Sheidlower, a lexicographer who used to be an editor at large at the
Oxford English Dictionary, started the sci-fi dictionary while working there. He left the organization in 2013, but got permission from
O.E.D. to pick up the project from them in early 2020.
The Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction is still a work in progress, but aficionados can already waste an hour or five pouring over the existing entries. “Teleport,” for example, a word one commonly connects with stories from the last century, can trace its roots back to 1878. “Warp Drive,” a word with strong connections to
Star Trek, can be traced back to almost 20 years before the original series.
In anticipation of the release of George Clooney s upcoming Netflix film,
The Midnight Sky, the Oscar-winning actor/director/producer appeared in an exclusive Q&A event yesterday with actress (and friend) Cate Blanchett (
Thor: Ragnarok). The pair virtually spoke at length about Clooney (
Gravity) heading back to sci-fi to direct and star in the adaptation of Lily Brooks-Dalton s novel,
Good Morning, Midnight.
Set in a near future 2049, Clooney plays Augustine Lofthouse, an ailing scientist who stays behind in an Arctic satellite outpost in hopes of communicating with the crew of the Aether spacecraft (manned by Felicity Jones, David Oyelowo, Tiffany Boone, Demian Bichir, and Kyle Chandler) that s almost on its way back from scouting one of Jupiter s moons for potential human colonization. On Earth, a catastrophic event has just occurred and Augustine is essentially the last man standing who can tell the astronauts to go back and start anew.