Date: Fri, 5 Mar 2004 07:49:02 -0800 (PST) From: Neil Ottenstein <nottenst at yahoo.com> Subject: [WSFA] Catherine Asaro at GSFC Monday To: WSFAlist at keithlynch.net Reply-To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at keithlynch.net> Frequent Capclave guest Catherine Asaro will be presenting the Engineering Colloquium at GSFC Monday march 8 at 3:30 PM in the Building 3 auditorium. Her abstract is as follows: ABSTRACT -- "What If?" That central question drives the literature of science fiction. Speculative stories, when based on solid science, can provide an entertaining medium for communicating ideas in our fields and inspiring readers to learn more about our disciplines. In this talk, I will discuss science as used in science fiction, drawing in part from my own works: the mathematical games with complex numbers and superluminal speeds in my novel Primary Inversion, as based on my April 1996 paper in the American Journal of Physics, "Complex Speeds and Special Relativity". I will also talk about the science in some popular media, in particular the classic "Trouble with Tribbles" episode from the original Star Trek. http://ecolloq.gsfc.nasa.gov/announce.asaro.html Neil Ottenstein