The Andromeda Strain: A Critical Analysis
In 1969 Michael Crichton wrote The Andromeda Strain, a book that would
forever expand the limits of a science fiction novel. Although written
in 1969, it deals with very current issues facing the modern day
boilogical and even political realm. Technically a science fiction
novel, the meticulously crafted plot is so intertwined with actual
science and technology that some have catagorized it as "science
fact." It is this realistic overtone that gives the impression that
perhaps, someday, events in the book could actually take place.
Plot Synopsis
The book opens up with a fictional page of acknowledgments stating
"This book recounts the five-day history of a major American
scientific crisis." From this opening sentence, the author immediately
sets the tone as one of historical narration of events that actually
took place. It is supposed to be a retelling of a scientific tradgedy
with monumental implications. From here, the story the author relates
begins.
Five years earlier the United States government initiated a program
called Project Scoop. The project's purpose was to send unmanned space
capsules into the earth's outer atmosphere to collect samples and
examine them. The hope was that undiscovered biological agents could
be found for potential use as biological weapons of war. Overall, the
Scoop program had been somewhat of a dissapointment until the seventh
launch. It reentered the earth's atmosphere over small town in
Arizona, where a team of two men were sent to retrieve it. Upon
entering the town they found no signs of life and suddenly and
unexplicably died themselves. This occurence set in motion something
the government had secretly planned for ca...
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...ploy would be to grow a
number of microorganisms that would grow uninhibited in the vastness
of space. The alien race would send them out in random directions
where they would drift perpetually until finally reaching other life.
Once reaching their destination, they would develop into full organ,
or organism capable of communication. They would inform the other race
of the presence of the other, and possible ways to communicate back.
This seemed amusing to the more practical scientists, but it had to be
considered a possibility with Andromeda.
Overall, "The Andromeda Strain's" extremely technical subject matter
made it challenging to read, but informative on a level usually not
touched on by other science fiction novels. The plot itself as well as
the concepts conveyed in this book make it relevent to the modern
biologic world, even over 30 years later.
I chose not to use any of the prompts provided, but instead connect the article to what I learned in my sociology class lass quarter. In class we watched part one of film series of Unnatural causes, titled Unnatural Causes: Is Inequality Making us Sick "In Sickness and in Wealth". While reading the article this reminded me about the cases studied in the film to see whether wealth inequality contributes to making people sick. In the film they focused on the social determinants of health, wealth and education. In both the article and part one of the film Unnatural Causes they focused on three different individuals and how their health are affected by they choices they make and the access they have to care.
In order to better understand the historical context of nuclear development it seems to me as though Iversen dove into a fair amount of investigative journalism. The book focuses primarily on the events of Rocky Flats and her life through a narrative nonfiction interpretation. By providing a journalist approach, Iversen makes it easy for the reader to build a relationship with the characters presented throughout the book. At times I found myself visualizing the intensity of the fires, the whirlwind of emotions from locals, and the lasting environmental impacts that would not only plague Colorado, but taint the reputation of what it means to be human.
Literature and film have always held a strange relationship with the idea of technological progress. On one hand, with the advent of the printing press and the refinements of motion picture technology that are continuing to this day, both literature and film owe a great deal of their success to the technological advancements that bring them to widespread audiences. Yet certain films and works of literature have also never shied away from portraying the dangers that a lust for such progress can bring with it. The modern output of science-fiction novels and films found its genesis in speculative ponderings on the effect such progress could hold for the every day population, and just as often as not those speculations were damning. Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein and Fritz Lang's silent film Metropolis are two such works that hold great importance in the overall canon of science-fiction in that they are both seen as the first of their kind. It is often said that Mary Shelley, with her authorship of Frankenstein, gave birth to the science-fiction novel, breathing it into life as Frankenstein does his monster, and Lang's Metropolis is certainly a candidate for the first genuine science-fiction film (though a case can be made for Georges Méliès' 1902 film Le Voyage Dans la Lune, his film was barely fifteen minutes long whereas Lang's film, with its near three-hour original length and its blending of both ideas and stunning visuals, is much closer to what we now consider a modern science-fiction film). Yet though both works are separated by the medium with which they're presented, not to mention a period of over two-hundred years between their respective releases, they present a shared warning about the dangers that man's need fo...
There is evidence that supports the hypothesis that the Milky Way Galaxy has a massive black hole at its core. At the center of our very own galaxy is a mysterious source of energy. Vast amounts of radiation pour from this compact source which may be a Supermassive Black Hole. Astronomers found an intense radio source with strings of other radio sources clustered about it in the direction of the galactic center. The intense source was named Sagittarius A because the center of the galaxy lies in the direction of the constellation Sagittarius. The position of Sagittarius A as has been observed through radio telescopes around the world seems to be very near the dynamical and gravitational center of the galaxy. Based on its high luminosity and radio spectrum Sagittarius A is neither a star nor a pulsar. It has a luminosity of 5 stars but is smaller than our solar system. Also, it can’t be a supernova remnant since it is not expanding. The strongest evidence that it is a Supermassive Black Hole come...
Why do we fear the unknown? In the process of answering this question, science-fiction genre films successfully capture the history of American society at distinct points in time. The genre is so closely linked to social and historical contexts that its development relies solely on this connection. Sci-fi myths and conventions have remained static for decades, and the only measurable change in the genre lies in the films’ themes (Gehring 229-230). For example, Robert Wise’s The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) argues that fear of the unknown is a flaw in human nature and criticizes the social paranoia of post-war, 1940s America. Conversely, Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) views the human existence through more positive outlook, wherein society can overcome such fear; this optimism reflects the escapist beliefs of the 70s. When juxtaposed, the films’ themes demonstrate the evolution of the sci-fi genre by expressing different social attitudes towards conventions such as foreign beings, unfamiliar technology, and unusual scientists. The films also represent the genre during two major aesthetic periods in cinema—the post-classical and the late modernist eras, respectively—but nonetheless serve a greater purpose in measuring America’s social progress.
The US government hid a deadly secret in Rocky Flats. The department of Energy set up a nuclear plant for manufacture of plutonium triggers for use in nuclear weapons during the Cold War in 1950s and 1960s. For years, residents believed that the plant made industrial detergent (McGrath). During her childhood, Iversen inquired of her mother of the sole business of the Rocky Flats. Her mother said, “I think [Rocky Flats] makes cleaning supplies, scrubbing bubbles or something.” (Iversen 12). This was indeed a lie propagated among the Coloradans. Full Body Burden reveals cover-up of US government mistakes in justification of its security concerns. Establishment of the plant by the government resulted into radioactive emissions into the environment. Ef...
The further science advances, the more complex the ethical dilemmas in this field become. We often view scientific advancements, particularly in relation to our health, as beneficial. Health care involving stem cells or other cutting edge technology can save lives. However, although these advances are made with a noble goal in mind and can be advantageous, they do not come without consequences. Margaret Atwood uses diction in her dystopian novel “Year of the Flood” to address the ethical dilemmas that arise in the interaction between scientific advances, healthcare, the environment, and human nature to provide a modern perspective of a dystopian world.
Researchers are constantly looking for explanations for criminal patterns and crime rates among juveniles. They have presented many theories to serve as such explanations with strain theory being one of them; however, like many other theories, strain theory was pushed aside decades ago. It was not until recently that this theory was given new life by criminologist, Robert Agnew. Robert Agnew introduced this new development as the general strain theory. GST was the first supposition that was not tied to social class or cultural variables as it was in previous implications of Émile Durkheim’s anomie theory. Instead, Agnew’s theory refocused on societal norms that affect juveniles.
The magnificent life of a black hole. The black hole is a mystery that you will want to learn about. A black hole does many wonderful things in outer space. Black holes in outer space have been a mystery for years. There are many questions such as how is a black hole born and how does a black hole grow.
The dropping and the atomic bomb and the continued use of human subjects during scientific testing in the 20th century continues to be a controversial subject. It is because the actions carried out saved many lives and that those hurt were informed and volunteered that these methods were moral. It is because of the debate surrounding these actions that science has continued to evolve. From these earlier practices, more rigid experimental methods are enforced. These new regulations protect the patient and continue to ensure that those sacrificing their safety to aid others are not injured without fully understanding the risks involved. The modern world will continue to benefit from the actions taken by the United States during the 20th century.
The Golden Age of Science Fiction featured many of Science Fiction’s greatest and most prolific authors. American author Philip K. Di" (1928 - 1982), active from 1952 until his death, was one of those who helped shape science fiction during the three decades during which he was active (Behrens and Ruch). Throughout his career, Di" wrote more than forty novels, one hundred short stories, as well as numerous essays. Amongst the author’s numerous works, eight short stories and four novels were eventually adapted to the silver screen (such as the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep (1968) which became Blade Runner (1982) and the short story “Adjustment Team” (1954) which was loosely adapted to eventually become The Adjustment Bureau (2011) (Kimbell). Nevertheless, something was eating the author away despite his success.
In “The Great Silence” Ted Chiang presents the reader with the idea that humans and other intelligent species do live on earth. Communication between different species on earth can be difficult because they can’t express their thoughts to one another. According to a possible solution to fermi’s paradox, intelligent life would rather hide than to present themselves to potential enemies. Humans have a hard time trying to find other species to communicate with because they only focus on extraterrestrial life. Humans created the Arecibo observatory to send out signals into space and pick up any signals that could be sent by extraterrestrial life. Although Humans cannot speak directly to other species we are able to communicate with our actions and vibes.
The Government and Politicians didn’t really care. Most of them ignore it and waited for the last minute. Others, like the President Ronald Regan spent more money on war supplies and other stuff, than helping the CDC find a cure. They were only given a certain limited space, no money, and outdated equipment.
Black holes are incredible processes that happen in space that are capable of crushing anything unlucky enough cross paths with them. Black holes have caught the attention of millions of people around the world because of their incredible strength and the fact that so much is unknown about them. The theories of possible outcomes resulting in traveling into a black hole has been used in many science fiction stories, but what we think is science fiction could actually exist. With black holes being out of our reach, and even difficult for our greatest minds to understand, what happens within them may just stay science fiction. The more we learn about black holes the more questions we ask.
The 20th Century brought about a great many scientific breakthroughs and a furthering of knowledge and how science interacted with the average every day person. Yet the promise of such advancements can be skewed to extremes. A good many novels were written to caution the next few generations against such atrocious acts. These warnings set forth by Aldous Huxley are clear: be weary of social conditioning, genetic conditioning and control through a set of ideals set forth by a world state. By looking at the novel, Brave New World, one can see how the novel can be considered a cautionary tale, and how some of these ideas are present today.