Class Central is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

The Great Courses Plus

How Science Shapes Science Fiction

via The Great Courses Plus

Go to class Write review
GetSmarter Ad

AI Adoption - Drive Business Value and Organizational Impact

Learn More → Boot.dev Ad

The Most Addictive Python and SQL Courses

Learn More →

Overview

Coursera Flash Sale
40% Off Coursera Plus for 3 Months!
Grab it
From rocket science and exoplanet ecology to time travel and alien encounters, dive into the real scientific principles that inspire and support great science fiction stories.

Syllabus

  • 01: Science and Fiction! The Wayfarers Series
  • 02: Cheating the Science: Protector
  • 03: Prediction: From the Earth to the Moon
  • 04: World-Building in The Left Hand of Darkness
  • 05: Advanced World-Building in Avatar
  • 06: Action and Reaction in The Avengers
  • 07: Space Travel and 2001: A Space Odyssey
  • 08: Interplanetary Travel and The Martian
  • 09: Space Battles and Energy Weapons: Star Wars
  • 10: Advanced Rocket Systems in Star Trek
  • 11: Relativity and Time for the Stars
  • 12: Black Holes, Wormholes, and Interstellar
  • 13: Time Travel and Doctor Who
  • 14: Teleportation and Star Trek
  • 15: Cyberspace and the Singularity: Neuromancer
  • 16: Steampunk Science and Leviathan
  • 17: Design Your Own Dragon: Game of Thrones
  • 18: Planetary Ecology in Dune
  • 19: Extraterrestrial Intelligence and Contact
  • 20: UFOs, ESP, and The X-Files
  • 21: Social Sciences and the Foundation Series
  • 22: Designed Languages and Arrival
  • 23: Cosmology, the Mind, and Star Maker
  • 24: Science Fiction’s Purpose: Childhood’s End
  • By This Professor

Taught by

Charles L. Adler

Reviews

4.8 rating at The Great Courses Plus based on 26 ratings

Start your review of How Science Shapes Science Fiction

Go to class

Never Stop Learning.

Get personalized course recommendations, track subjects and courses with reminders, and more.

Sign up for free
Someone learning on their laptop while sitting on the floor.