Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Futurism.
Writers of the Future Volume 33 and Beyond
Last week I had the privilege of attending the 33rd Writers of The Future Awards Gala at the Ebell Theater in Los Angeles. Prior to Gala #32 last year, I grappled to determine whether attending would be worthwhile. This year, my attendance was a no-brainer. Why? Because last year's event changed the course of my writing career.
By Joshua Sky9 years ago in Futurism
Sci-Fi Frenemies You Love to Hate
Science fiction is full of rivalries, of enemies, of villains, but frenemies--the sort of characters who are at once friend and foe--are less common. It is hard to find two characters who are at once locked in combat and embroiled in passionate friendship.
By Anthony Gramuglia9 years ago in Futurism
The Twilight Zone's Effect on Sci-Fi, Anthologies, and Modern Storytelling
"Next stop, the Twilight Zone..." For over five decades, the moment that people heard Rod Serling's classic opening narration, everyone knew that all bets for normalcy were off. Even today, anyone who's ever watched television has heard references to the classic TV show.
By Ossiana Tepfenhart9 years ago in Futurism
Rewatching... Doctor Who: The Faceless Ones - Part 1
Saturday 8 April 1967 This one gets off to a cracking start with the TARDIS materialising on an airport runway just as a plane is taking off. There's lots of airport-related hustle and bustle, a grumpy Commandant, uniformed staff, police motorcyclists... This is so unusual for Doctor Who - really 'urban'! The Commandant has received a report about the obstruction on the runway, which has left him less than delighted, and he's sceptical when told it's a police box. I'm not sure if the Doctor and friends legging it across the runway to avoid the plane was the best idea. Wouldn't it have been better to get back inside the TARDIS and dematerialise again? Still, I'm glad they didn't as this is shaping up to be an exciting episode.
By Nick Brown9 years ago in Futurism
Excerpt 2 From The Burning Years
While we had international environmental agreements, as the impending cataclysm approached, countries panicked. That’s how the “Weather Wars” started. In 2045, because we were all trying to save ourselves from the effects of climate change, treaties and agreements between countries became obsolete as conventional weapons were now useless. Carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases had risen to such an extent into the atmosphere around the globe that they had formed a thick blanket holding in heat. As these heat-trapping gas concentrations increased, the blanket’s thickness also increased and trapped even more heat in our lower atmosphere. Heat that had been designed by nature to escape through the stratosphere was now no longer able to do so, and resulted in it being much cooler than it should have been. This abnormal coolness then contributed to ozone loss, which effectively cancelled out any progress we had made in the past, by reducing CFC’s.
By Felicity Harley9 years ago in Futurism
Alex The Inventor-Chapter 10 (Pt.1)
Read Chapters 1 - 9 at: Deep Sky Stories No Tears Wasted... The cavern opened up before Alex immediately upon stepping inside it. It wasn't a naturally made cavern or cave though, rather a huge, domed structure overhead with deep blue gemstone lights which shone sharply down over everything. Although they were underground and still on Earth, the effect of being on another world was complete and quite striking to behold.The most obvious difference was the deeper blue "sky" that the glittering dome simulated. The plain white of Alex's spacesuit stood out in sharp contrast to the reddish-colored dry sand and pebbles he quietly walked upon. The next thing that became very noticeable was that the thinner atmosphere brought a sharper clarity to everything around him, such as the keen, black shadows they cast as they proceeded farther inside. All was silent, save for the sound of his own footfalls coming up through the spacesuit and his breathing inside the helmet. The quiet rhythm of atmospheric controls within the suit reassured Alex that all was well. The artificial biosphere he found himself in was really quite a beautiful place though a desolate and other-worldly one under the cold, clear sky.Looking over at Rainah, Alex smiled through his bubble and playfully reached over to brush his hand through her softly thrashing hair-quills. But the hairs parted before his hand as if they were sensitive undersea coral creatures. Rainah shied away and sent a teasing laugh into his puzzled mind.After they had walked a little further inside, Alex paused to look down at the pebbly soil at his feet. To his surprise, he began to notice small patches here and there of greenish brown moss-like vegetation, clinging to the rocks and peeking out of the arid soil. So, this place wasn't all just dry, empty sand after all. They did look like rather scruffy and pathetic little things though. Rainah came silently up by his side and looked down at the small, sand-dusted plants.
By G.F. Brynn9 years ago in Futurism
Connecting the Simulation Theory and Transcension Theory
As scientists gather more evidence, the idea that we are living in a simulation is beginning to look less like a fringe theory among sci-fi nerds and more like a legitimate explanation for the universe. The simulation theory, however, might end up connecting yet another fringe theory that attempts to explain the seeming silence of the universe -- a silence generally referred to as Fermi’s Paradox.
By Matt Swayne9 years ago in Futurism
Atmosphere Detected on Nearby 'Super-Earth' Exoplanet
For the first time, astronomers have detected an atmosphere surrounding a "super-Earth" exoplanet which is close in size to Earth, another key step towards finding a world similar in size to ours that is also habitable. It's not Earth 2.0 just yet, but it's another indication that we are getting closer to finding a world that reminds us of home.
By Paul Scott Anderson9 years ago in Futurism
"Careful, It Might Explode" Chemical Reaction Experiment: Gummy vs Potassium Chlorate
A delicious gummy candy becomes nothing more than burned ash, isn't chemistry great? Potassium chlorate is a polyatomic compound--it consists of a cation (the positive portion, the potassium) and the anion (the negative portion, the 'chlorate' or ClO3)
By Christina Paino9 years ago in Futurism
