Cool Gadgets
Of course, no site about science fiction and fantasy is complete without a few thoughts on technology and engineering. Here are a few things that need to appear more often in science fiction in particular, some might argue. I'll use a few myself. Most of these ideas come from the awesome Orion's Arm site.
1. Bioforge - A genetically engineered plant, or group of plants that can be ordered to grow a variety of organic materials, including some things that are not entirely organic.
2. Nanoforrge - Like a bioforge, but used synthetic nanotechnology and can make purely inorganic items. Access to such a device, or a bioforge, could be central to a post-apocalypse sci-fi tale. Perhaps a warlord gets control of this solar-powered vestige of a past age, and uses the forge to start building high-tech weapons? Perhaps there is a philosophical conflict over how to use the recovered device instead of a war?
3. Warseeds - A capsule/egg/seed thing that contains the nanomachines, instructions, and exotic elements needed to make, for example, a warship or robotic soldier (for ground combat). Also, as an extra challenge, put them in a tale that does not otherwise qualify as military science fiction. The seeds would be apple-sized to bus-sized could be stolen or lost or other misused. Could terrorists grow a warship from a seed and become history's first space pirates?
4. Autowars - perhaps done to death by Fred Saberhagen's Berserker series, but perhaps not. There is still plenty of room to explore the use of automated warships, whether grown from seeds or not. Make them a focus for something other than a military sci-fi tale. The "seeds" are likely to be as large as a bus but could still, in theory, be stolen or lost.
5. Planetary Engineering - Not a gadget, but a pretty good backdrop for a range of stories. People would be working together for all of their careers to make an alien world suited for human habitation. High risk of jumping the shark here, but the background could also work as a setting for a TV series. What new ways of organizing society might emerge, and new ideas for designing a natural environment? What conflicts might develop?
1. Bioforge - A genetically engineered plant, or group of plants that can be ordered to grow a variety of organic materials, including some things that are not entirely organic.
2. Nanoforrge - Like a bioforge, but used synthetic nanotechnology and can make purely inorganic items. Access to such a device, or a bioforge, could be central to a post-apocalypse sci-fi tale. Perhaps a warlord gets control of this solar-powered vestige of a past age, and uses the forge to start building high-tech weapons? Perhaps there is a philosophical conflict over how to use the recovered device instead of a war?
3. Warseeds - A capsule/egg/seed thing that contains the nanomachines, instructions, and exotic elements needed to make, for example, a warship or robotic soldier (for ground combat). Also, as an extra challenge, put them in a tale that does not otherwise qualify as military science fiction. The seeds would be apple-sized to bus-sized could be stolen or lost or other misused. Could terrorists grow a warship from a seed and become history's first space pirates?
4. Autowars - perhaps done to death by Fred Saberhagen's Berserker series, but perhaps not. There is still plenty of room to explore the use of automated warships, whether grown from seeds or not. Make them a focus for something other than a military sci-fi tale. The "seeds" are likely to be as large as a bus but could still, in theory, be stolen or lost.
5. Planetary Engineering - Not a gadget, but a pretty good backdrop for a range of stories. People would be working together for all of their careers to make an alien world suited for human habitation. High risk of jumping the shark here, but the background could also work as a setting for a TV series. What new ways of organizing society might emerge, and new ideas for designing a natural environment? What conflicts might develop?