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Science
Fiction in the News Articles
related to the works of
H.G. Wells
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Wells's best known works are The Time Machine (1895), one of the first modern science fiction stories, The Invisible Man (1897), and The War of the Worlds (1898). Wells wrote over a hundred of books, about fifty of them novels.
Herbert George Wells was born in Bromley, Kent. His father was a shopkeeper and a professional cricketer until he broke his leg.
Wells obtained a scholarship to the Normal School of Science in London and studied there biology under T.H. Huxley. However, his interest faltered and in 1887 he left without a degree. He taught in private schools for four years, not taking his B.S. degree until 1890. In 1893 Wells became a full-time writer.
Wells in 1920 met with Lenin. In 1934 he had discussions with both Stalin, who left him disillusioned, and Roosevelt, trying to recruit them without success to his world-saving schemes. Wells was convinced that Western socialists cannot compromise with Communism, and that the best hope for the future lay in Washington.
Wells died in London on August 13. 1946.
Science fiction in
the News articles describe real-world events that relate to the ideas
and inventions in sf novels and movies. Select
a news article: |
Active Denial Technology: Directed Energy Weapons
Active Denial Technology disables enemy soldiers or crowds with a painful beam of electromagnetic energy that inflicts a disabling, burning pain over the body by triggering heat receptors in the skin.
Invisible Animals (If Not Men)
The New York Times ran an interesting article this past week on how animals achieve invisibility in the ocean. Transparency can be achieved in different ways.
Mouse With Human Brain May Live
Stanford University has given researcher Irving Weissman permission to create a mouse-human hybrid. The intent is to inject human brain cells into the brains of developing mice to see what happens.
Invisibility Using Plasmonic Covers
Researchers Andrea Alu and Nader Engheta of the University of Pennsylvania have written a paper on how plasmonic resonance effects might be used to render an object invisible.
Active Denial System Has Researchers Worried
The 'Sheriff' Active Denial System (ADS), due to be implemented in Iraq by 2006, has some scientists and researchers expressing concerns.
Doughnut-Shaped Time Machine
Exactly how to generate a gravitational doughnut is not covered in the paper, but Ori has suggestions.
Apple Video iPod - And HG Wells
Apple's iPod is a great way to take movies with you.
Octarms - Robotic Tentacle Bot From Mars!
A robotic tentacle funded by DARPA proves adept at manipulating irregularly shaped (ie natural) objects; just like the Tripod tentacles from War of the Worlds.
Mitsubishi Aurora Vision LED Screen And H.G. Wells
Enormous public high definition screen predicted by H.G. Wells seventy years ago.
Snake-Arm Robots From OCRobotics Reach Out
Nifty snake-arm joy-stick controlled robot can find its way into a variety of tight spaces.
Two Human Species In 100,000 Years? Stick With Wells
Will the human species bifurcate into Haves and Have-Nots? Eloi and Morlocks?
Snake-Arm Robot In A Plane
No, really. There are snake-arm robots in planes - not on planes, but in them.
Martians Could Kill Life On Earth, Says Scientist
A prominent UK scientist apparently believes that it is possible that Martian water harbors life - maybe dangerous life.
Active Denial System Heat Ray Warming Up
Raytheon finally gets this nonlethal crowd-dispersing weapon out in public view.
How Long To Run From One End Of TV To The Other? 12 Seconds!
How to best measure the size of your TV? Would you believe you'll need your running shoes and a stopwatch?
Transparent TV From Active Inc (And H.G. Wells)
This looks like a great product - H.G. Wells would be very glad to see it, having thought of it seventy years ago.
HIPerSpace Offers Highest Display Resolution
The engineers at UCSD are at it again, creating the world's highest resolution display.
Round Screen LCDs Take Us Back
I've had enough of rectangular displays - this one is pleasingly round.
DIY Snake Arm Robot Prototype
Neat little snake arm robot prototype done by a student; what have you been doing for your robotics projects?
Dubai Ziggurat Carbon Neutral Pyramid Arcology
Incredible concept (now patented!) should convince you that science-fictional vast self-contained cities might actually be built. H.G. Wells thought so.
3G Watch Phone From LG Electronics
Remarkable technology from LG electronics promises to bring video to a wrist near you.
Samsung Transparent OLED Display And H.G. Wells
As shown in H.G. Wells' 1936 movie Things to Come - here's your transparent display. They could be a bit larger... With video.
Carbon Nanotube Muscles
This technology provides an amazing increase in force per unit area of standard (i.e., human) muscles.
Mirrors For Gravitational Waves
Can superconducting sheets reflect gravity waves? Is this causing odd results in the Gravity Probe B experiment? Can H.G. Wells shine any light on these matters?
Domed Cities - For Earth?
Is it really time to start thinking about whether or not we need to start covering Earth cities to protect them (and us) from the rest of our own planet?
'Black Friday' Online Shopping - In 1899!
'In your days they showed you a fashion-plate,' said the tailor, 'but this is our modern development.' HG Wells, 1899.
Transparent OLED Display Gets Bigger
H.G. Wells knew futuristic cool stuff when he thought of it - and now, you can look at a real-life prototype.
KINGK N99 Phone Has Round Display
I can't resist this retrofuturistic phone, with its classic fin de siecle (that's end of the nineteenth century) round screen.
Samsung Transparent OLED Laptop
Very cool demonstration video; I'm still trying to figure out what I would do with a transparent screen laptop. Other than make sure I kept the keyboard clean.
Airborne Laser Destroys Missile
Ray gun fans, rejoice! A successful test of the Airborne Laser Testbed has been accomplished.
Still Dreaming Of Tentacle Arms
Beware the 'long, flexible, glittering tentacles...'
Festo Biomimetic Bionic Handling Systems
Oh, those guys at Festo are doing more than just dreaming about tentacle arms!
Handheld Fashion Kinetoscope Appliance Found
I think Wells got this one pretty much right more than one hundred years ago. Except now, you can own one yourself.
Robotic Tentacle Manipulator
HG Wells described snake-like tentacle manipulators in his 1898 classic War of the Worlds. And what does this device look like if you turn it upside down?
Festo Bionic Handling Assistant Video
Terrific video presents Festo's robotics work, as described by the engineers who created it.
Marvin Minsky's Tentacle Arm Video
Even in 1968, it was time to 'Beware the 'long, flexible, glittering tentacles...''
Samsung 19 Inch Transparent AMOLED Display
Will those open laptops on conference room desks be less of a barrier if their displays are transparent?
Samsung Transparent Smart Window
HG Wells also had an idea like this, or was it Frank Herbert?
Body Scanner May Improve Online Shopping
'...the tailor pulled out a number of slotted arms terminating in little discs...'- H.G. Wells, 1899.
Transparent Smartphone Prototype From Polytron
See through this future phone in a video.
Biomimetic Artificial Muscles
The robots of tomorrow may have super-strength, thanks to this research.
Crabster CR200 Robot Prowls The Deep
'The handling-machine did not impress me as a machine, but as a crablike creature...'- H.G. Wells, 1898.
Crabster Robot Deployed At Korea's Sewol Ferry Disaster
Remote-controlled robots helping out in time of need.
Samsung Round Wearable And HG Wells
'He flicked out a little appliance the size and appearance of a keyless watch'- HG Wells, 1899.
PoseiDrone Tentacled Undersea Robot Like HG Wells'
'Its motion was so swift, complex, and perfect that at first I did not see it as a machine...'- HG Wells, 1898.
US Navy Laser Ready For Use
Fifty years from cartoon to reality. Thanks to a lot of engineers and visionaries.
Puls 'Smart Watch' Replaces Your Cell Phone
I think this is a really interesting device, and I haven't heard very much about it.
LikeAGlove Smart Garment Knows Your Size
'The tailor set moving a mechanism...'- HG Wells, 1898.
Cambrian Genetics Says 'Print Your Own Genetically Unique Creature'
'The study of Nature makes a man at last as remorseless as Nature.'- HG Wells, 1896.
The Martians Are On Their Way!
'Dense clouds of smoke or dust, visible through a powerful telescope on earth...'- HG Wells, 1898.
Samsung's Transparent Display Finally As Big As HG Wells'
Did I mention that HG Wells also figured out that 16x9 is the shape for a TV to have.
Pneumatic Micro-Tentacles Kidnapping Ants
'Long, flexible, glittering tentacles...'- H.G. Wells, 1898.
Nifty 3D Printed Flexible Robotic Finger
'It's motion was so swift, complex, and perfect that at first I did not see it as a machine...' - HG Wells, 1898.
X125 Snake-Arm Inspection Robot Video
'... long, flexible, glittering tentacles...' - HG Wells, 1898.
Artificial Muscles To Power UAV Drone Wings
'The long leverages of their machines are in most cases actuated by a sort of sham musculature...' - HG Wells, 1898.
3D Modeling And Virtual Reality Tech Patents For Body Labs
'... Another small figure in a more voluminous type of robe marched on to the dial.' - HG Wells, 1899.
Transparent OLED TV By Panasonic
It's the look of things to come.
Writhing Robotic Tentacle Uses Laser To Chop Nuke Hardware
'... long, flexible, glittering tentacles... swinging and rattling about its strange body.' - HG Wells, 1898.
HEL TVD Laser System To Be Built By Dynetics Lockheed Martin
'Forthwith flashes of actual flame, a bright glare leaping from one to another, sprang from the scattered group of men.' - HG Wells, 1898
Humanoid Robot's Muscles Biomimic Ours
'It is remarkable that the long leverages of their machines are in most cases actuated by a sort of sham musculature...' HG Wells, 1898.
Rippling Fin Robot Drone Swims And Walks
'... the curious parallelism to animal motions, which was so striking and disturbing to the human beholder...' - HG Wells, 1898.
Mi TV LUX Transparent Edition OLED TV
The Look of Things To Come. HG Wells, 1936.
Samsung Gets Transparent Smartphone Patent
The Transparency of Things to Come
Glass Dome Cities On Mars, Dreamed By Elon Musk
'They will have flung great arches and domes of glass above the wider spaces...' - HG Wells, 1905.
Habitable Exoplanets Can See Us, As Well
What ever happened to 'intellects vast and cool and unsympathetic, regarded this earth with envious eyes...'
Carbon Robotics: War Of The Worlds As A Metaphor For Weed Control
'It was as if some invisible jet impinged upon them and flashed into white flame.' HG Wells, 1898.
Tentacle Robot Gripper Recalls War Of The Worlds
'It presented a sort of metallic spider with five jointed, agile legs, and with an extraordinary number of jointed levers, bars, and reaching and clutching tentacles.' - HG Wells, 1898.
Mars Mission Using Nuclear Thermal Propulsion
'with its atomic engine as noiseless as a dancing sunbeam...' - HG Wells, 1914.
Away Rude Mechanicals! I Want Self-Sensing Variable-Stiffness Artificial Muscles.
'... it is remarkable that the long leverages of their machines are in most cases actuated by a sort of sham musculature.' - HG Wells, 1898.
Iron Beam Laser Under Development To Shoot Down Missiles With Lasers
'It was sweeping round swiftly and steadily, this flaming death, this invisible, inevitable sword of heat.' - HG Wells, 1989.
Transparent MicroLED Screen From Samsung
Has Samsung nailed the Look of Things To Come?
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