Five classic sci-fi stories about tidally locked planets
Few phrases are as evocative as “tidal locking,” also known as 1:1 spin-orbit resonance. Simply put, this situation occurs when a celestial body takes […]
Tag: Science fiction
Five Books About Smart People Who Are Their Own Worst Enemies
As far as we can tell, we are the only technological civilization in this universe, at least the only one we know […]
Mountains in the Sea: Ascension by Nicholas Binger
In the 17th century, frigid temperatures pushed the Boysen Glacier toward a small settlement outside the French village of Chamonix, engulfing entire farms and […]
Five Ways Science Fiction Writers Dodge The Problem Of Relativity
relativity! The evidence backs this up pretty well, but it’s pretty inconvenient for science fiction writers who want a short trip to […]
The Privileged and Unlikable Protagonist in Justin Cronin’s The Ferryman
On the isolated island of Prospera, there are rich and poor. When the rich get too old, they reboot. All 1% wear a device […]
Ann Leckie’s “State of Translation” Is a Fascinating Space Opera With Strong Personal Stakes
Ten years ago this summer, I read a pre-reading copy of Ann Leckie’s stunning debut novel, Ancillary Justice. Along with its publicist’s […]
count the casualties
Yoon Ha Lee’s short story “Counting Casualties” is a gripping tale that delves into the dark themes of war, sacrifice, and the […]
Five plot-friendly ways to isolate planets and colonize space
Having a variety of human-inhabited worlds is one of the plot-friendly aspects of many science fiction settings. Authors may find themselves confused about […]
Allow me to gently plead for more space horror
Sometimes, for no particular reason, I think about that chair. I’m talking about the chair in Ian M. Banks’ The Use of […]
Science, fiction and fungi: What ‘The Last of Us’ got right
Fungi don’t always receive the attention they deserve. In a 1996 New York Times Magazine article titled “Fungi All Around Us,” it […]
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Tagged 1:1 spin-orbit resonance, Earth, exoplanet, Mercury, Science fiction