Anne
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Good morning! Just wanted to say hello, and mention something a friend and I were discussing. As we've grown older, fiction has begin to become less interesting, and the real world has become more and more fantastical. I'm unsure if this is an effect of age, or if reality has simply reached a bizarre enough state of technological advancement that we from the previous state are having trouble processing it. Thoughts?
Lois McMaster Bujold
Well, we are living in the 21st century now, which was always The Future. (Granted, it's not the future we ordered or expected.)
I think the real world has always been pretty fantastical, but in the Old Days (tm), people could only access a small slice of it. Due to the internet and other communications technologies, people are being exposed to way more of it than had even been possible before, and indeed way more than most of us can process.
And, yes, they keep making more. This has changed the problem from that of accessing knowledge that is scant and rare and valuable, a perpetual state of local famine, to triaging an avalanche of knowledge. I've likened it to being taken into a huge modern supermarket, and told one has to eat all the food on the shelves. Obviously, the old system of trying to know everything about everything can't work in this new environment. I'm not sure we've figured out yet what will.
Ta, L.
I think the real world has always been pretty fantastical, but in the Old Days (tm), people could only access a small slice of it. Due to the internet and other communications technologies, people are being exposed to way more of it than had even been possible before, and indeed way more than most of us can process.
And, yes, they keep making more. This has changed the problem from that of accessing knowledge that is scant and rare and valuable, a perpetual state of local famine, to triaging an avalanche of knowledge. I've likened it to being taken into a huge modern supermarket, and told one has to eat all the food on the shelves. Obviously, the old system of trying to know everything about everything can't work in this new environment. I'm not sure we've figured out yet what will.
Ta, L.
More Answered Questions
Ruth Tomandl
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Hello! Thank you for the Vorkosigan books; I just finished Captain Vorpatril's alliance and I love what good, kind people the characters are and how much they're able to help each other; it's an optimistic lens for the real world. I appreciated your thoughts in this interview: https://nautil.us/does-science-fiction-shape-the-future-543468/ did any of the other authors' answers surprise you or make you think?
Patri Friedman
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Has someone else taken over the SoftWear authorized merchandise (http://www.softwear-tnt.com/loisbujold.html) since they seem to no longer be active? "Bharaputra Laboratories", "Koudelka All-Blonde Commando Team", "Barrayaran Imperial Military Academy", etc, I would love to purchase some of these items.
Mickey
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Given that the first article of the Betan constitution is "access to information shall not be abridged", how do the Betans always manage to stay one step ahead in R&D, especially in weapons systems? Is it just that Betan engineers and scientists are so far ahead in competence and understanding that the rest of the galaxy has to scramble to keep up?
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