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Archive for March, 2010
What’s Up With Strange Future?
16 years
by Josh Smith
in Strange Future
So, in case you’re wondering what’s going on with the first book (since you’re visiting this site I’m assuming you’re at least somewhat interested, otherwise you wouldn’t be here) here’s the quick scoop:
Being Made Free at More Places:
Thanks to the awesome folks at Smashwords, the eBook version (which is free, as you all know) will soon be available for free at even more places. This includes Kobo, Barnes and Noble, Sony, and Amazon. (The current version that’s for sale there will be removed soon.) In addition to all these places, Smashwords just sent out an email notification that it will also soon be available on Apple’s iBookstore for the iPad at or close to launch day. You all might not think it’s that cool, but it’s awesome and pretty exciting. I’ll let you all know as soon as it’s up at each site.
A Few New Reviews:
Though I’ve been meaning to make a review page containing links to several reviews, I’ve not gotten around to it just yet. Meanwhile, the copy that’s up on Smashwords has gotten a couple of reviews I’d like to take the time to share:
Review from Mike Collins on March 13, 2010, 3/5 stars:
I liked it … quite a bit.
Some of the parallels between now and the future were quite funny … especially when they went to ‘International House’ and discovered the IHOP !
Review from Mark Jacobs on March 17, 2010, 4/5 stars:
A good, entertaining read; incorporating a universe of interesting ideas. It’s fascinating how the future is described in fiction depending on the author’s personal viewpoint, and their perception of who is deemed politically powerful at the time of writing. Although I realize most of this is satire, Josh has vividly drawn some aspects of a future world that is both believable and credible to even to an old Conservative like me. One minor note of criticism: I always cringe when I see a character in the future that is totally befuddled by events in the near or even distant past; i.e. Amazed that there was a time when there was no government control of reproduction (baby lottery). I think we should give future characters a little more credit. Good job, Josh! I hope to see more from you soon.
I’m not sure if either of you will get the chance to see it here or not, but let me put it here anyways: Thanks for the reviews guys, appreciate it!
The Podcast Version:
If you’ve subscribed to the Podcast version of the story on iTunes, you’ll note that it’s severely behind schedule. One of the mistakes I made was not following the advice of others to finish editing the ENTIRE podcast before posting it online. I was way too eager to get it out there, so went about halfway and then stopped. Lo and behold, life comes along and keeps me busy. That said, however, I’ve not given up on it and I’ve got two more chapters nearly done and ready to be uploaded. Look for them soon, within the next few days. More will follow. Live and learn, I guess…
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So, that’s about it! You’re now pretty much caught up on everything that’s going on with Strange Future. I’ll keep you posted on any other new developments as they come along.
NFASF: Woman Upset Over “Unauthorized Cloning”
16 years
Woman Upset Over “Unauthorized Cloning”
Claims donating her husband’s body to science didn’t authorize them to clone him
Story by Marshall Grey, Op-Ed Writer
A local woman, exasperated and running out of other options, is bringing her story to the media, and it’s quite a story. Joann–Jo, as her friends call her–Willman is a sixty-one year old widow who has lived in this city her entire life. Don’t let her age fool you: she’s still as spry as she used to be, and is determined to fight this “sad circumstance” as long as she can. You see, a little over thirty years ago, Jo’s husband Rex passed away.
“He was always so into technology,” she said, looking at a picture of him forlornly. “He was a first adopter for everything.” It was true. Rex worked hard and saved his money so he could afford the latest and greatest offerings from the world of technology. As she showed me around her apartment on the upper east side, I spotted all sorts of devices that were top-of-the-line when released. Rex had collected several versions of different DNA and memory backup systems, both of the memory disk players put out during the studio wars of the 2170s, and a myriad of implant accessories. Rex’s love for technology didn’t stop there, however.
“He told me one day, you know, that his dream was for his body to be donated to science when he died so they could improve human-machine interfaces,” she told me with a distant look in her eyes. “I didn’t think anything of it at the time, because it seemed like something he would say.” Of course, it was always assumed that this would happen far off in the future, at the end of Rex’s golden years, but fate has a way of making fools of us all. Rex died at the age of 30 in a work-related accident. Jo made the tough decision to respect her husband’s wishes and donate his body to science. What she failed to do, however, was to place restrictions on what type of research Rex’s body could be used for.
“It never even occurred to me at the time,” she said, glaring at the wall over my shoulder. It was a tragic mistake. One thing led to another, and Rex was cloned for a research project. Once the project was complete, a local family adopted him and raised him as their own. The clone of Rex is now thirty years old, the exact same age Rex was when he died.
“I had no idea it would happen. One day, two years ago, I was at the grocery store and saw him–the clone I mean. I couldn’t believe it! I ran up to him and started babbling like a maniac, telling him he was my husband and what was he doing alive and…” she trailed off. “It was damned foolish of me.”
Once Rex’s clone realized who he had been, he filed a civil suit, demanding that Jo turn over his memory backup devices. The long court battle has stretched out for the past two years, but a verdict is set to be delivered tomorrow. Jo’s argument centered on the fact that she didn’t authorize cloning. Rex’s attorney–and attorneys representing the scientists that performed the cloning–say that she didn’t forbid it from happening, so they were within their rights to do so. Analysts suggest that the court will rule in Rex’s clone’s favor.
“Once I found out who I had been, I felt I needed to get those memories back. My life had been cut short, but science brought me back, and I feel very strongly that being cloned was something I would have wanted,” Rex told reporters outside the courthouse yesterday. Whether or not he is correct about that is anyone’s guess. Reading private memories stored in a memory backup unit is currently forbidden by law, and security measures within the units themselves only allow the owner–verified by DNA–to access the memories to begin with. Regardless, Jo isn’t buying it.
“I just want to make sure that something like this doesn’t happen to anyone else. Scientists shouldn’t have the right to clone anyone unless the person and their family specifically authorize it.” Jo also wants to know if there are any other copies of her husband out there, but the scientists refuse to answer, citing the fact that much of their research is classified, and they wouldn’t be at liberty to say. When this article is published, she may very quickly find out.
“I wish I could take it all back!” she said, weeping, her head in her hands. Don’t we all, sometimes…
Teaser Tuesday: Cloning
16 years
by Josh Smith
in The Sequel
For this week’s Teaser Tuesday I bring you two paragraphs from a chapter that has a brief discussion on cloning (why, specifically, I will not reveal). This is only part of the narration from this section, and is part of my efforts to make more of the revelations about future life and tech come from the narrator and/or the character’s personal experiences rather than having Darin, Lyla or someone else explain things directly. Enjoy!
The major problem with clones is not so much the feelings of deja vu one experiences after encountering several of them in rapid succession, but rather in the semantics involved with keeping track of them. When the technology to clone first came into use, the scientists involved briefly experimented with numbering, lettering, even code-naming each clone to try and distinguish them from one another. This practice was quickly discovered to be rather ineffective due to the fact that as soon as the clones moved around the room, it was impossible to know which of them was ‘Alpha’ and which of them was ‘Beta’. It was rather disheartening for the scientists because the idea had seemed so good on paper, but in use was rather futile. This realization resulted in brief trials with name tags, but this too failed when the clones realized how much fun it was to distort the results of the experiments by switching name tags halfway through.
The labeling system caused just as much frustration for the clones. After all, it was rather disheartening to hear that Victoria M had gone off to a really great party and met a dashingly handsome young man while you, Victoria E, sat at home watching a sappy romance for the sixth time. Thus, most clones came to refer to themselves as if they were a single entity, causing the lines between which clone had done what to blur. Of course, with the technology to truly merge memories still based entirely in theory, the clones were left to merely revel in the delusion that they had all done really cool, awesome, and exciting things.
Technology Time: Jet Packs
16 years
by Josh Smith
in Technology Time
We’ve probably all seen it. The vintage, iconic images from the fifties and sixties showing the people of the future flying around using “rocket belts” “rocket packs” or “jet packs”, depending on when and who was talking about it. Take this snippet from a January 1969 issue of Popular Mechanics magazine:
“….the average commuter may, at last, have the long-awaited individual commuting vehicle that would whisk him from his front porch to his office entrance in minutes….”
Big claims, and sadly, ones that failed to come true… Until now:
The Martin Jetpack by New Zealand’s Martin Aircraft is the closest thing to bringing my childhood fantasies to life. If I place an order now and put down a 10 percent deposit, it could be mine in 12 months. The problem is coming up with the other 90 percent. No license is required to fly this in the U.S., though regulations may differ in other countries.
The jetpack itself is 5 feet tall and 5.5 feet wide and made of a carbon fiber composite with a pinch of Kevlar for the rotor. It uses regular gasoline and will travel a grand distance of 31.5 miles at a maximum speed of 63 mph, which should comfortably take you from home to office (and back) in a jiffy, and with a lot of noise.
Yes, you heard right, the jet pack has finally progressed from being a mere pipe dream to becoming a consumer-purchasable item. If you have $90,000 dollars, by next year, you could be flying around in your own personal jet pack.
How this impacts the technology of the future: While this type of technology is excessively cool, I don’t envision this being all that useful for most of us civilians. While it could have very specific purposes for certain jobs (imagine being a window washer and being able to use a jet pack instead of the rope and pulley system) by and large, it’s basically a toy. The eventual development of the hover technology in the stories will make turbine-driven devices such as the jet pack now for sale obsolete. With hovercars, hovertrains, and the PODS, transportation is pretty much covered, and any type of “hover pack” would be used solely for entertainment and leisure.
(Article thumbnail taken from the Martin Jetpack website.)
News from a Strange Future: New VR Movie Takes Bollywood by Storm
16 years
This is one of the last new features that I’ll be adding to the site for the time being: News from a Strange Future is a look into Vera’s scrapbook containing “clippings” that she printed from the News Portal. Enjoy!
New VR Movie Takes Bollywood by Storm
Opening of the sci-fi action movie Portal Chase sees strong gains at the Box Office
Story by Adelina Macey
The opening of the Virtual Reality flick Portal Chase took movie goers on the ride of a lifetime this weekend, but those in the theaters weren’t the only ones taken on an incredible journey. Bollywood insiders who had predicted the movie was “too big, too expensive, and too campy” were stunned as the movie exceeded all expectations, taking in nearly half a billion viewers in the first weekend.
“It’s simply amazing to see the reception that the movie has received,” explained Carl Conrad, Manager of Intellectual Property for Virtual Adventures Ltd., the company that produced the film. “VR movies have been slammed in the media, but public interest is clearly there,” he added.
This isn’t the first virtual reality film to be released, but it is the first one to do so well. Previous VR releases were either over budget, underperformed at the box office, or were poorly received by critics. Early polls taken after The Horsehead Nebula Wars, one of the first VR movies released, showed that audiences had mixed feelings about the new technology. Many complained of headaches or discomfort caused by the VR system.
VR movies have also met with a significant amount of controversy. Three years ago, the release of one VR movie resulted in the death of a man with a weak heart condition. According to the coroner, the movie–a horror/thriller mystery that simulated a murder in graphic detail–“literally scared the man to death.” The family has filed a lawsuit against the producers of the movie, and the case is still pending.
Since then, public interest in the technology has exploded. Movie-goers looking for a thrill are more willing to part with their money for such an experience, especially since it is something they cannot easily replicate at home.
“Memory chips containing our movies have long been the target of piracy,” Carl Conrad said. “Pirates have figured out how to easily copy and distribute illegitimate copies of movies that everyone has worked so hard to create. Protecting the content is an ongoing battle that we intend to continue to fight. One of those ways is the new VR system, which provides a unique way for audiences to experience movies that no pirate can replicate.”
Due to the runaway success of Portal Chase, Bollywood insiders say that VR movies will soon become the norm.
Technology Time: Mobile Computing vs. Desktop Computing
16 years
by Josh Smith
in Technology Time
Today, whilst checking up on my favorite nerd news websites, I had a thought: it would be kind of cool to share some of these stories on my own site as well, but with a Strange Future twist… Thus, “Technology Time” was born! Occasionally, I’ll post a link to an interesting bit of technology and science news, share my viewpoints, and how it relates to the world of technology described in the book. This week, we have one of my favorite kinds of stories: X is dead, long live Y! This week, the role of X will be played by the desktop computer, and the role of Y will be played by mobile computing devices, such as smart phones. I happen to be very fond of these kinds of stories because more often than not, they’re utterly and completely wrong. Today’s article can be found at MediaPost. Here’s a quote from the article in question:
…Then consider this statement from Google Europe boss John Herlihy: “In three years time, desktops will be irrelevant.”
Google’s VP of Global Ad Operations says that cloud-computing will soon guarantee that every mobile device will be capable of handling the most advanced applications, thus demoting desktops to doorstop status.
Well, “If your data moves to the cloud, and most of your daily online activities are done on devices such as the Nexus One and the iPad … then yes, desktop PCs as we know them now will become a lot less important,” writes Mashable. “On the other hand, not many users are ready to ditch the desktop just yet.”
“Big bulky desktops are disappearing, of course, but that’s hardly a new development,” writes PC World, adding, “It’s likely the conventional PC will have a longer, healthier life than Google anticipates.”
Article Source: http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=123701
So the death of the desktop has been predicted again, this time by Google. This isn’t entirely surprising, especially since Google has been pushing to enter into the mobile computing market with its Android phone operating system. I myself happen to own an Android powered phone, and from my point of view, it’s a very well made platform. (Though I’ve not had much experience with other mobile phone operating systems as my current phone is the first smart phone I’ve ever had.) And while it’s true that more people than ever are accessing the web and their data on the go via smart phones, netbooks, and other smaller computing solutions, I think it’s way too early to say that the desktop has a foot in the grave, let alone to call for its complete and total demise. The reasons for this are varied and many, but there are two primary reasons that I don’t believe this to be the case.
Corporate and Business Users: There are some situations where a mobile device simply will not suffice. Can you imagine trying to fulfill duties as a secretary, accountant, or, worse yet, a 3D modeler on a mobile device? It just doesn’t make any sense in those situations. So most companies are going to continue on, business as usual, on desktop computers.
Limits of Mobile Computers: I don’t necessarily mean limitations on processing power or bandwidth here, though that is a factor to consider as well. As time goes on, those limitations will be lessened. I’m talking about physical limitations, mostly connected with dimensions. The technology for touch screens is obviously much better than before, and it could just be me, but I find typing on a touch screen extremely difficult. The phone I have happens to have a full, slide-out QWERTY keyboard, which works much better. Still, I have difficulty, at times, typing on the thing because the keys are so small. Until we start implanting keyboards into our arms (which would have its own very interesting complications), I just can’t foresee people using mobile computing devices for much larger research, composition, and other projects simply because of this.
How this impacts the technology of the future: In the story, much emphasis is placed on the implants (basically smart phones implanted into people’s heads) that the characters use to communicate with each other and access the portal system (futuristic version of the internet). This reflects how I see mobile computing technology being used as time goes on. Instead of humans becoming cyborg-like creatures with powerful computing hardware built into every bit of their bodies, all fully interfaced with their brains, I think things will continue to remain much as they are now, for the most part, with voice to text technologies improving to the point where dictation for typing on mobile devices will be common. Obviously, based on the popularity of bluetooth headsets, people don’t have a problem talking into thin air (and appearing crazy). For those not comfortable with that, there are also keyboards (sold separately, of course) available for use with the implants.
Still, despite all the uses of the implant, desktop computers are still around in the future. At several occasions (the airport, hotel, bank, and others) the characters interacted with individuals who were using desktop computers. Darin himself has a computer that he uses on at least one occasion, though it is never actually described (it is kept in his room, and we never get the chance to “see” the inside of his room in the story).
I will admit that from a technological standpoint, at the current rate of progress and advancements anyhow, to have only gotten that far in two-hundred years seems laughable in a way. However, recall that Lyla explains the third world war set back a lot of the advancements previously made:
“Oh, no, the Internet was destroyed during World War Three,” Lyla explained. “The governments decided that it was a threat to global instability and dismantled it.”
“Don't you mean global stability?” Vera asked.
“No?”
“Never mind...” Vera sighed.
“Anyhow, the Internet as you guys know it was destroyed but they began the Portal System in the 2050s after the personal computer made a comeback. There are quite a few different portals available, and most of them are fine tuned to work well on the implants since that's where nearly all of the traffic on the Portals comes from.”
Thus, in the 2050s, computing technology was basically reset to where it was a few years ago. Thereafter, the government would keep a much closer eye on technology and guide it the way they wanted it to go. So, that’s pretty much the state of mobile and desktop computing technologies in the world of Strange Future. Look for another one of these (probably much shorter next time! 😛 ) posts sometime soon!
New Here? Read This…
16 years
by Josh Smith
in Strange Future
According to some scientists, there are an infinite number of universes. Some of these universes are so bizarrely different from ours that we can’t possibly begin to describe what they must be like…
Others are nearly exactly the same as ours, with the exception of one tiny detail. For instance, there is a universe somewhere that is a carbon copy of this one, except in that universe, you put on blue socks this morning instead of white ones…
If this theory is true, then it means that somewhere there is a universe where the following story is NOT a story. Somewhere there is a universe where the events described herein have actually occurred…
Let’s hope that the theory is wrong…