Introduction

My Name is Joey and I have always been attracted to scifi and fantasy. I think the thing that draws people to scifi and fantasy is a need to dream of a better world and to address the problems of our present world. The title of this blog is derived from a line in Carl Sagan's Novel "Contact." Ellie meets a representative from the civilization that sent the signal and the alien says,“You're an interesting species. An interesting mix. You're capable of such beautiful dreams, and such horrible nightmares. You feel so lost, so cut off, so alone, only you're not. See, in all our searching, the only thing we've found that makes the emptiness bearable, is each other.” I think that the This quote epitomizes scifi and fantasy. We are all capable of both beautiful dreams and horrible nightmares. Scifi is our escape from the nightmares of this world as well as a stage where the nightmares can be confronted and overcome. I'm going to make this blog about the deeper meanings that are expressed in scifi and fantasy. At the root of science fiction there is science and within science their are two different camps; the unifiers and the diversifiers. Some scientists subscribe to the notion that the universe is infinite. These are the diversifiers. Questions are asked with the expectation that one will acquire more questions. Other scientists subscribe to the notion that the universe is finite. These are the unifiers. Questions are asked with the expectation that answers will be found. By extension science fiction writers fall under these categories. Some science fiction writers believe that human innovation knows no bounds and that one day we will become the gods that we once believed in. Other writers believe that humanity has limitations and that our own vices will lead to our inevitable downfall. These different perspectives make science fiction a wonderful landscape for the expression of ideas and I am going to use this blog to explore those ideas.