Interlinked Domains

Ferro (computer science, Weber State University) and Swedin (information systems and technologies, Weber State U.) gather 18 invited, original essays on the symbiotic relationship between science fiction and real-life developments in computing, robotics, and artificial intelligence over the past 50 years. Contributors are scholars and academics in computer science, digital media, sociology of technology, history of science; a few science fiction writers and editors add their voices. Contributors write from various perspectives such as anthropology, sociology, science and technology studies, political science, and cultural studies. After an introduction reviewing science fiction as a literary genre, discussion touches on areas such as the interplay of Star Trek and modern computing, the 'electronic brain' and cybernetic imagination in Brazilian cinema, science fiction and cyberculture, nanocritters and other tiny things in science fiction, and the production history of The Lawnmower Man. Annotation c2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

David L. Ferro is an associate professor of computer science at Weber State University. He has published on both science fiction and real-world computer science. Award-winning author Eric G. Swedin is an associate professor of information systems & technologies at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah.