My theme - Origins of Science Fiction Terms and More!
The term, its meaning (definitions from
Technovelgy), and first book appearance / a movie that features this term / a blogger buddy who reminds me of that term.
I’m also the guinea pig for an experiment –
A to Z Lite.
I get between 100-170 comments per post in April during the Challenge. And it has just become too much to return that many every day, six days a week. The other A to Z Admins agreed to an A to Z Lite trial run. A to Z Lite means I will just be posting a handful of times this month and multiple letters at a time. I also won’t be visiting every single person every single day, although I will return all comments. Hope everyone understands.
Optic Prosthesis
A replacement for a damaged eye.
This first appeared in Roger Zelazy’s
Changeling, published in 1980.
And the perfect example of that is found in
Star Trek Generations. (Or any Next Gen Star Trek movie or show.) Released in 1994, this was the film that merged the original series with Next Generation, thus passing the baton to a new crew. It featured LeVar Burton as Lt. Commander Geordi La Forge, a man without sight but able to see with the use of a VISOR that connects directly to his brain. Generations starred Patrick Stewart, William Shatner, Johnathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, Malcolm McDowell, and the rest of the Next Gen crew.
You want to meet someone who views the world a little differently?
Gail from At The Farm is a creative, no-nonsense, animal-loving, and faithful individual. If you have a damaged view on the world, she will set you straight.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Parallel Universe
An entirely separate realm or universe that exists along with our own; it may be wildly different or vary from ours by only a tiny degree.
No surprise – this first appeared in H.G. Well’s novel,
Men Like Gods, in 1923.
There are many movies about parallel universes. (And the IWSG anthology,
Parallels: Felix Was Here, is all about them!) One that weaves the worlds tight is
Looper, a science fiction thriller about a man who kills those the mob sends back in time – until they send an older version of himself. That’s when the parallel worlds come into play – can you change the future or the past? And if you can, is it really a parallel world? Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, and Emily Blunt, Looper came out in 2012.
Author
J.H. Moncrieff just might give you that parallel universe. Want to see beyond the ordinary? Want to know the weird and strange that is in the world? Then JH is your gal.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Quantum Power
Power generation through photon fission.
This didn’t originate with a book story, but from the video game
Alpha Centauri by Sid Meier. Published by Fraxis Games in 1999, this game was a ‘sequel’ to Meier’s Civilization.
The best example of quantum power is found in 2015’s
Ant-Man. Marvel’s smallest superhero battled a man bent on selling technology to the highest bidder in this hilarious and excellent film. Starring Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Evangeline Lilly, Corey Stoll, Bobby Cannavale, and Michael Peña, Ant-Man not only has a sequel in the works, but he appears in Captain America: Civil War.
Quantum power is what fuels
Ann at so much to choose from. She tackles so many topics, only that could explain her energy source!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Ray Gun
A weapon shaped like a handgun that shoots rays of energy
The first instance of this was in the 1916 movie,
The Intrigue, and it was actually called an X-ray gun. The first ray gun appeared John W. Campbell’s story,
The Black Star Passes in 1930. (Republished in 1953 as a collection of short stories.)
The ray gun has been used in hundreds of movies, so I decided to pick a unique one – F
arscape: The Peacekeeper Wars. Technically a two-part miniseries, this film came out over a year after the series ended and was intended to wrap up the cliffhanger and tie up loose ends. The key regular characters returned, played by Ben Browder, Claudia Black, Anthony Simcoe, Gigi Edgley, and Wayne Pygram.
Heather R. Holden from Welcome to the Edge owns a ray gun and more! This uber-talented artist shoots from the hip and she will zap you with her amazing web comics.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Shuttle
A space craft that travels point to point in space.
Shuttles as we know them appeared in 1950 in Theodore Sturgeon’s short story, Stars are Styx, later released as a novel,
The Stars are the Styx.
Like ray guns, shuttles have appeared in many films. One was used in the 2000 film
Space Cowboys to get the men up to a Russian satellite to fix it. The movie itself is cheesy fun and features the talents of Clint Eastwood, Tommy Lee Jones, Donald Southerland, James Garner, and James Cromwell.
Birgit at BB Creations is that shuttle. She will transport you to a time of simpler movies and dazzle you with her incredible homemade cards.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Time Machine
A device allowing the rider to move freely in the temporal dimension, just as we ordinarily do in the two physical dimensions normal to gravity.
No surprises here! It appeared first in
The Time Machine by H.G. Wells in 1895.
Time machines come in all forms. A very interesting one appears in the 1981 movie
Time Bandits. A group of dwarves use a special map to locate time holes and travel in search of treasure they can steal. From director Terry Gilliam, it’s a quirky and fun film starring John Cleese, Sean Connery, Shelley Duvall, Katherine Helmond, Ian Holm, Michael Palin, David Rappaport, Kenny Baker, and David Warner.
Fundy Blue at Standing Into Danger is the ultimate time machine. She will take you back many years to a time and place of harsh living and survival. The journey down this time trek will enthrall you.
New Releases!
Broken Angel by Sylvia Ney
Find it at
Amazon
Love, Lattes, and Angel by Sandra Cox
Find it at
Kensington Books
A Worange for Orange by Pat Hatt
Find it at
Amazon
Through the Garden Gate by Patsy Collins
Find it at
Amazon
Can you think of any other instances of optic prosthesis? Excited about the upcoming IWSG anthology? Fan of Ant-Man? Did you watch Farscape back in the day? Fan of Terry Gilliam movies? Following those awesome bloggers or picking up some new books? And have you learned anything on this science fiction journey…?
Unfortunately, I will be gone Wednesday through Friday for training. (Really glad I’m doing A to Z Lite.) Since I will only have a couple hours each night, I’ve decided it would be easier to just respond to comments, check emails, and continue to maintain the A to Z Challenge list. Hope everyone understands. Will miss you guys! Catch you Saturday.
