Category: science fiction
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Robert Jackson Bennett uses magic to make sense of how technology shapes our lives
In my latest column for Techdirt, I talk to Robert Jackson Bennett about the political consequences of technology, the power of imagination, and his critically-acclaimed new novel, Foundryside: https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20181106/17231941000/robert-jackson-bennett-uses-magic-to-make-sense-how-technology-shapes-our-lives.shtml Robert and I were on a panel together last month at New York Comic Con and I featured Foundryside in this edition of my reading recommendations newsletter. Complement with…
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Borderless shows us the tech-fueled nightmare that we’ve all created
Ars Technica just ran a wonderful review of my new novel: “Borderless shows us the tech-fueled nightmare that we’ve all created. A matryoshka of a story… Where do you draw the line between who you are and what you want to be?” https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2018/11/borderless-shows-us-the-tech-fueled-nightmare-that-weve-all-created/ One of my favorite aspects of this review is how its author,…
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The Most Pernicious Misconception About Democracy Is That We Think We Are Living in One
In my latest column for Medium, I talk to critically-acclaimed novelist and political scientist Malka Older about the hidden forces shaping the future of democracy: https://medium.com/s/thenewnew/the-most-pernicious-misconception-about-democracy-is-that-we-think-we-are-living-in-one-dd3d9418faa6 We need to be more intentional about creating fair institutions, rather than ceding them to the powerful. In Older’s words, “We should never consider our governance system done; we…
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What The Truman Show Can Teach Us About the Future of the Internet
On the twentieth anniversary of its release, The Truman Show is more relevant than ever. In my latest column for Tor.com, I explore what one of my favorite movies shows us about the divisive psychology of filter bubbles, and what to do about it: https://www.tor.com/2018/11/05/what-the-truman-show-can-teach-us-about-the-future-of-the-internet/ Welcome to algorithmic Seahaven Island. Complement with how digital feeds…
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Technology, Politics Collide in Eliot Peper’s ‘Borderless’
The East Bay Express ran a lovely feature on my new novel, calling it “a sharply rendered, wildly entertaining thriller speaking to the dangerous realities of our present: climate change, the changing shape of power, the very American values that defined Peper’s grandparents’ post-war lives—themes that are now fraught within our real world as it becomes increasingly…
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Borderless
My new novel, Borderless, is out. Get it right here. Borderless is a speculative thriller about a refugee-turned-rogue-spy navigating a geopolitical labyrinth through a near future where information is power and whoever controls the feed rules the world. Lush, nuanced, and philosophical, the story grapples with the decline of the nation state, the rise of…
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Machine Learning President, or how to role-play the 2020 election
Earlier this year, I co-designed a political simulation game with Randy Lubin, Berit Anderson, Brett Horvath, and Mike Masnick that went viral when The New Yorker reported that the right-wing billionaire Mercer family had somehow gotten their hands on the rules. As a result, Peter Sagal, host of NPR’s “Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me!”, and…
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Read an exclusive excerpt from BORDERLESS
VICE‘s Terraform just ran an exclusive excerpt from my forthcoming novel, Borderless: https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/xw99gw/analog The excerpt takes place in the off-grid social club the series is named for, a notorious refuge that plays a major role in the story and highlights the ubiquity of this future’s global feed. Read it and take a peek into tomorrow.…
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Appearing at New York Comic Con October 4-6
I’ll be participating in two panels at New York Comic Con this year: http://www.newyorkcomiccon.com/en/Contributors/6609056/Eliot-Peper The first one explores the politics of modern speculative fiction and the second one grapples with how science fiction tackles the challenges of climate change when politicians don’t. We’ll be doing a joint signing at each panel so come say hi,…
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Who will own the future?
In my latest column for Scout, I talk to Annalee Newitz about the life and death implications of IP law, the roles that journalism and science fiction play in society, and who will own the future: https://scout.ai/story/how-capitalism-and-private-property-are-impeding-innovation?shared=849.HyDV094Fm I previously recommended Newitz’s debut novel, Autonomous, in this edition of my monthly reading recommendation newsletter. Complement with how…