Science Fiction Notes and Thought Creates Reality

One thing I readily admit is that I am a bit of a science fiction nerd. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't say I am an avid science fiction fan, but the general concepts of the genre do fascinate me. One thing I like about it is the way some sci-fi authors (or writers in general) really nail what could (and does) happen in the near future. Or the way a good writer can express ideas about our current and possible cultures, using a fictional story to give us unique perspective.

It's books like Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, which can paint an almost too real future, that really gets me thinking. The society depicted in it can easily be linked with elements of modern societies; - the government influenced homogeneous conformism, bio-engineering technology, the synthetically created 'soma' drug that depresses free-thinking, all issues today in one way or another. Take for example biotechnology and cloned animals; the other day I read about scientists cloning a Pyrenean ibex, a mountain goat that was deemed extinct in 2000. Using saved samples of the animal scientists successfully cloned one, (that died shortly after birth from a defect which raises some ethical issues obviously). As the technology progresses daily so do the questions on multiple levels (morally, ethically, philosophically, etc.) surrounding things like stem cell's, genetic engineering, pharmaceuticals, government controlled media etc.

Another one of my favorite sci-fi books is Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card, and one thing from it that struck me is the way author Orson Scott Card alludes to the oncoming power of the internet. There's that story arc in the novel where Ender's brother and sister use what they call 'the nets' (a kind of computer network for intellectuals) to insert and assert their political opinion into the mainstream media; using 'the nets' anonymity so as not be revealed as kids. The following passage from the book is between Ender's brother Peter and sister Val (all of whom are genius-children), "Peter, you're twelve."
"Not on the nets I'm not, On the nets I can name myself anything I want, and so can you."

Keep in mind this was written in 1985 (in the acknowledgments Card mentions elements of the story were first published in August 1977, the month and year I was born incidentally, also the month and year when Elvis died). But that's totally what the internet has become in a sense, an instantaeous worlwide information center, with the power to manipulate it in the hands of anyone with a keyboard.

A short synopsis of what good science fiction is, can be taken from the introduction to Ender's Game. Card explains that his inspiration for the book had partly come from reading Isaac Asimov's Foundation trilogy, which set him to thinking (as all good science fiction should do), "What would the future be like? How would things change? What would remain the same?" And then he goes on to say, "In science fiction, however, the whole point is that the ideas are fresh and startling and intriguing; you imitate the great ones, not by rewriting their stories, but rather by creating stories that are just as startling and new. "

(sample from Atmospheric Dust by Ed T. )

"Physical concepts are free creations of the human mind, and are not, however it may seem, uniquely determined by the external world." -Albert Einstein

Anyways, the thing that started the idea for this post happened when I caught one of my favorite episodes of Star Trek the Next Generation on TV the other day. (I refuse to enter a debate on which Star Trek show was the best, because it's clearly STNG.) It's the episode - "Where No One Has Gone Before" from 1987, in which the Enterprise crew encounters the mysterious "traveler" who accidentally teleports them and their ship millions of lightyears away. When Captain Picard is questioning the traveler as to how the ship got millions of lightyears from where it was, he asks him "What got us here?", the traveller replies "Thought" and then goes on to say, "Thought is the basis of all reality, the energy of thought, to put it in your terms, is very powerful."

I think this idea is true not only in an abstract sense, (positive thinking and visualizing can help one achieve goals, heal the body, you are what you think about, etc.) but in a very physical direct way also; thoughts are real and determine our reality in a myriad of different ways. From defining our universe in a metaphysical math equation or exploring the 'realness' of some sensations or events in dreams, thoughts play a vital role in understanding ourselves and the universe.