Tag Archives: science and science fiction

ⓜ Creation Stories: Science, Religion, and Science Fiction…Part 3

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This entry is part 10 of 55 in the series And Then I Wrote

In the fall of 2011, I was invited to give The Vivian J. Lamb Lecture on Science and Religion at Villanova University. The text of my hour-long talk ran to more than 6,000 words, and as far as I know it was never published anywhere. I’ve been publishing it here in three parts; this is the third and final part. The fact is, the greatest creation that each of us gets to make is our own lives. We start with the cards that are dealt to us – the situation into which we were born, the talents and limitations we were each of us given at birth – and then we have the chance to form and shape them into something new, something never done before.  Our lives are our own personal science fiction novels. (Of course it’s science fiction; it takes place in the future, doesn’t it?) Granted, there’s only so much we can write, ourselves; sometimes the other … Continue reading →

ⓜ Creation Stories: Science, Religion, and Science Fiction…Part 2

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This entry is part 11 of 55 in the series And Then I Wrote

In the fall of 2011, I was invited to give The Vivian J. Lamb Lecture on Science and Religion at Villanova University. The text of my hour-long talk ran to more than 6,000 words, and as far as I know it was never published anywhere. I’ve been publishing it here in three parts; what follows is Part 2. A friend of mine, an editor at Tor Science Fiction, Teresa Nielsen Hayden, once posted on her blog what she calls a “four-item formula” for writing fiction: 1. Move and keep moving. 2. Make it consequential. 3. Recycle your characters. 4. See if you already have one. Move and keep moving. Tell the story you want to tell without shilly-shallying around. You may know that something really wonderful is coming up in chapter three, but your reader doesn’t unless you give them a taste of the cool stuff with a promise of more coming soon. Of course you do then have an … Continue reading →

ⓜ Creation Stories: Science, Religion, and Science Fiction…Part 1

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This entry is part 12 of 55 in the series And Then I Wrote

In the fall of 2011, I was invited to give The Vivian J. Lamb Lecture on Science and Religion at Villanova University. The text of my hour-long talk ran to more than 6,000 words, and as far as I know it was never published anywhere. I’ll be publishing it here in three parts, over the next three weeks. This past summer [2011] I did a bit of traveling…  First, there was the “Living Theology” workshop at the Jesuit parish in Liverpool. I gave a bunch of talks, heard a bunch of talks. Got lost one day driving through Liverpool, and found myself crossing Penny Lane. Following that, I went to Greenwich for the annual meeting of the Meteoritical Society. I heard a bunch of scientific presentations about meteorites, those bits of rock from the asteroid belt that occasionally fall to earth. It’s really cool to be able to hold and touch a piece of outer space. Of course, when you … Continue reading →

Science Fiction Challenge

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Introduction The Sci-Fi Challenge is an activity we have used in teacher workshops. Selections from nine stories (classic sci-fi, sci-fi/fantasy, children’s stories) are provided to teachers working in pairs or small groups, who then choose one or more passage to analyze according to the following directions. What to Look For Read one of the passages provided. Science fiction should be a blend of entertaining storytelling and some level of science fact⸺either proven, possible, or probable. Science fantasy usually relies more heavily on storytelling and improbable science and technology. Think about the passage you read in terms of science, science fiction, and science fantasy. Discuss several of the questions below with your partner or group. Share your conclusions with the class. Is the passage science fiction or science fantasy? Is there scientific fact included in the passage? Does the science (or technology) presented seem probable, possible, or impossible? Does the passage make mistakes in the science facts or concepts it presents? … Continue reading →