Science fiction
(sometimes shortened to sci-fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which
typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as
advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel universes, extraterrestrial
life, sentient artificial intelligence, cybernetics, certain forms of immortality (like mind uploading), and
the singularity. Science fiction predicted several existing inventions, such as the atomic bomb,
[1]
robots[2] and borazon,[3] whose names entirely match their fictional predecessors.
Science fiction can trace its roots back to ancient mythology,[4] and is related to fantasy, horror,
and superhero fiction, and contains many subgenres. Its exact definition has long been disputed
among authors, critics, scholars, and readers.
Science fiction, in literature, film, television, and other media, has become popular and influential
over much of the world, It has been called the "literature of ideas", and often explores the potential
consequences of scientific, social, and technological innovations.[5][6] It is also often said to inspire a
"sense of wonder".[7] Besides providing entertainment, it can also criticize present-day society and
explore alternatives.
American science fiction author and editor Lester del Rey wrote, "Even the devoted aficionado or fan
—has a hard time trying to explain what science fiction is," and the lack of a "full satisfactory
definition" is because "there are no easily delineated limits to science fiction."[8] According to Isaac
Asimov, "Science fiction can be defined as that branch of literature which deals with the reaction of
human beings to changes in science and technology."[9] Robert A. Heinlein wrote that "A handy short
definition of almost all science fiction might read: realistic speculation about possible future events,
based solidly on adequate knowledge of the real world, past and present, and on a thorough
understanding of the nature and significance of the scientific method."[10]
Part of the reason that it is so difficult to pin down an agreed definition of science fiction is because
there is a tendency among science fiction enthusiasts to act as their own arbiter in deciding what
exactly constitutes science fiction.[11] Damon Knight summed up the difficulty, saying "science fiction
is what we point to when we say it."[12] Ultimately, it may be more useful to talk around science fiction
as the intersection of other, more concrete, genres and subgenres.[13]
Alternative terms[edit]
Further information: Skiffy
Forrest J Ackerman has been credited with first using the term "sci-fi" (analogous to the then-trendy
"hi-fi") in about 1954;[14] the first known use in print was a description of Donovan's Brain by movie
critic Jesse Zunser in January 1954.[15] As science fiction entered popular culture, writers and fans
active in the field came to associate the term with low-budget, low-tech "B-movies," and with low-
quality pulp science fiction.[16][17][18] By the 1970s, critics within the field, such as Damon
Knight and Terry Carr, were using "sci fi" to distinguish hack-work from serious science fiction.
[19]
Peter Nicholls writes that "SF" (or "sf") is "the preferred abbreviation within the community of sf
writers and readers."[20] Robert Heinlein found even "science fiction" insufficient for certain types of
works in this genre, and suggested the term speculative fiction to be used instead for those that are
more "serious" or "thoughtful."[21]
