World History
The world lost a great writer today as Arthur C. Clarke has died at the age of 90. He is best known for his novel 2001: A Space Odyssey and the film based on it. He is one of my favorite writers and I hope no one minds that I pay my respects on this history blog.
Clarke was born in England in 1917. He could not afford to go to college after finishing his secondary education although he did so later. He served in the Royal Air Force during World War Two as a radar specialist. Radar played an important role during the Battle of Britain.
He went on after the war to become one of the Great Three of Science Fiction writers with Isaac Asimov and Robert Heinlein. He published numerous short stories and novels. He has also been credited as being one of the originators of the idea of communication satellites and the idea of the space elevator.
Although he may always be known for 2001, my favorite Clarke novel is the Songs of Distant Earth. Published in 1986, it tells the tale of the survivors of an apocalyptic Earth arriving at the human colony world of Thalassa. The novel really fired my imagination as a teenager and I still read it on a regular basis. Even if the Sun goes nova, the human race can survive. We just have to figure out a way to get out of this solar system. Our civilization has advanced in ways unimaginable just a few millenia ago. What can we do in a few more? I think the odds are in our favor.
Rest in peace Mr. Clarke. And thank you.
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World History
Arthur C. Clarke, 1917-2008
The world lost a great writer today as Arthur C. Clarke has died at the age of 90. He is best known for his novel 2001: A Space Odyssey and the film based on it. He is one of my favorite writers and I hope no one minds that I pay my respects on this history blog.
Clarke was born in England in 1917. He could not afford to go to college after finishing his secondary education although he did so later. He served in the Royal Air Force during World War Two as a radar specialist. Radar played an important role during the Battle of Britain.
He went on after the war to become one of the Great Three of Science Fiction writers with Isaac Asimov and Robert Heinlein. He published numerous short stories and novels. He has also been credited as being one of the originators of the idea of communication satellites and the idea of the space elevator.
Although he may always be known for 2001, my favorite Clarke novel is the Songs of Distant Earth. Published in 1986, it tells the tale of the survivors of an apocalyptic Earth arriving at the human colony world of Thalassa. The novel really fired my imagination as a teenager and I still read it on a regular basis. Even if the Sun goes nova, the human race can survive. We just have to figure out a way to get out of this solar system. Our civilization has advanced in ways unimaginable just a few millenia ago. What can we do in a few more? I think the odds are in our favor.
Rest in peace Mr. Clarke. And thank you.
- Ten Scientifically Scientific Innaccurate Movies?
Yahoo has a nice article up titled Top 10 Scientifically Inaccurate Movies. The article notes: If movies were completely scientifically accurate, they'd probably be as interesting as a Physics 101 lecture. In real life, there are no explosions in...
- Top 3 Worst War Films
Back in September, The Osprey Publishing Blog had a post on the Top 3 Worst War Films. I discovered this post via the 7th Military History Carnival. The carnival author noted, "I asked what the Top Three Worst War films were and what war films our readers...
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I am: E.E. "Doc" SmithThe inventor of space opera. His purple space war tales remain well-read generations later. Which science fiction writer are you?Hat tip to Grant Jones. Thanks....
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