Best Selling Sci-fi Novels!
The most fascinating aspect of sci-fi novels is the possibility of using them as keys to accessing doors of groundbreaking scientific innovations and explorations. Posing themselves as the most challenging dares, that we as humans ought to pursue, if we are to prove that we have an advantage over chimps. Because they only share 98.8% of our DNA. If the remaining difference is what makes us superior, then we better prove it. Even chimps display exceedingly human like behaviour when it comes to applying practical science in day to day life. Take for example a chimp that has just discovered a mound of beetles, with endless supply of protein in the form of larvae wriggling within the well sealed mound. What does the chimp do? Ah, it does not start kicking it or dash itself against a tree trunk hoping that it will somehow crash right on it, allowing the chimp to enjoy the reward of his toil in the form of protein packed larvae that now lie exposed.
Well, the chimp does not do any of this. The intelligent chimp, holds the face within his hands, and stares at the mound. The thoughtful and restful gaze lasts a few minutes. Then the chimp gets up, scans the surrounding around him and seizes a branch. Now the chimp observes the branch leaning towards the chimp, and based on some calculation only know to the chimps, it breaks a particular small branch from the bigger branch. And with his hand, the chimp clears the leaves and crustacean like growth from it. At this stage the chimp moves towards the beetle mound and places his ears against it, after examining the mound for a minute or so, it selects a spot and with tremendous precision and patience, it pierces the small branch into the mound, and then as it turns it for few seconds, it pulls the branch out. Oh my God! The branch is almost white due to the larvae clinging to it. The chimp looks at them and carefully lifts the larvae with his fingers and thrusts them into his mouth. What a treat!
Now don’t you think this is intelligent? Well it is very intelligent and requires a lot of training. Few humans tried doing the same but they failed in extracting even a single larvae. Moreover, they never got the right branch and leave alone finding the right spot where the branch needs to be drilled.
So, I think it is worth reading a sci-fi novel and working on some radical discoveries and inventions. But if a science fiction is not offering any dynamic scientific idea, then, you are reading a wrong sci-fi novel. You better choose the one that always keeps you on the edge; constantly prods and then challenges the intellectual residing within you. A well written sci-fi novel should stir the innovator, the scientific prober within you, and be the cause of your wanderings in the scientific possibilities where anything is possible- Of course with right scientific acumen and a perfect team of like minded people to be your equally active accomplices.
I still remember watching minority report, where Tom Cruise uses gloves with sensors to interact with a computer screen. Back then, it appeared like magic to me. But we all know it is a common thing today. So you see, this is the power of best sic-fi novels or movies. They unlock the dormant zone of your mind and help you pursue a scientific thought with the perseverance of an obsessed scientist. Though, we call them “Science Fictions” in actuality they are a palpable reality, it just needs a maverick who believes what nobody else believes in, because he/she believes in going beyond the conventional frontiers in science and being of service to the mankind as whole.
I am sure, all sci-fi novel lovers have watched Transformers. Now, children aged just 12 and 15 years, would certainly get excited and feel a rush of energy inducing hormones gushing through their entire existence. Almost like my brother’s sons. Who get super excited whenever they watch a science fiction. From what I can tell from their facial expressions, in that moment they feel that character, that scene and for every obvious reason as young children, they become that hero in that moment. In that moment, they feel like the Gods of technology who are invincible and can pursue any scientific challenge with a conviction that is bold and unwilling to budge. As the movie comes to an end, the hero that was resurrected within them by this sci-fi movie acting as a catalyst, gradually fades away in the oblivion of their minds. Then quietly both of them settle down in their respective corners of the room, while in the silence of their curious minds, they weave a subconscious thought, that of dreaming of their heroes tonight. And be this hero again.
This is the power of books, sci-fi novels and movies that excite human imagination and build a bridge between the impossible and possible, between the unknown and known, between a beautiful imagination and reality, and most important of all, between a child’s pure thoughts with endless possibilities and the divine thought that surrounds us via this cosmos, and is always beckoning at us to seek further, to seek newer and be the relentless seeker as long as we live. Because only those who seek, shall one day find the reality that lies hidden within layers of mysteries. This is what I call true science. And maybe that is why we may need to overhaul the existing education system that somehow, and inadvertently, I must admit, tries to tame this human imagination and child’s ability to dream of the impossible. Am I sounding like #ElonMusk who thinks that our education system is rubbish!
Coming back to the movie, Transformers. As my brother’s sons watched the movie they asked me, “Is it possible to build a machine like that? Something that auto configures!” I paused my mental engagement with the concluding part of the movie and then replied with confidence, “Yes it is!”
They started at me, and then turning their eyes towards their mother, then their father, they silently questioned me again, “How.”
Their “How” was oscillating somewhere between a whisper and a murmur, it was so silent. Were they scared to ask me questions or probe further? I think they were. Because even parents, due to their conventional schooling, feel entertaining such questions is like challenging God. Well is it so? I do not think so, because God created the universe; and I personally believe it is a dare the God has cast us into as a species, where we ought to find answers to questions and mysteries that have always amazed human beings. Moreover, if chimps have the luxury to apply scientific thinking, why not human beings!
And I believe building a Transformer like machine is possible if we look at few chemical processes that take place during the cell classification stage in human embryo. How these cells by means of auto triggering DNA signatures, align with other cells to form different organs. Then marrying these observations with rules of magnetism. I think we definitely can build a machine like Transformers. Now I am making it sound as simple as holding a pencil. But then let us not forget, it took all of us many months or weeks to perfectly hold a pencil. Did we challenge God by holding a pencil. Not at all! We infact expressed our piety towards Him, by being of some service and not only indulging in fantasies, that arise in dreams and aimless wanderings of mind every now and then.
For now, my brother’s sons, also need to realise that one cannot qualify for graduation without having cleared the high school examination. But they also need to realise that they should not tone down their urge to know more, to know the new, and allow their minds to seek brighter and more challenging horizons of scientific possibilities. Which is possible only through a schooling system that encourages it and a family that believes in science and scientific probing, and does not outrightly puncture the enthusiasm of a child. By simply saying, “you cannot challenge the God!” Whereas the God wants us to seek the new, and keep probing.
Quoting From the Holy Bible: JOB, Chapter 36, Verse 7
“He withdraweth not His eyes from the righteous: but with kings are they on the throne; yea. He doth establish them for ever, and they are exalted.”
If we pursue science that benefits humanity and does not harm others, I would term it as “righteous science!” and when science is pursued with right intentions, it is coupled with the will of God, and achieving success becomes inevitable. Then even God conspires along with the universe and every element within the universe to help you achieve this scientific objective. Therefore, for my brother’s sons, who are only 12 and 15, I said and I will continue to say, “ building a transformer like machine is plausible. But what will you do with such a machine is what you need to learn in order to align your objective with that of the universe. Which I believe is conscious; to be more accurate, self aware; and it would do anything to not be the cause of its own termination!” And it applies to all of us, the science enthusiasts reading sci-fi novels. Let us read them, and then not abandon the enthusiasm and vigour that they fill us with, whenever we come across ideas about, time travel, worm holes, mastering gravity and creating zones with cancelled out gravity. Please do not tell me it is not possible. After all, it is the possibility that keeps us going, and not the guarantee. So let us believe anything is possible and delete the word impossible from our memories and mental word bank. Because, if chimps are capable of scientific probing and examination of their surroundings, why not us? We are an evolved version of chimps. At least I consider myself to be so!
Even most of those who really never have time to read a book ( sci-fi, fantasy etc. ) usually have more than enough time to listen to one. Do it! As long as you are entertaining your mind with new and scientific ideas, you are on the right track. As humans we should always find sometime for these indulgences of noble pleasure. However, in 2075, do you think we will be able to retain this sensitivity? They say "To get the job of a lifetime, sometimes you have to sell your soul." What if human soul were to be replaced by artificial intelligence and synthetic feelings. In that scenario what would translate as SOUL in 2075? Discover, how reality will tend to bend and how new ideas will emerge in 2075. The sci-fi novel titled, They Loved In 2075, deals with these scenarios and forces us to think how humanity can resurrect its lost glory.
So, which science fiction would you rate as the best sci-fi novel? The answer is simple. It ought to be the one that puts forth an invigorating scientific idea. The one that keeps us mentally awake and leads us closer to the realm of the Titans. Just like the famed sci-fi novel, Dune. Where melange, "spice", a drug is thought to extend life and enhance mental abilities. Melange is also necessary for space navigation, which requires a kind of multidimensional awareness and foresight that only the drug provides. As melange can only be produced on Arrakis, control of the planet is a coveted and dangerous undertaking. ( Dune Novel ) It is an idea that actually is worth entertaining, because it is a well known fact that there are many ways to improve the functioning of the brain and take it to its optimum output.
And let us not forget about the sci-fi novel, The Martian. We all know how it has inspired the science community and how it has heightened our interest in Mars and terraforming it to support human life and other life forms.
Therefore, as a concluding note I have this to say, “a true science faction should make a young mind believe that anything is possible, as long as it is in the best interest of humanity and other life forms thriving alongside us, the humans. Everything is linked after all. Had there been no chimps, would we exist? Now this is a debate for next time, otherwise, my brother’s sons might think, given their young ages, that science sometimes does challenge God. Which it actually never does!”
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.