Earlier this year, Wired published two columns dedicated mostly to science fiction. The first one<\/a>, written by Michael Solana, stated that sci-fi authors are so fixed on picturing a dark future that it \u201cprograms\u201d those in the real world to believe in the inevitability of dark times, and makes them fearful of technology.<\/p>\n \u201cSimply, we need a hero. Our fears are demons in our fiction placing our utopia at risk, but we must not run from them. We must stand up and defeat them. Artificial intelligence, longevity therapy, biotechnology, nuclear energy \u2014 it is in our power to create a brilliant world, but we must tell ourselves a story where our tools empower us to do it\u201d,<\/em> Solana writes.<\/p>\n The second column<\/a>, authored by Devon Maloney, counters the first. Mr. Maloney states that sci-fi is only reflecting the sentiments of the general public. He maintains it is the way we use technology that is startling, along with the fact it can be out of human control.<\/p>\n Which future will you choose: grim or bright? #futurism, #security #PowerToProtect<\/p>Tweet<\/a><\/blockquote>\n \u201cDystopian science fiction, from the time it first appeared 100 years ago, grew out of our own preexisting anxiety about technologies we couldn\u2019t control. It appeared because we needed to put a face on the vague yet very real unease caused by the rapid evolution of tech and the dwindling number of people with the power to both create and fully utilize its scope,\u201d<\/em> Mr. Maloney writes.<\/p>\n There is merit in each opinion. Even though both authors omit (probably intentionally) one detail: There are few things that sell as well as dark predictions<\/em>.<\/p>\n Doomsday always enjoys a cult following<\/strong><\/p>\n Ruin and decay also have their own aesthetic appeal for humans, and that\u2019s one of the reasons people flock to cinemas to watch yet another expensive movie about an impending doomsday. Christopher Nolan\u2019s \u201cInterstellar\u201d is the latest example \u2013 just check the box office numbers.<\/p>\n The technological \u201cdaemons\u201d mentioned by Solana and out-of-control hi-tech \u201cgolems\u201d have been sci-fi staples for more than 100 years: from the pioneering sci-fi film \u201cMetropolis\u201d by Fritz Lang (1927) with human-like robots unleashed to do evil, to the present day\u2019s sci-fi TV series \u201cPerson of Interest\u201d in which a malicious AI program is unleashed to govern <\/em>humans, not to serve them.<\/p>\n There are few things that sell as well as dark predictions #security #PowerToProtect<\/p>Tweet<\/a><\/blockquote>\n It\u2019s easy to say that the human world \u2013 the real one, not the one shown in post-apocalyptic fiction \u2013 is a self-compromising, ambiguous welter where everything \u201cgood\u201d is just waiting to turn \u201cbad.\u201d For example, in the latest episode of \u201cPerson of Interest,\u201d the protagonists have to sabotage a great charity project due to its alleged brainwashing potential. In the end, one of the primary characters asks: \u201cHow much wrong are we willing to do in the name of right?\u201d<\/p>\n The choice is ours<\/strong><\/p>\n In this regard, fiction is indeed just mirroring reality and the prevalent expectations of the future.<\/p>\n But while the future is indeed just a product of human imagination, the future present<\/em> will be the result of our actions.<\/p>\n So, what does the future hold? We don\u2019t know, actually. In the video below we tried to portray a wide array of possibilities \u2013 some are favorable and some are definitely not. What we do know is that the choice between the \u201cbright\u201d and \u201cgrim\u201d future is being made today, by us.<\/p>\n Click on the image or visit here<\/a> to watch the video.<\/p>\n![\"wide\"](\"https:\/\/media.kasperskydaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/92\/2015\/12\/06020424\/wide.png\")
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