Military Science Fiction and The Cold War

Military Science Fiction and The Cold War

Author: Fact & Science Fiction February 11, 2018 Duration: 21:19
This episode I discuss military science fiction as subgenre of sci-fi and how it may have influenced the discourse around the military from the Cold War to today. I talk about Cold War themes in Starship Troopers and Ender's Game, and discuss the Citizens Advisory Council, a group of science fiction authors who undermined the U.S.'s policy of mutually assured destruction. This episode was brought to you by Audible, with over 180,000 audiobooks and you can try two with a free monthly trial. Download your free audiobook today here. The podcast will have a live show at ClexaCon, a fandom convention for LGBTQ women and allies inspired by Lexa from The 100. Follow the pod on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram @factandscifi. Review F&SF on Apple Podcasts and check out the transcript for this episode on the blog. Research for this episode came from Rachel Maddow’s Drift, Chad Andrew’s article “Technomilitary fantasy in the 1980s: military sf, David Drake, and the discourse of instrumentality”, Sean Kalic's 'U.S. Presidents and the Militarization of Space, between the years 1946-1967,' and Wondery’s American History Tellers, Comfortable Mystery 2 - Film Noire by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.


Ever wonder how close your favorite sci-fi movie or show gets to the actual facts? Fact and Science Fiction picks apart those iconic themes-like time dilation, artificial intelligence, or cloning-to separate cinematic spectacle from scientific possibility. Each episode focuses on one or two recurring ideas from the genre, unpacking how they’re portrayed on screen before exploring what current research and real-world physics actually say. It’s for anyone who’s left a theater or finished a binge-watch with more questions than answers, curious about the genuine principles behind the fiction. You’ll hear clear explanations about topics ranging from genetics and quantum mechanics to the realities of interstellar travel, all grounded in credible science but discussed without unnecessary jargon. The aim is to enrich your viewing experience, giving you a deeper appreciation for both the creativity of storytellers and the wonders of the natural world they often draw from. Tune in to satisfy that curiosity, discovering where our most imaginative films and TV series intersect with the truths of biology, astronomy, and technology. This podcast turns every sci-fi trope into a starting point for a fascinating investigation into reality.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 35

Fact and Science Fiction
Podcast Episodes
Interview with Author David Siegel Bernstein [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 33:40
David Bernstein's Blockbuster Science has been a life-saver for my research for the podcast and I was so happy he agreed to be on the show! We talk about how he got the idea for the book, his favorite topics in science (…
Climate Change and Eco Sci Fi [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 27:47
Climate change is an environmental phenomena that has huge implications for life on Earth in the next few decades. I researched climate change adaptation: what we're going to do when the worst effects of climate change h…
Time Travel in Fiction... and Reality? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 23:03
I am back from my hiatus to talk about time travel! Time travel as a theme has been BIG in stories since before the written word. I talk about legends, popular science fiction movies and TV, and then break down what Albe…
Bigfoot, Mothman and More: Cryptids in History and Today [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 16:56
For Halloween and the podcast’s first anniversary I dedicate this special episode to cryptids! Bigfoot, Mothman, Wendigos and Loch Ness Monsters. Where do these stories come from? How can cryptozoologists prove they are…
Data Science and Predicting Crime [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 21:06
Science fiction and reality blurs when it comes to data science and crime. This episode I discuss predictive policing using examples from Minority Report, Person of Interest and Psycho-Pass to shed light on what actual d…
Atlantis and Ocean Exploration [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 21:04
What can we learn from early science fiction about the ocean? What technology was inspired from this ocean speculation? This episode I want to take you on a journey through centuries of science fiction about the ocean. A…
Cretaceous and Jurassic: Dinosaurs [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 14:55
The Jurassic Park franchise has renewed interest in dinosaurs and speculation about bringing them back to life. But speculative and scifi authors have fantasized about present day humans surviving prehistoric animals sin…
Space Colonization Part II: Space Stations [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:13
This episode I dive deep into space. I watched 2001: A Space Odyssey and Solaris (2002) for the first time! I specifically talk about the different kind of space stations, how we might live in space, and how well 2001: A…
Space Colonization Part I [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 18:37
This episode I break down colonizing another planet or moon. Will we find an exoplanet that can support life? What kind of challenges await Mars and Moon colonies? From figuring out how to breathe to growing food, coloni…
Across the Stars: Space Travel [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 26:33
This episode I invite my friend Paul to help me tackle the gigantic topic of traveling across space. Using examples from Interstellar, Stargate, Star Wars and more, we talk about how it works, how it may work in the futu…