Jim Baen's Universe

What's New in The Future And You

Columns

February 2008

Written by Stephen Euin Cobb

The Future And You has reached a new turning point.

The show turned two years old in December of 2007. And these two years have seen many wonderful successes: audience growth, widespread recognition, winning an award, interviews with stars of movies and TV, and even an interview with a 2008 presidential candidate (Senator John McCain). But improvement must be a continuous process. Standing still leads to stagnation; and stagnation, to death.

So in the spirit of improvement, your host has changed the show’s format from a gigantic show released once per month, to a smaller—more easily downloaded and listened to—show released every week. This new weekly format began on January 1, 2008—the very first day of this new year.

If measured on a monthly basis, approximately the same amount of show will be produced, since each of these weekly episodes will be roughly 30 minutes long and usually feature a single guest.

Listeners are encouraged to email the host with their thoughts about the change. Send those emails to me@thefutureandyou.com

Jack McDevitt

Jack McDevit, the best selling author of Seeker and Polaris, was the featured guest for the first weekly show (released on January 1, 2008).

He discussed how he has used the internet and email for research; science fiction on TV and in movies; what he learned by being a teacher and a newspaper reporter; and the novels that changed his life which include Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles and the young adult stories The Voyage of the Space Beagle.

He also talked about writing alternate history involving Sir Arthur Conan Dole's Sherlock Holmes, and he describes one of his favorite science fiction movies, the low-budget but brilliantly written film: Time Quest.

Timothy Zahn

Timothy Zahn, the best selling author who is possibly best known for his Thrawn Trilogy (a series of Star Wars novels set in the time after the movies) was the featured guest in the January 9, 2008 episode.

He discussed several of his fears, hopes and worries about the future. He also talked about Wikipedia, Earthlike exoplanets, and how his master's degree in physics contributes both to the hardness of his science fiction and to the strength of his faith in God.

After describing his ideas in science, theology and sociology he lightened the conversation with anecdotes of how he became a Star Wars playing card, as well as a question on the TV game show Jeopardy.

Upcoming Guests

Guests scheduled for the next few weeks include (in no particular order): George Dvorsky the Chairman of BetterHumans.com (a transhumanist website and organization), Eric Flint (the best selling author) and Matt Browne (an information technologist in Frankfurt Germany).

****

Recent News Items

Sir Arthur C. Clarke is 90 years old

Recently, on December 16, 2007, Sir Arthur C. Clarke turned 90 years old. The venerable, some would say legendary, best selling author chose to mark the happy occasion by posting a video message to the entire world online. The link is extremely complicated but you can probably find it easily enough using his name and a phrase such as "birthday massage."

Sir Arthur C. Clarke is one of several people who shaped and altered the course of your host’s life. Many of his early novels had a strong effect on me, but one of them changed everything.

It was by reading chapter 37 of his novel 2001: a space odyssey (when I was still just a teenager in high school, back in 1973) that triggered my realization that I was a transhumanist. Although it was more than twenty years before I found out there was a name for what I was, and that I was not the only one.

Second Life

On the very first day of this brand new year (January 1, 2008) your host joined Second Life.

During the last year or two I'd heard various tidbits about it but didn't really know much. My curiosity finally got to me; and so I joined.

I wanted to sign-up using my full name but that didn't seem to be an option. So I joined as “Boc Cryotank.” (Boc is my last name spelled backwards—without redundant letters. And of course a cryotank is a tank use to store people who are cryopreserved.)

On my first day "in-world" (as the residents call it) I flew like superman, rode a Segway, and teleported myself to a private dance party where six people were dancing in synchrony: all making the same moves at the same time.

Someone typed to me "Hi, Boc. Welcome to the party. Want to dance?"

Having danced, and very poorly, only three times in my life (once on a cruse, once at my wedding and once that I can't remember) I used the easy excuse—"I'm not sure how. This is my first day inside Second Life."

A popup appeared on my screen saying something like "to join click yes."

I clicked Yes and instantly I was dancing. Granted, I was facing the wrong way, but I was making all the same moves they were making. I was dancing! And I'm here to tell you, I was darned good.

When I got over my astonishment, which took nearly thirty seconds, I laughed with a level of joyous stupidity generally only seen in those who are drunk. I laughed so loud and so long that I had to get up out of my chair and walk through the house to let it all out. I wish I’d recorded that laugh, because I must have sounded like a mad scientist just after announcing to the thunderclouds above my castle that my newly-formed creature is alive.

I danced for over two hours. It was fun. Not just the dancing, but everything. Second Life is a fresh new world to learn and explore. It is quite literally “a glittering toy no Star-Child could resist.”

I look forward to spending more time inside, learning and exploring.

Maybe someday I'll meet you in there. Which is, of course, part of the reason I'm telling you this.

Some of you may already be in there. Some of you may have been inside for a long time; may have established yourselves; may even have longstanding relationships. I would like to meet you in there. Visit with you. Who better to help me understand what's going on in Second Life than those who already know their way around.

And who knows, if a lot of you are in there maybe we can arrange a get together.

If you are a resident of Second Life please email me, and if you do please be sure to let me now your avatar's name. To quote the Merovingian: "Let us see where this goes."

More about the Show’s New Format

The biggest news for the show is, of course, our change to the smaller, but much more frequent, weekly format.

I've been considering going to a weekly format for six months or more. My longstanding resistance to the idea has been based on several things. One of these was that when I created the show I used the old Tonight Show from back when Johnny Carson was the host as my format model. Johnny always had a variety of guests talking about a variety of topics.

Another limitation was that I wanted a large enough show that I could put into it a 15 minute long segment for the serialization of my novel Bones Burnt Black without the novel dominating the show. That reason evaporated with the serialization’s completion in the November 1, 2007 episode.

But to be honest the most important reason for my reluctance to change to a show containing only one guest has been my worry that non-famous guests will get listened to far less than guests who are famous. And since it has been my experience that non-famous guests bring as much good stuff to the show as those who are famous, and sometimes far more, I was worried that listeners would miss out.

Looking back, I can see the foolishness of this kind of thinking. Not because it's inaccurate, but because it's not my place to force or trick or beguile listeners into listening to every guest.

Yes, some listeners will miss interviews that they would have enjoyed; but what all listeners will gain is the flexibility to zero in on those guests and those topics which they most care about. Everything else is just gravy.

My intention is try this new format for at least three months. That should be plenty of time to see if it works poorly or works well. Please feel free to email me with your thoughts about the change. Send those emails to me@thefutureandyou.com

Jim Baen’s Universe in the Show’s New Format

In keeping with the new shorter but more frequent episodes, the readings from Jim Baen’s Universe Magazine have been shortened to about two and a half minutes each. This is exactly the same amount of time per month, but presented in smaller snippets. To make these snippets as entertaining as possible, Walt Boyes (The Bananaslug and JBU’s Marketing Director) has elected to present a single story in serialized form over a period of weeks. The first story is Christmas Eve at Harvey Wallbanger’s written by Mike Resnick and read by Walt Boyes. (Stoney Compton, author of Russian Amerika, is scheduled to do readings in the near future.)

****

Listener Feedback

Censoring the Guests

As host, I receive many emails from listeners. Sometimes I read them into the show. I had to blush when I read the opening of this one in the show, but this listener brought up an important point.

> Steve,

>

> You are a phenomenal talent. I find you intelligent and intellectually

> stimulating. Your personal future projections are scintillating. Some of

> your guests however, are exactly the opposite. They write these wildly

> imaginative sci-fi books, and then when you interview some of them, I am

> appalled by some of their lack of confidence in science and technology.

> Some of them have not followed any of the new technological advances in

> even a minimal manner. In my opinion it casts a dark shadow of illegitimacy

> on their works. My suggestion is to vet them before releasing them on your

> podcast audience. If they appeared intellectually stunted on scientific

> affairs, and completely gloomy on every technological projection, then

> leave them just talking about their works, their efforts, and the

> publishing world. I also suggest you further interview from time to time

> individuals of some authority who are optimistic about the future.

Soaring ever onwards,

Paul

-

I wrote back...

Paul,

Thanks for your most excellent praise. Your assessment of some of my guests is, unfortunately, similar to my own. My standard excuse for including as much as possible of their comments is my desire to avoid any possibility that I might subconsciously begin to censor my guests by editing out anything that makes them sound stupid. Such editing might sound like a benevolent act; but what if they sound stupid only because they disagree with me; or just as bad, because they disagree with what I believe my listeners want to hear?

No. Better I should let a few of them stick their feet in their mouths than risk the same form of unconscious censorship that the traditional media has succumb to with such astounding and universal abandon.

I can promise you, however, that I will make every effort to increase the number of people that I interview based on the quality of their intellect as opposed to the quality of their fame.

Thanks again.

Steve

-

Paul then responded with...

Thanks Stephen,

I really appreciate your considering my input. Your point is well taken about censorship. I have had some rather bone-headed ideas in the past, and I have regrettably been guilty of deeming others who disagreed with me as stupid.

Soaring ever onwards,

Paul

-

Thanks again Paul.

****

Learn More

You can learn more about The Future And You here, or here or even here.

Or learn more about its host here or here.

****