Science Fiction that Became Science (and Some that Didn’t)
Charles aka “Chuck” Adler is a Professor of Physics at St. Mary’s College in Maryland. He is the author of the popular book Wizards, Aliens and Starships: Physics and Math in Fantasy and Science Fiction, which has won several awards, including the 2015 Science Communication Award of the American Institute of Physics.
Overview
Science fiction in the movies and on TV has shown us incredible gadgets and extraordinary phenomena that aren’t real … yet. But could they be? And how can we decipher the real science from the fake? In this course, Professor Adler will consider several ideas from science fiction — including colonies on other planets, flying cars, and the “warp drive” — to see which ones worked, which ones didn’t, and which ones might still be possible. More importantly, we also will look at the scientific and societal reasons why.