Exploring Tomorrow: Meaningful Science Fiction and Life's Big Questions

In 1999, this crazy cyberpunk action movie came out, and it blew my mind. Not only that, it has withstood the test of time (and two subpar sequels). It is one of the most philosophically astute action films ever made, and it might just be more plausible than we're willing to admit (the whole "humans as batteries" thing aside). This hilarious episode takes a thoughtful look at The Matrix and tries...

Let's talk about the movie and book that started it tall for me. Does it still stand up all these years later? Where does Jurassic Park fit into the world of sci-fi? What question is at the heart of Michael Crichton's classic book? How do the book and movie differ in a key way? Take a peek at my novels, which have definitely been influenced by Crichton: https://www.mikelwisler.com/books-etc

I light of the tragic collapse of the large radio telescope at the Arecibo Observatory, I'm needing a bit of a pick-me-up. It can be quite difficult as a science fiction author to remain hopeful about human progress when we allow such an amazing tool for scientific discovery to literally fall apart. In this episode, I go digging for some suggestions on hopeful sci-fi books and movies to check out....

When I first heard of Valerie Valdes' Latinx Space Opera novel, called Chilling Effect, I just had to check it out. Now that the sequel, Prime Deceptions, is out too, of course I had to dive in and continue soaking in Valdes' interstellar, off-beat, hilarious and yet heart-felt saga. Plus, there're psychic kittens. So there's that. In this episode, I explore what has drawn me into reading Valdes'...

Why do Sci-Fi and Fantasy get lumped together? Should they be lumped together? In this episode, I bring an old friend and Fantasy expert Andrew Gilbert. From his work teaching humanities and philosophy at Colorado University to playing D&D on his podcast with Dominic Monaghan (Lord of the Rings, Lost) Gilbert knows a thing or two about Fantasy, Sci-Fi, and how we become better people through c...

Why is The Martian a breath of fresh air to sci-fi? Is it really a love letter to science? Who's the bad guy in this story? This novel and movie helped me survive one of the toughest seasons of my life. Why is that? Well, let me tell you all about it and why I keep coming back to the character of Mark Watney as a role model for perseverance and creative problem solving. Adam Savage interviews Andy...

Let's dive into one of the best science fiction movies ever made, Arrival. It's parallel stories unfolding outside of linear time give us a lot to unpack as I reflect on why it meant so much to me to see this film the moment it came out and dive into why it remains utterly relevant in uncertain times. What will we let dictate our choices? Fear? Love? Let's discuss.

How can a novel written by a scientist during the Cold War still be so moving and incredible? How could it give birth to a lasting science fiction movie that has aged well? Let's dive into Carl Sagan's "Contant." This authentically rendered exploration of humans coming into contact with intelligent life from beyond our solar system was one of the first profoundly philosophical movies to make a las...

Let's explore the first two novels by Annalee Newitz. From a big-pharma-controlled futuristic world with autonomous robots to a twisted tale of time travel, Newitz is a fresh voice in science fiction literature that is worth check out. Whether addressing corporate greed, ethical questions around human-robot coexistence, or giving us a deep glimpse into a world reshaped by those who would subjugate...