Sci-fi culture

[alxian]

startrek is known to be one of the biggest influences from the sci-fi world on that of the lives of real people.

 

take the klingons for instance,

 

with a language, culture and ability for people to change themselves through makeup to look like klingons,

 

how far can such makebelieve be taken?

 

its almost possible through genetic therapies for a human to become klingon.

 

in a very near and real future people could design genetic mutations that would enable them to become entire other species.

 

startrek has been such a powerful influence that its conceivable that people might want to become klingons.

 

with the startrek era waning though... could there be a new sci-fi show/movie that would rival even startrek influence on our culture?

[infamous]

startrek is known to be one of the biggest influences from the sci-fi world on that of the lives of real people.

 

take the klingons for instance,

 

with a language, culture and ability for people to change themselves through makeup to look like klingons,

 

how far can such makebelieve be taken?

As far as people choose to take it and I believe we humans have a great capacity for imagination.

 

its almost possible through genetic therapies for a human to become klingon.

 

in a very near and real future people could design genetic mutations that would enable them to become entire other species.

 

startrek has been such a powerful influence that its conceivable that people might want to become klingons.

 

with the startrek era waning though... could there be a new sci-fi show/movie that would rival even startrek influence on our culture?

I certainly hope so, I was a real Treky and never missed an episode if I could help it. I've been hoping and waiting for another sci-fi series to come along that could regain the imagination of the public like the original StarTrek series did. There are a few good ones out there but nothing yet quite equal to that original show. Let's just keep our fingers crossed, maybe one's on it's way???

[GAHD]

Hehe, once the starwars TV show hits the air startrek will be a thing of the past. then we'll have people wanting to become wookies.

[alxian]

apparently neither of you have seen stargate sg1 or atlantis?

 

since they went the route of human seeded planets and instantaneous travel you don't see many true aliens as heavy as the klingons but i think after what 9 seasons stargate has yet to really go mainstream the way startrek did... a shame really given the stellar writing and better than most production values of the new stargate atlantis.

[GAHD]

I know all about stargate, I'm a fan of it but not like I was of TNG(The only truely great startrek I think).

[alxian]

and then there is going to be the starwars live-action series.

 

jedis versus klingons at conventions.. mmm nerd battle royal.

[CraigD]

…its almost possible through genetic therapies for a human to become klingon.

 

in a very near and real future people could design genetic mutations that would enable them to become entire other species.

The SF term I like for this is “neomorph”, from Greg Bear’s “Eon” series.

 

I doubt genetic therapies will be employed anytime soon, when surgical alteration is so much easier. There’s already a small subculture of “body modification” folk who have surgically made themselves resemble reptiles, cats, etc, sometime with the help of robotic prosthetic tails, etc.

… with the startrek era waning though... could there be a new sci-fi show/movie that would rival even startrek influence on our culture?

There’re whole books discussing this. I agree with the school of thought that holds that the 1960s Star Trek was strongly a product of the culture of its time, and that something like it simply can’t be as widely popular now as then. As an American born in 1960, and a fan of STrek (The Original Series) when it first aired, this feels true to me.

 

A single key difference in the “core values” of STTOS and superficially similar movies and TV Series of the 1970s and later is, I believe, about their assumptions about humanity’s past, future, and the idea of progress – their “Theories of History”.

 

The 1960s’ STrek’s ToH is simple: the distant past was very bad, the near past better, the future will be better still, the far future nearly perfect. By working to advance science and technology, including psychology and social science, you are making this happen. The sincerity of belief in this doctrine by me and my peers in the late 1960s and early 70s is hard to express forcefully enough: a large majority of us really believe. The cold war, Vietnam, race riots – these were all just growing pains, soon to be overcome – Jim Kirk told us so every week.

 

The 1970s’ Star Wars ToH is more complicated: It all takes place in the distant past ("A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…."). Things were good (Jedi & the old Republic), then bad (the Empire), then good again. Perhaps there is no connection between the ancient Star Wars galaxy and terrestrial humanity, or perhaps things have just gone way downhill. The future is outside of the story.

 

The 1980s’ Battlestar Galactica, and similar movies and series such as the 1990s’ Stargate had ToH in which: the distant past was technologically advanced; in the more recent past, knowledge of how to create the technology is lost, in some places, knowledge of its use is not, in some others, it is (such as Earth) fading into myth and legend; in the present, knowledge of its use is being regained; in the future, more knowledge of it may be gained.

 

The 1990s’ Babylon 5, STDS9, and similar movies and TV series have “steady state” ToH: In the distant past, war raged; In the future, war will rage; Things get better, then worse, etc.

 

Before a SF show/movie can rival STTOS, our culture must regain its faith in progress.

[alxian]

goes along nicely with panspermia and recycling of life when a star dies and a new system is formed.. those planetssimals containing the seeds of life, from the remnants of shattered worlds.

 

starwars indeed never tries to link its verse with ours, a smart thing to do as its disassociates them and us, it doesn't have to mimmic real events in order to entertain.

 

ST TNG was imo very good at forecasting the future, allowing us to devise ways to make real what we saw.

 

new shows can continue on that tangent easily enough but few will be as idealist again. its in fact very hard to find a show were man is allowed to be as successful and arrogant while humble.

 

Before a SF show/movie can rival STTOS, our culture must regain its faith in progress.

 

no truer words...

 

we've probably extended the top half of society far further than we should have, allowing technology to avance way beyond anything we can control. we've grown too accustomed to what we have but the fear is ever present that even the little we have could putrify at a moments notice. (the space shuttle, atomic energy and arms, tall buildings, titatinc..) sigh the list of failures is too much..

[geokker]

how far can such makebelieve be taken?

Star Trek's Holodeck or Red Dwarf's 'Better than Life' total immersion video game spring to mind.

 

Or without the hardware, some kind of smart psychotropic drug.

[Eclogite]

how far can such makebelieve be taken?

I quite like this one where I believe I am a middle aged male on a planet called Earth, circling a 5 billion year old G2 star, occasionally posting on Hypography.

[rockytriton]

Hehe, once the starwars TV show hits the air startrek will be a thing of the past. then we'll have people wanting to become wookies.

 

I saw quite a few guys trying to look like wookies when I was at the beach last month

[alxian]

are you sure they were guys... and in costume?

 

[besides that condition that has people growing massive amounts of body and facial hair..]