Most Prophetic Sci-Fi Work, Which have come true?

I was reviewing some of the books in my collection and then it dawned on me of the possibility that many of these Science Fiction writers may have had psychic visions of the future? These great writers have contributed to the advancement in real world technology far beyond what we are really giving them credit for. Did they have visions of the future and with their limited means put pen to paper and give us a hint of what’s to come?


1. Isaac Asimov
2. John Wyndham
3. Fred Hoyle
4. Philip K Dick
5. HG Wells
6. Ursula K Le Guin
7. Arthur C Clarke
8. Ray Bradbury
9. Frank Herbert
10. Stanislaw Lem

Outside of Sir Arthur C. Clarke, They may not have directly invented things we use in everyday life but many scientist and engineers will admit that they were influenced by great sci-fi literature, TV shows. And Movies etc. It seems that if you read up on most of the great writers that they have some connection to real science. Are we seeing psychic visions, predictions, or just plain fantasy of the future in some of their titles?


Would you Consider Nostradamus a Science fiction author?

Now lets consider some of the works by Leonardo de Vinci

Example

Once man invented motion pictures it seems that some were able to put their possible psychic visions to film it became yet another way to express what it was that they were receiving.

Here is an example of early cinema science fiction followed by reality.

Science Fiction

Becomes Science Fact

What about Gene Rodenberry?

Science fiction becoming science fact

Fact following Fiction

The US military it is said is always watching TV and Movies for possible new weapon systems and abilities. We saw the above tricorder mentioned, how about Video games they are the new medium for Science Fiction. Are we seeing the psychic visions of the future in some of the titles? are some creators of TV, Movies, and video games reading some form of future events?


It seems that many were fascinated with Robotics what was once fantasy is now reality.


Were these people influenced by psychic visions and readings from the future? Or are these just a case of one man’s fantasy becomes another man’s reality which in turn another man fantasizes about an improvement then creates it which in turn becomes another’s reality and so on. This becomes an argument of which came first the chicken or the egg.


The world's best scientists nominate their favorite authors
LINKY HERE


In your opinion which ones that got the science right, or will sometime soon.





Finally I’ll leave you with two videos one from Fritz Lang and his vision of the future how close did he get vrs reality? You decide.

Metropolis

A True Metropolis

AWESOME THREAD!



I know I should have some substantive contribution, rather than simply cheering your OP, but man this was a good idea!!!

Ooh, wait, how about ... naw you got him already..., and..., nope he's there too.

It's like you picked them out of my favorites!

One of the most Prophetic of all science fiction was the moon landings ahh good old Jules Verne I wonder what he would have said had he lived to see the real thing?

reply to post by Maxmars


Thank you

What I find truly amazing is just how humble many of them were and are.
Not only that but how accurate they were in what they wrote which brings me to the troubling side of Science Fiction

Cloning, Sadistic Robots, Alien invasions and so on.

My vote goes to HG Wells. I have always marvelled at how he could see the future as he did; it was not psychic ability, it was Wells simply using common sense. He recognized his world as it was, and forsaw the path that it would take.

Originally posted by BennyHill
My vote goes to HG Wells. I have always marvelled at how he could see the future

I agree some of his work was my favorite growing up none of the movies really did him justice.

Google Video Link

Ah, damn! I was going to mention Fritz Lang's Metropolis until I scrolled down further. I've been a fan of that movie for a long time, and was astounded at some of the concepts and perceptions of future technology which have come to pass.

However, a bit more recent, I would suggest Masamune Shirow for his work with Ghost in the Shell. The series was first published in 1989, back before there was even really an internet to speak of, he predicted such technologies as prosthetic bodies controlled directly by the brain, total consciousness immersion into a virtual construct via ports installed at the brainstem, optical camouflage, telepathy and telepresence via the internet, external memory storage and access, etc. Many of these technologies have either come to pass or are making great strides. Some of these concepts may have been around when he first started work on the series, but the way he described their maturation and integration are startlingly accurate to real life.

Ghost in the Shell (and it's subsequent movie) inspired the Matrix over a decade later, which opened up a lot of people's minds to this sort of technological advancement and what it might mean for humanity. Indeed, you can compare the first Ghost in the Shell movie with the first Matrix Movie side by side and find many scenes where the Matrix obviously lifted direct action sequences from GitS as an omage.

However, I wouldn't consider either him or other authors/visionaries which you've mentioned as any sort of "prophet". If they are, I suppose you could classify them as professors of a self-fulfilling prophecy. This is perhaps most obvious in the case of Gene Roddenberry who's work on Star Trek may have been complete and utter speculation at the time - but which has since inspired generations of geeks who eventually got educated, got jobs, and used that inspiration to try to make a little bit of that fantasy into reality.

For sci-fi I would go with "A scanner darkly."

And though it predates the actual genre of science fiction, "The Wreck of the Titan" has to be one of the most prophetic works of fiction, period:

Although the novel was written before the Olympic-class Titanic had even been designed, there are some remarkable coincidences between the fictional and real-life counterparts. Like the Titanic, the fictional ship sank in April in the North Atlantic, and there were not enough lifeboats for the passengers. There are also similarities between the size (800 ft long for Titan versus 882½ ft long for the Titanic), speed (25 knots for Titan, 24 knots for Titanic) and life-saving equipment.

Similarities between Titanic and Titan:

1. Unsinkable / Indestructible

- The Titanic, world's largest luxury liner (882 feet, displacing 66,000 tons). The Titanic was once described as being (nearly) unsinkable.

- The Titan, largest craft afloat and the greatest of the works of men (800 feet, displacing 75,000 tons). The Titan was considered 'indestructible'.

2. Number of propellers and masts

- The Titanic had three propellers and two masts

- The Titan was equipped with three propellers and two masts

3. Launched in April

- The Titanic steamed from Southampton, England on her maiden voyage in April 1912.

- The Titan was also launched in April.

4. Lifeboats

- The Titanic carried only 20 lifeboats, less than half the number required for her passenger capacity of 3000.

- The Titan carried "as few as the law allowed", 24 lifeboats, less than half needed for her 3000 capacity.

5. Struck an iceberg

- Moving too fast at 23 knots, the Titanic struck an iceberg on the night of April 14, 1912 in the North Atlantic.

- Also on an April night in North Atlantic, the Titan hit an iceberg while traveling at 25 knots.

6. The Unsinkable Sank

- The unsinkable Titanic sank, and more than half of her 2,207 passengers died screaming for help.

- The indestructible Titan also sank, more than half of her 2500 passengers drowning, their "voices raised in agonized screams"

en.wikipedia.org...

you just blew my mind with Leonardo's car...wow

great thread ftw

Originally posted by Lasheic
I suppose you could classify them as professors of a self-fulfilling prophecy. This is perhaps most obvious in the case of Gene Roddenberry who's work on Star Trek may have been complete and utter speculation at the time - but which has since inspired generations of geeks who eventually got educated, got jobs, and used that inspiration to try to make a little bit of that fantasy into reality.

No doubt something was clicking when he came up with the idea and then to stick with it even after the cancelation.

Ghost in the shell was just mind blowing. That's one area I was thinking about including in the thread but that and others I felt I would leave out to see if anyone else would come up with on their own there are just too many to mention.

reply to post by asmeone2


OMG there is no way this could of not been a vision of things to come.

What are the odds on getting that close to the facts and not be a prediction?

Originally posted by SLAYER69
reply to post by asmeone2

 

OMG there is no way this could of not been a vision of things to come.

What are the odds on getting that close to the facts and not be a prediction?

A billion to one?

To my knowledge the author did not present his book as a prediction, but it is really one of the only cases I can think of of a prediction comign true that gave specifics *before* the fact.

The plans for the Titanic and her sisters werent' even drawn up when that was written. I say there has to be some kind of time slip involved.

[edit on 4-12-2008 by asmeone2]

Ok, I'm actually mad that no one has mentioned Star Trek and Roddenberry's overall contribution to the future/present.

Do any of you have a comunic...i mean cell phone?

How about a trico.... i mean Iphone?

Or maybe a viewscr.... I mean flat panel tv/monitor?

Not to mention that a great many of today's scientists were directly influenced and inspired by Star Trek.

Great thread btw

reply to post by Shadowflux


We are getting awefully close to a replecator, too!

Originally posted by Shadowflux
Ok, I'm actually mad that no one has mentioned Star Trek and Roddenberry's overall contribution to the future/present.


Great thread btw

thanks for your reply uhhmm Gene was up there. Reread thanks again.

reply to post by SLAYER69


And so he is, my apologies, it's late and I have to spread the gospel of Roddenberry whenever possible.

Incidentally, did you know that "Roddenberry" is recognized by Firefox's spell checker? Neat!

Excellent thread.

May I add George Orwell - Big Brother?

Star Trek communicator: the cell phone

and Jules Verne "Journey to the Center of the Earth": 'Hollow Earth Theory'

got to remember some of those guys were insiders
privy to info the regulars didnt have
even occult as in "METROPOLIS" notice the Pentagram in the Life giving electrification scene...oh the hidden meanings!



[edit on 5-12-2008 by GRANDWORLDDRAMA]

I don't think it's necessarily psychic visions so much as great ideas. Whether you're an artist, scientist, or both, everything great invention begins with a creative mind. That likely what you're seeing. We inspire each other. It's fair to say that at some point, everything has watched a TV show and wondered, "Hm, is that possible? Could that actually work?"

We're all connected, guys.

Great choice of writers - sadly i am not familiar with all. Majority of those that i know (H.G Wells, Bradbury, Lem) - i definitely agree with you, and those that i did not know , well thank you for pointing them to me. I think that they were (and one still is, gladly) semi-philosophers and thus had ability to analise the current situation and extrapolate into future. Having friends on the frontiers of science definitely helped too. What i find sad though - not one of them is an optimist, all see society changing to the worst.