Firlefanz
Lady of the Land
Hero (premium)
Registered: 05-2003
Location: Germany
Posts: 2511
|
|
Reply | Quote
|
|
Science Words from Novelists
I just ran across this nice article in the CSMonitor. It's about how novelists coined words that are now common-place in science:
Tech-word origins: stranger than science
Now, I personally think that's very neat. Plus it bolsters my "theory" that often invention comes from writing stories set in the future. If such things can be thought about, they can be researched or developed. But first, someone has to put the idea into the heads of the scientists and tech people. I believe that it's very often writers who do that.
What do you think?
--- - Firlefanz
 |
|
6/3/2009, 3:50 pm
|
Send Email to Firlefanz
Send PM to Firlefanz
|
QS2
Shepherd
Hero
Registered: 03-2006
Posts: 1026
|
|
Reply | Quote
|
|
Re: Science Words from Novelists
Very interesting, thinking about it, the intermingling is even more complex yet in a way. I say this because some SF writers were once scientists and sometimes even still are. So it could be a lot of back and forth effects apply in this genre.
Though now that I think about it even more, this leads me to wonder if some of SF could even be considered as a kind of attempt by science to try and for see effects of inventions and or discoveries it hasn't even made yet...
|
|
6/3/2009, 8:49 pm
|
|
Reythia
Squire
Hero
Registered: 11-2005
Posts: 921
|
|
Reply | Quote
|
|
Re: Science Words from Novelists
I definitely agree about the bounce effect. First off, because as QS2 said, enough scifi writers are or were scientists or engineers and know the real-world math and theory -- and name things accordingly. Secondly, because the majority of "hard science" scientists are fans of scifi/fantasy -- so if there's already a scifi word for something they develop, they're likely to know it and choose it.
An example: A friend of mine was putting together a piece of a website about the data assimilation process for his satellite. He actually spent time coming up with the appropriate words for it, so that when abbreviated, the data assimilation site had the acronym BORG.
...We at the CSR lunch table applauded his efforts. Engineers are funny folk.
---  -- YAR! |
|
6/4/2009, 5:37 pm
|
Send Email to Reythia
Send PM to Reythia
AIM
MSN
|
dragonlady
Intrepid Adventurer
Hero
Registered: 04-2003
Location: England
Posts: 214
|
|
Reply | Quote
|
|
Re: Science Words from Novelists
This reminds me of a stand up comedian I saw on TV once. I think he was from New York, or maybe the show was filmed in New York, he was American at any rate.
He was saying that you could tell which inventions people weren't expecting by watching Star Trek. People were able to imagine/preempt mobile phones, as you can see from the communicators. However no one had realised something like the internet was coming, because there's nothing like that in Star Trek (or most pre-internet sci-fi shows, that I can think of). Then the guy made a joke about how no one ever sends a communication that ends in L-O-L.
---
"Why sometimes I've believed as many as 6 impossible things before breakfast" -- Red Queen, Lewis Carrol
|
|
6/4/2009, 5:37 pm
|
Send Email to dragonlady
Send PM to dragonlady
|