Our Opinions Are Correct

We've all heard Arthur C. Clarke's third law, which states that sufficiently advanced science is indistinguishable from magic. What did Clarke mean by this, and how are people using his law to take the mystery out of fantasy stories? Plus we look at popular stories where magic is explained by science, including Star Wars and Dune. Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

Multiverses are everywhere lately, from superheroes to fantasy novels. But there's one huge downside to multiple realities: you can’t change the past, and if you try, you just create a new universe. Also, we talk about The Future of Another Timeline, Annalee's brand new time-travel novel, in which there's only ONE universe, and everyone plays for keeps. Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

People have a lot of opinions about what it means to have opinions about TV. Who is allowed to criticize TV, and how do you do it well? In this episode, we talk to TV critics Inkoo King (Slate) and Nina Shen Rastogi (Vulture) about what it means to analyze TV in 2019. We're at Peak TV, everything is political, and we are still processing our feelings about Game of Thrones. Also, recaps are dead. Let's talk about TV! Shownotes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

Why do so many horror movies and stories feature terrifying women? Why do male creators treat female bodies and women's sexuality as intrinsically terrifying? And what happens when women get to create their own monsters and horror narratives? Plus we talk to Mallory O'Meara about her new book The Lady from the Black Lagoon. Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

There’s been a renaissance of anti-capitalist stories in science fiction and fantasy in the U.S. But these aren't tales of violent revolution or faceless corporations. We discuss Utopia, community, and how group therapy is the opposite of authoritarianism. Also, we’re joined by K.M. Szpara, who talks to us about his steamy forthcoming novel Docile, whose tagline is, “There is no consent under capitalism.” Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

Afro-futurism is on the rise again, thanks to the popularity of movies like Black Panther, and creators such as Janelle Monae and N.K. Jemisin. But Black-centered futurism has a long history in the U.S., and it's changed a lot over the past century. We sit down with critic and scholar Shawn Taylor, co-founder of TheNerdsOfColor.org, to talk about Afro-futurisms of yesterday and tomorrow. Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

Real-world law is becoming science fictional. We talk about the future of surveillance and digital policing with guest Cyrus Farivar, a journalist who covers law and technology for NBC News. He's also the author of Habeas Data, a book about landmark privacy cases. We discuss where our current laws are going, and what science fiction has to say about it -- especially Star Trek, a show lawyers love for a reason. Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

There's nothing quite so dystopian as censorship: the suppression of knowledge, or works of art, that challenge the ruling order. We look at how science fiction, fantasy and horror have been censored. But also, what does science fiction teach us about how to resist censorship? And we talk to Ron Turner, publisher of Last Gasp, about the underground comics scene and his struggles with official censorship. Show notes: https://www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes/

Everybody knows that endings are hard, and we all love to complain about the way our favorite TV show or movie ended. But with both Game of Thrones and the Avengers movies coming to an end, this is a perfect time to think about what makes for a good ending. And how the heck do you write one? Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

We talk to economist Noah Smith about how different theories of economics show up in science fiction -- and how economics is also an exercise in speculative worldbuilding. How do ideas about "rational actors" make their way into space operas, and why is everyone so obsessed with game theory? Plus what is the deal with Ayn Rand?  Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

Lately the camp-themed Met Gala got us talking about camp again. What is camp? And how is it different in 2019 than in 1969? And most importantly, why is science fiction so deathly terrified of seeming campy? We're going to have a Kiki about this. Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

We're living in an age of dystopian stories, while real-life social issues are getting pretty dystopian too. What's the point of telling dark stories in a dark time? Also, we discuss how Utopian stories and dystopian stories are actually quite similar -- just two opposite extremes -- and how the best science fiction exists in the nuanced gray area between the binary poles. Plus: what stories are giving us hope right now?  Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

Social media has become one of the biggest problems of our time. How does science fiction deal with the rise of social networks---and how is this different from the way the real-life news media talks about it? And what does the future look like after social media dies? Shownotes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

For our first-ever live podcast, recorded in March on the JoCo Cruise, we talked to cosmologist Katie Mack about how the universe will end. Will it be heat death or vacuum decay? We also talk about how rarely science fiction deals with the end of the universe, as opposed to the end of our planet or species. Also, why do we think the ultimate apocalypse is so funny, and will we survive it? Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

Game of Thrones comes back in a couple of weeks, so we're thinking about the politics of George R.R. Martin's fantasy world. What would a satisfying ending to this show look like? Can our heroes defeat the ice zombies AND solve Westeros' crisis of governance? And how exactly does the Iron Bank function? Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

Is there a way to predict the future accurately, using data and science? In this episode, we talk to Rose Eveleth, host of the Flash Forward podcast, about the idea of futurism. We explore its history and dark roots in fascism, as well as its connection to environmental politics and the tech industry. And we talk about how Afrofuturism is changing the way we imagine tomorrow.  Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

Back during the Cold War era, we were awash in stories about nuclear armageddon: either living through it, or trying to prevent it. And now, experts say the threat of nuclear holocaust is the worst it's been in over two decades. So how will pop culture respond? We talk about what a 21st century nuclear-war story might look like.  Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

A lot of science fiction takes place in the near future, somewhere in the next century or so. But what about the far future in 10,000 years, or a million? How do writers and creators imagine deep time and make it plausible? We discuss our favorites and some misfires. Then Charlie Jane talks about her new novel, The City in the Middle of the Night (out now!), which explores a human society thousands of years from now.  Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

We love the show Steven Universe now, more than ever. This cartoon about a magical child has gone through a lot of changes in the past couple of years, and now its cosmic mythos has become a lot more complex—and the theme of identity has only gotten stronger. In this episode, we pull apart the show's themes, including colonization, non-toxic masculinity, and the power of families. Show notes here: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

Let's talk about sex! In this episode we explore sci-fi tropes about where sex is going in the future, where it seems that we're doomed to become aromantic hedonists or asexual drones. We also talk about the greatest hits of scifi and fantasy sex. Special guest Lux Alptraum talks about her new book, Faking It, about the lies women tell about sex in real life, and where we see those lies popping up in science fiction too. See links and show notes at: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes