Created by Tobias Buckell (http://www.tobiasbuckell.com/) on July 30, 2009
Tobias Buckell’s book “Arctic Rising” is described on his website as: “Global warming has transformed the Earth. The Arctic Ice Cap has all but melted, and the international community is racing desperately to claim the unlocked resources. The story’s protagonist, Anika Duncan, is an airship pilot about to get caught up in a plot to terraform Earth itself, to save it from itself…”. Terraforming (literally, “Earth-shaping”) of a planet, moon, or other body, according to Wikipedia.com, is the hypothetical process of deliberately modifying the atmosphere, temperature, surface topography or ecology to be similar to those of Earth, in order to make it habitable by terrestrial organisms.
Option 1: Use this background and continue to tell this science fiction short story. What events unfold? What problems or obstacles occur that have to be overcome and how is it done? Does our civilization survive on another planet?
Option 2: Answer the following questions to develop a short story.
- What technology advances from your childhood are the most awe-inspiring? What would seem like science fiction to your childhood self? Describe it fully and why it would be awe-inspiring to your past self.
- What technology do you think could be developed in the future? Identify a problem and then an item that would help you overcome that problem. What would be advantages and disadvantages of the technology?
Have fun! And as always, feel free to leave us comments about this exercise below!
