spontaneous generation /= peanut butter
August 29, 2008 6:26 PM Subscribe
Could you point me towards some good sci-fi about creating life? In particular, I'm interested in stories about the possibility of human scientists discovering a means to create life out of previously non-living matter. even more in particular, i'm looking for sci-fi that discusses the possible social/political/philosophical ramifications of such a discovery within a cultural climate analogous to our own. whew!
prompted by this!
i'm reasonable enough to believe that a few eons have gone by without generating life more than once on this globe, but I don't believe that so much time would've gone by without sci-fi authors coming up with a few interesting responses to the "peanut butter" argument.
prompted by this!
i'm reasonable enough to believe that a few eons have gone by without generating life more than once on this globe, but I don't believe that so much time would've gone by without sci-fi authors coming up with a few interesting responses to the "peanut butter" argument.
I just recently read Kiln People by David Brin, in which people can create dittos - temporary, living clay copies of themselves. It might be a stretch calling it "life", but he does an interesting job of examining how that impacts society and culture.
posted by JaredSeth at 7:03 PM on August 29, 2008
posted by JaredSeth at 7:03 PM on August 29, 2008
Greg Egan's Permutation City has this happen in a far out, yet believable way. Near future, not precisely now.
posted by dirtdirt at 7:07 PM on August 29, 2008
posted by dirtdirt at 7:07 PM on August 29, 2008
The "Earthborn" series by Orson Scott Card addresses this (sort of), but it kills me to send anyone to his work. Most of the info is in the first couple of books and I'd highly recommend checking the library for them, first.
I know there must be a hundred other stories out there - long or short - but I'm not calling any others to mind, perhaps because OSC creates some weird mind block when considered for too long.
I wish you luck!
posted by batmonkey at 7:22 PM on August 29, 2008
I know there must be a hundred other stories out there - long or short - but I'm not calling any others to mind, perhaps because OSC creates some weird mind block when considered for too long.
I wish you luck!
posted by batmonkey at 7:22 PM on August 29, 2008
Any of Asimov's Robot stories. Slightly different from what you want, but it involves humanity's interactions with a new (artificially) intelligent lifeform.
posted by backseatpilot at 7:28 PM on August 29, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by backseatpilot at 7:28 PM on August 29, 2008 [1 favorite]
Came here to plug Kiln People, one of my favorites in the genre, but JaredSeth beat me to it. Seconded!
posted by Rallon at 7:29 PM on August 29, 2008
posted by Rallon at 7:29 PM on August 29, 2008
Also, check out the rich literary genealogy of golems.
posted by billtron at 7:34 PM on August 29, 2008
posted by billtron at 7:34 PM on August 29, 2008
I'm the first person to recommend Microcosmic God by Theodore Sturgeon? Color me surprised.
posted by Sidhedevil at 7:45 PM on August 29, 2008
posted by Sidhedevil at 7:45 PM on August 29, 2008
Scalzi's "Ghost Brigades" features special armies of soldiers made from a combination of dead people's DNA and computers. Fun read, too.
posted by GardenGal at 8:08 PM on August 29, 2008
posted by GardenGal at 8:08 PM on August 29, 2008
Umm, hello? Right here, buddy. It's the ur-text for this topic.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 8:49 PM on August 29, 2008
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 8:49 PM on August 29, 2008
Marge Piercy - He, She, & It. All about social & political implications.
posted by salvia at 9:12 PM on August 29, 2008
posted by salvia at 9:12 PM on August 29, 2008
Charlie Stross' Accelerando deals with the creation of new forms of intelligence in a fashion relevant to your interests.
Also, Star Trek had one of its forward-looking moments here.
In general there seems to be a lot more about the creation of "intelligence" than about the creation of "life," but they're both ill-defined ideas. So, this question rather depends on your definition of "life."
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim at 9:18 PM on August 29, 2008
Also, Star Trek had one of its forward-looking moments here.
In general there seems to be a lot more about the creation of "intelligence" than about the creation of "life," but they're both ill-defined ideas. So, this question rather depends on your definition of "life."
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim at 9:18 PM on August 29, 2008
billtron's mention of golems reminded me of a Terry Pratchett Discworld book that deals with this very topic -- Feet of Clay. Like all his Discworld books, it's simply hilarious.
posted by peacheater at 9:38 PM on August 29, 2008
posted by peacheater at 9:38 PM on August 29, 2008
Yeah, listen to Cool Papa Bell: Frankenstein is the standard and even though the science and society described are outdated, it deals with the consequences from an individual viewpoint. Plus, as a bonus, you get the beautiful, descriptive language and literary devices that tell the story.
S.P.S. (Small Potential Spoiler :) The monster's name isn't Frankenstein, it's "The Creature". The doctor/scientist is the title character.
posted by PixelatorOfTime at 10:43 PM on August 29, 2008
S.P.S. (Small Potential Spoiler :) The monster's name isn't Frankenstein, it's "The Creature". The doctor/scientist is the title character.
posted by PixelatorOfTime at 10:43 PM on August 29, 2008
Mary Shelly's Frankenstein is, of course, the seminal "creating life" Science Fiction story; though it doesn't fit your bill exactly, with the use of body parts for the monster.
Still worth reading though...
posted by Mephisto at 5:58 AM on August 30, 2008
Still worth reading though...
posted by Mephisto at 5:58 AM on August 30, 2008
Blood Music might not quite fit your requirements, but it is one of the classics
posted by fearfulsymmetry at 7:06 AM on August 30, 2008
posted by fearfulsymmetry at 7:06 AM on August 30, 2008
Jurassic Park, of course.
In Rendevzous with Rama, life is created aboard a spaceship.
In Ophiuchi Hotline science casually grows spare bodies and stores past memories as backups.
The Island of Dr Moreau.
In many short stories and novels, other planets have be terraformed to have earth-like atmosphere and earth-like plants and animals. The most famous would probably be the genesis device in Star Trek.
Does AI or robots count? If so then there are a lot more answers.
posted by damn dirty ape at 11:15 AM on August 30, 2008
In Rendevzous with Rama, life is created aboard a spaceship.
In Ophiuchi Hotline science casually grows spare bodies and stores past memories as backups.
The Island of Dr Moreau.
In many short stories and novels, other planets have be terraformed to have earth-like atmosphere and earth-like plants and animals. The most famous would probably be the genesis device in Star Trek.
Does AI or robots count? If so then there are a lot more answers.
posted by damn dirty ape at 11:15 AM on August 30, 2008
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posted by puritycontrol at 6:52 PM on August 29, 2008