Category Archives: science fiction

sci-fi movies, science fiction, star trek

The Once and Future Universe

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Fans of the Cosmos

I just spent the weekend at a fan-based “con” called StarFest, held near Denver, Colorado. I go back each year to give science talks, which also allows me to indulge my inner fangeek for the various bits and piece of the science fiction/sci-fi universes that I follow. I know a lot of people scoff at these cons because all they see (or think they see) are people dressing up as storm troopers or Federation officers and so on.

That’s certainly one aspect, which is an enjoyable one because people are SO darned inventive with their costumes. And, in reality, they aren’t different from devotees of wargaming, Civil War re-enacting, SCA activities and Renaissance Festival activities. I heard from friends of mine a while back that there is a lot of interest in Germany, for example, in stories of the American Old West, with people dressing up as characters, etc.

Anyway, back to StarFest.  I gave two talks, one about the Sun and solar activity, and the other one about the search for exoplanets and extraterrestrial life. Had a great time doing them and people asked a LOT of really good questions!

Those questions are why I love to talk at Cons.  It seems like there is a higher number of people really motivated to love astronomy and space science who attend these events. It was evident from my conversations in the hallways, at the art show, in the coffee shop, etc. that they READ more about it. And, they want to know more. This Con had some well-known actors attending to talk about their roles in various shows. I happened to be taking a break in the con’s guest relaxation area and got to talking with one of the actors who turned out to have a HUGE interest in astronomy, to the point where he said that he reads whatever he can get his hands on about the subject. We had a pretty entertaining conversation until it was time for him to go do another appearance. He asked for my card so he could write with more questions.

A group of attendees joined me for coffee in the hotel Starbucks and they were peppering me with questions about Miguel Alcubierre’s research into warp drive. They’d read everything they could find (more than I had, I must admit), and were just so excited about the idea that warp drive isn’t so farfetched after all. It spurred me to read more about the work being done to achieve such a thing.

I came away from the con (as I do each year) impressed with the enthusiastic reception of science — astronomy, space science, planetary science, etc. — by many of the con attendees. It didn’t seem to matter if they were steampunk fans or science fiction readers or Star Wars devotees or Firefly fanatics or followers of Battle Star Galactic or any of the other media creations out there. Many attendees had a basic interest in new things happening in science. And, they bring their  kids, who are REALLY the wave of the future.  I talked to a few young’uns who didn’t have any idea who Shatner’s Captain Kirk was, but they were interested in finding out more about him and the Trekiverse because of what Chris Pine’s Captain Kirk did.  One little guy wearing a Superman cape told me with great confidence that he’d be one of the first engineers to live full time on the Moon. His mom (a real-life engineer) just beamed.

I’m a life-long science fiction reader and Trekkie. While the early NASA missions were what spurred my interest in the stars after my dad showed me the night time sky, I can honestly say that SF and Star Trek played a huge role, too. And, that’s a great thing. The both present stories about people (albeit in the future), living their lives with technologies that seem farfetched to us today, but are utterly normal to THEM. Perhaps that’s why I like the genres so much. They give us a glimpse of our future in the stars. It’s up to us to make wise decisions about what that future is going to look like!

 

 

 

gaming, media, science fiction, science in the media

A Storm Trooper, a Na’vi and Mark Twain

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Walk into a Mexican Restaurant…

No, this isn’t the start of a bad science fiction joke. It’s what I saw this past weekend at StarFest, a convention put on each year by StarLand.com.  I was a guest speaker on Saturday, and my talk was about Hubble Space Telescope science. I’ve given talks at StarFest (and its former sibling conference StarCon), and at WorldCon and Shore Leave and other conferences over the years. They’re always a lot of fun and the audiences are always very receptive.  This one was no exception — I was very happy to have a standing-room-only crowd, some in costume (which is always fun). And mind you, I am a Trekkie from WAY back, so I can appreciate the frame of mind in which conference-goers attend. The very first con I ever talked at (back when I was in graduate school), I was greeted by a whole troop of fully battle-clad Klingons in the front row — and I was happy to report that they did NOT hurl bat’leths at me at the end of the talk!

Now, it’s a no-brainer that astronomy and science talks might be welcome at a sci-fi/star trek/anime/gaming/you-name-it kind of convention.  There’s a certain passion that folks who are into these things also bring to the rest of their outlook on life.  They tend to be curious and intelligent and open-minded and open to new ideas and directions of discussion.  So, at such a con, it’s easy to find yourself in a conversation with a kid dressed as Harry Potter, passionately defending the idea that we should go to the Moon before we go to Mars.  Or, you find yourself chatting about NASA’s budget with (as I did) an older gentleman dressed in full steampunk.  Or, you end up in a conversation with a movie star (as I als0 did) about astrology and astronomy, and her boyfriend joining in with questions about life on other worlds.  There’s a wonderful art room, with everything from paintings and pottery to original fan-based art for all the genres. It’s coordinated by our friend Tim Kuzniar of Autumn Star science fiction, fantasy, and space art. And the dealer’s room is an amazing sight. Among the booths for belly dancing jewelry, carved dragons, and science fiction movies and books and gamers I found like-minded souls who share a sense of what’s out there, what’s to be discovered, and what piques our curiosity.

A Na'vi at Starfest. Copyright 2010, C.C. Petersen.

So, it’s a great place to experience all the artistic influences that are related in some way to space, to astronomy, to exploration… to the flights of fantasy and imagination that can give us races like Na’vi, the quaint but forward-looking writing of Mark Twain, and the power and backstory that an Empire Storm Trooper represents. Not to mention all the folks in Star Trek uniforms, Batman outfits, dressed as robots, the Terminator, animals, Na’vi, and even Charlie the Unicorn.

About the folks in the title at the top? Our friend Tim spotted them before dinner and I saw them after dinner.  I didn’t have my camera handy to catch the three of them together, although I caught this Na’vi (at left) an hour or so later after the costume contest. But, the vision  of the three of together  is in my memory — and I like the mix of metaphors, times, and ideas that bring together three people who can attend the same meeting, dressed as creatures from very different times and idea-spheres, and find common ground in a Mexican food joint.  That’s the beauty of mixing science and culture — the hybrid that is born brings you scenes like that one.  And, I look forward to going again next year, presenting a talk, and talking to whoever– and whatever — shows up!