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Gregory Benford

Born January 30, 1941 (1941-01-30) (age 67)
Mobile, Alabama
Occupation Writer
Nationality Flag of the United States United States
Genres Science Fiction
Notable work(s) Galactic Center Saga novels

Gregory Benford (born January 30, 1941 in Mobile, Alabama) is an American science fiction author and astrophysicist who is on the faculty of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of California, Irvine. Events 1648 - Eighty Years' War: The Treaty of Münster is signed ending the conflict between the Netherlands and Spain Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Employment is a Contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. Nationality is a relationship between a Person and their State of Origin, Culture, association Affiliation and/or Loyalty The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A literary genre is a category of literary composition Genres may be determined by Literary technique, tone, Content, or even (as in the case of fiction The Galactic Center Saga is a series of books by author Gregory Benford detailing a galactic war between mechanical and biological life Events 1648 - Eighty Years' War: The Treaty of Münster is signed ending the conflict between the Netherlands and Spain Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Note that this Partial list contains some authors whose works of fantastic fiction would today be called science fiction even if they predate or did not work in that genre Astrophysics is the branch of Astronomy that deals with the Physics of the Universe, including the physical properties ( Luminosity, The University of California Irvine is a public Coeducational Research university situated in Irvine, California.

As a science fiction author, Benford is known for the Galactic Center Saga novels, beginning with In the Ocean of Night (1977). The Galactic Center Saga is a series of books by author Gregory Benford detailing a galactic war between mechanical and biological life This series postulates a galaxy in which sentient organic life is in constant warfare with sentient mechanical life. A galaxy is a massive gravitationally bound system consisting of Stars an Interstellar medium of gas and dust, and Dark matter

Contents

Biography

Benford received a Bachelor of Science in physics in 1963 from University of Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma, followed by a Master of Science from the University of California, San Diego in 1965, and a doctorate there in 1967. A Bachelor of Science ( BS, BSc or BSc in the UK; less commonly S Physics (Greek Physis - φύσις in everyday terms is the Science of Matter and its motion. University of Oklahoma, abbreviated OU, is a Coeducational public Research university located in the U Norman is the largest city in and the County seat of Cleveland County in the U A Master of Science ( Latin: Magister Scientiæ; abbreviated MSc, M The University of California San Diego (popularly known as UC San Diego or UCSD) is a public Research university in San Diego, California A doctorate is an Academic degree that indicates the highest level of academic achievement That same year he married Joan Abbe.

Benford has an identical twin brother, Jim Benford, with whom he has collaborated on science fiction stories. Both got their start in science fiction fandom, with Gregory co-editor of the science fiction fanzine Void. Science fiction fandom or SF fandom is a community of people actively interested in Science fiction and Fantasy literature, and in contact with one another A science fiction fanzine is an amateur or semi-professional magazine published by members of Science fiction fandom, from the 1930s to the present day Void was a major Science fiction fanzine edited by Gregory Benford.

Writing career

Gregory Benford's first professional sale was the story "Stand-In" in Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (June 1965). The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction (later Fantasy & Science Fiction and usually referred to as just F&SF) is a digest-size In 1969, he began writing a regular science column for Amazing Stories. Amazing Stories was an American Science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback 's Experimenter Publishing.

Benford tends to write hard science fiction which incorporates the research he is doing as a practical scientist. Hard science fiction is a category of Science fiction characterized by an emphasis on scientific or technical detail or on scientific accuracy or on both He has worked on several collaborations with authors including William Rotsler, David Brin and Gordon Eklund. William "Bill" Rotsler ( July 3, 1926 - October 8, 1997) was an American author of several Science fiction Glen David Brin, PhD (born October 6, 1950) is an American scientist and award-winning author of Science fiction. Gordon Eklund (born July 24, 1945, Seattle Washington) is a Nebula Award -winning American Science fiction author whose His time-travel novel Timescape (1980) won both the Nebula Award and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award. Timescape is a 1980 Novel by Science fiction writer Gregory Benford (with unbilled co-author Hilary Foister The Nebula Award is an award given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA for the best Science fiction / Fantasy fiction This page describes the award for best science fiction novel for other awards see Campbell Award (disambiguation A scientific procedural, the novel eventually loaned its title to a line of science fiction published by Pocket Books. A Procedural is a cross- Genre type of Literature, Film, or Television program involving a sequence of technical detail Pocket Books is a division of Simon & Schuster that primarily publishes Paperback books In the late 1990s, he wrote Foundation's Fear, one of an authorized sequel trilogy to Isaac Asimov's Foundation series. Foundation's Fear ( 1997) is a Science fiction Novel by Gregory Benford, set in Isaac Asimov 's Foundation universe Isaac Asimov (c January 2 1920 &ndash April 6 1992 ˈaɪzək ˈæzɪmʌv originally Исаак Озимов but now transcribed into Russian as, was a Russian The Foundation Series is an epic Science fiction series written over a span of forty-four years by Isaac Asimov. Other novels published in that period include several near-future science thrillers: Cosm (1998), The Martian Race (1999) and Eater (2000). Eater is a Hard science fiction novel written by UC- Irvine Physics professor Gregory Benford.

Benford has also served as an editor of numerous alternate history anthologies as well as collections of Hugo Award winners. Alternate history or alternative history is a subgenre of Speculative fiction (or Science fiction) and Historical fiction The Hugo Awards are given every year for the best Science fiction or Fantasy works and achievements of the previous year

He has been nominated for four Hugo Awards (for two short stories and two novellas) and 12 Nebula Awards (in all categories). The Hugo Awards are given every year for the best Science fiction or Fantasy works and achievements of the previous year The Nebula Award is an award given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA for the best Science fiction / Fantasy fiction In addition to Timescape, he won the Nebula for the novelette "If the Stars Are Gods" (with Eklund).

Benford was a guest of honour at Aussiecon Three, the 1999 Worldcon. Aussiecon Three was the 57th World Science Fiction Convention, held in Melbourne, Australia on September 2&ndash6 1999 He remains a regular contributor to science fiction fanzines, such as Apparatchik. Apparatchik ( APPAЯATCHIK) nicknamed Apak, was a tri-weekly Science fiction fanzine by Andrew Hooper, Carl Juarez and Victor Gonzalez

Contributions to science and speculative science

In addition to establishing Benford's law of controversy, Benford claims to have created and written about the first computer virus in the late 1960s. A computer virus is a Computer program that can copy itself and infect a computer without permission or knowledge of the user

In 2004, Benford proposed that the harmful effects of global warming could be reduced by the construction of a rotating Fresnel lens 1000 kilometres across, floating in space at the Lagrangian point L1. Global warming is the increase in the average measured temperature of the A Fresnel lens (pronounced or) is a type of lens invented by French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel. According to Benford, this lens would diffuse the light from the Sun and reduce the solar energy reaching the Earth by approximately 0. The Sun (Sol is the Star at the center of the Solar System. 5% to 1%. He estimated that this would cost around $10 billion. The United States dollar ( sign: $; code: USD) is the unit of Currency of the United States; it has also been His plan has been commented on in a variety of forums. [1] This plan, or a similar one, was proposed in 1989 by J. T. Early, [2] and again in 1997 by Edward Teller, Lowell Wood, and Roderick Hyde. Edward Teller (original Hungarian name Teller Ede) (January 15 1908 &ndash September 9 2003 was a Hungarian -American theoretical Physicist [3] In 2006, Benford pointed out one possible danger in this approach: if this lens were built and global warming were avoided, there would be less incentive to reduce greenhouse gases, and humans might continue to produce too much carbon dioxide until it caused some other environmental catastrophe, such as a chemical change in ocean water that could be disastrous to ocean life. Marine biology is the scientific study of living Organisms in the Ocean or other marine or Brackish bodies of water [4]

Benford serves on the board of directors and the steering committee of the Mars Society. The Mars Society is an international Space advocacy Non-profit organization dedicated to encouraging the exploration and settlement of Mars.

Benford's law of controversy

Benford's law of controversy[5][5][6] is an adage from the 1980 novel Timescape,[7] stating:

Passion is inversely proportional to the amount of real information available. An adage (ˈædɪdʒ or adagium (Latin is a short but memorable saying that holds some important fact of experience that is considered true by many people or that Timescape is a 1980 Novel by Science fiction writer Gregory Benford (with unbilled co-author Hilary Foister An emotion is a mental and physiological state associated with a wide variety of feelings thoughts and behaviours This article is about proportionality the mathematical relation [5][6]

Long a favorite in Usenet and web-board signature files, the adage has come to enough prominence to also be quoted in contexts as diverse as an international drug policy article in a peer-reviewed social science journal,[8] and a long-running objectivist newsletter. Usenet, a Portmanteau of "user" and "network" is a world-wide distributed Internet discussion system Objectivism is a Philosophy developed by Ayn Rand in the 20th century that encompasses positions on Metaphysics, Epistemology, [9]

Bibliography

Galactic Center Saga

  1. In the Ocean of Night (1976, Dial Press)
  2. Across the Sea of Suns (January 1984, Simon & Schuster, ISBN 978-0-671-44668-0)
  3. Great Sky River (December 1987, Bantam Books, ISBN 978-0-553-05238-1)
  4. Tides of Light (January 1989, Bantam Books, ISBN 978-0-553-05322-7)
  5. Furious Gulf (July 1994, Bantam Spectra, ISBN 978-0-553-09661-3)
  6. Sailing Bright Eternity (August 1995, Bantam Spectra, ISBN 978-0-553-08655-3)

Jupiter Projects

  1. Jupiter Project (1975, Thomas Nelson, ISBN 978-0-8407-6456-0)
  2. Against Infinity (March 1983, Ultramarine Press, ISBN 978-0-671-46491-2)

Other series contributed to

Man-Kzin Wars (with Larry Niven)

Second Foundation

Non-series novels

Anthologies edited

Alternate histories

Non-fiction

Short-story collections

Short stories

The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (June 1965)
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (January 1966)
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (May 1966)
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (April 1969)
Sociology Through Science Fiction (1974)
Amazing Stories (November 1969)
Amazing Science Fiction (May 1970)
World's Best Science Fiction (1971)
Sociology Through Science Fiction (1974)
Inside Information (1977)
Fantastic (June 1970)
If (September/October 1970)
Fantastic (October 1970)
Quark 1 (1970)
Galaxy Science Fiction (March 1971)
If (March/April 1971)
If (May/June 1971)
Guns of Darkness (1987)
Universe 1 (1971)
Again, Dangerous Visions (1972)
Again, Dangerous Visions, Book 2 (1977)
Masterpieces of Science Fiction (1978)
Worlds of If Science Fiction (May/Jun 1972)
In the Ocean of Night (1977)
Amazing Stories (September 1972)
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (April 1973)
In the Ocean of Night (1977)
Amazing Science Fiction (February 1974)
Vertex: The Magazine of Science Fiction (February 1974))
Universe 4 (1974)
Best SF of the Year 4 (1975)
Nebula Award Stories 10 (1975)
The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume IV (1986)
The Science Fiction Century (1997)
Threads of Time (1974)
In the Ocean of Night (1977)
Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact (April 1975)
Best SF of the Year 5 (1976)
The Arbor House Treasury of Science Fiction Masterpieces (1983)
Light Years and Dark (1984)
In Alien Flesh (1986)
Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact (September 1975)
Epoch (1975)
Tomorrow Today (1975)
New Dimensions 5 (1975)
In Alien Flesh (1986)
Amazing Stories (March 1976)
100 Great Science Fiction Short Short Stories (1978)
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (July 1976)
Alien Worlds (1976)
Faster Than Light (1976)
The Crash of Empire (1989)
Universe 6 (1976)
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (January 1977)
Cosmos Science Fiction And Fantasy Magazine (May 1977)
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (August 1977)
New Dimensions 7 (1977)
Time of Passage (1978)
Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact (June 1978)
Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact (September 1978)
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (September 1978)
Best Science Fiction Stories of the Year (1979)
1979 Annual World's Best SF (1979)
Best SF Stories of the Year: Eighth Annual Collection (1979)
The 1979 Annual World's Best SF (1979)
In Alien Flesh (1986)
Destinies (November/December 1978)
Thor's Hammer (1979)
The Best of Destinies (1980)
Omni, (December 1978)
Best SF of the Year 8 (1979)
Dragon Tales (1982)
The Best of Omni Science Fiction, No. 3 (1982)
Universe 8 (1978)
In Alien Flesh (1986)
Destinies (January/February 1979)
Omni (May 1979)
The Endless Frontier (1979)
The Best of Omni Science Fiction, No. 4 (1982)
Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact (April 1979)
Best Science Fiction Stories of the Year (1979)
Best SF Stories of the Year: Ninth Annual Collection (1980)
The Endless Frontier Vol. II (1982)
In Alien Flesh (1986)
New Dimensions 9 (1979)
The Best of New Dimensions (1979)
Universe 9 (1979)
Best SF of the Year 9 (1980)
In Alien Flesh (1986)
Amazing Stories (August 1980)
Destinies (Fall 1980)
Destinies (Spring 1981)
Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (July 1981)
The Road to Science Fiction #4 (1982)
Isaac Asimov's Wonders of the World (Anthology #6) (1982)
Creations: The Quest for Origins in Story and Science (1983)
In Alien Flesh (1986)
Norton Book of SF (1993)
The Ascent of Wonder: The Evolution of Hard SF (1994)
Destinies (Winter 1981)
New Dimensions 12 (1981)
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (April 1982)
Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (July 1982)
Perpetual Light (1982)
Best SF of the Year 12 (1983)
In Alien Flesh (1986)
The Ascent of Wonder: The Evolution of Hard SF (1994)
The Berkley Showcase Volume 5 (1982)
Best SF of the Year 11 (1982)
The Best of Omni Science Fiction, No. 5 (1983)
R-A-M Random Access Messages of the Computer Age (1984)
Universe 14 (1984)
In Alien Flesh (1986)
Time's Rub (1984)
Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (April 1985)
In Alien Flesh (1986)
Mathenauts: Tales of Mathematical Wonder (1987)
Future on Ice (1998)
Afterwar (1985)
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (April 1985)
In Alien Flesh (1986)
Armageddon! (1989)
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (January 1986)
Heroes in Hell (1986)
Nebula Awards 22 (1988)
Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (February 1986)
Best SF of the Year 15 (1986)
In Alien Flesh (1986)
Interzone (Autumn 1986)
Amazing Stories (May 1987)
Nebula Awards 23 (1989)
Interzone, Winter 1986 (1986)
Alien Stars III: Under The Wheel (1987)
In Alien Flesh (1986)
Nebula Awards 21 (1987)
Crusaders in Hell (1987)
Spaceships & Spells (1987)
Full Spectrum (1988)
Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (January 1989)
Amazing Stories (March 1989)
The 1990 Annual World's Best SF (1990)
The Year's Best Science Fiction: Seventh Annual Collection (1990)
Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (April 1989)
What Might Have Been? Vol I: Alternate Empires (1989)
Roads Not Taken: Tales of Alternate History (1998)
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (October 1989)
Omni (1989)
Synergy: New Science Fiction, Vol. 3 (1989)
Time Gate (1989)
Amazing Stories (January 1990)
Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (January 1990)
Omni (July 1990)
Dangerous Interfaces (1990)
Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (October 1991)
Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (December 1991)
Amazing Stories (December 1991)
Full Spectrum 3 (1991)
The Year's Best Science Fiction: Ninth Annual Collection (1992)
Nebula Awards 28 (1994)
Aboriginal Science Fiction' (Summer 1992)
Aboriginal Science Fiction (Summer 1992)
Murasaki (1992)
Amazing Stories (February 1993)
More Amazing Stories (1998)
The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction (March 1994)
100 Astounding Little Alien Stories (1996)
Science Fiction Age (May 1994)
Asimov's Science Fiction (August 1994)
Weird Tales from Shakespeare (1994)
South From Midnight (1994)
Man-Kzin Wars VI (1994)
Analog Science Fiction and Fact (April 1995)
Interzone Science Fiction and Fantasy (April 1995)
Science Fiction Age (May 1995)
Analog Science Fiction and Fact (November 1995)
Year's Best SF (1996)
Amazing Stories (Winter 1995)
New Legends (1995)
New Legends (1995)
Science Fiction Age (March 1996)
The Year's Best Science Fiction: Fourteenth Annual Collection (1997)
The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction (March 1996)
War of the Worlds: Global Dispatches (1996)
War of the Worlds: Global Dispatches (1996)
Future Net (1996)
Year's Best SF 2 (1997)
Science Fiction Age (May 1997)
Year's Best SF 3 (1998)
Science Fiction Age (July 1997)
Science Fiction Age (November 1997)
The Year's Best Science Fiction: Fifteenth Annual Collection (1998)
Free Space (1997)
Science Fiction Age (November 1998)
Science Fiction Age (November 1998)
Interzone (September 2001)
Interzone (November 2001)
Published at scifi. The Man-Kzin Wars is a series of Military science fiction short story collections (and is the name of the first collection as well as the Eponymous conflicts War of the Worlds Global Dispatches is a 1996 Bantam Science fiction Anthology, edited by Kevin J War of the Worlds Global Dispatches is a 1996 Bantam Science fiction Anthology, edited by Kevin J com (2001)
Published at scifi. com (2001)
Asimov's Science Fiction (October/November 2002)
Asimov's Science Fiction (October/November 2003)
Year's Best SF9

External links

References

  1. ^ See Russell Dovey, "Supervillainy: Astroengineering Global Warming and Bill Christensen, "Reduce Global Warming by Blocking Sunlight". Also see Screening out sunlight in the Wikipedia article Mitigation of global warming. Mitigation of global warming involves taking actions to reduce Greenhouse gas emissions and to enhance sinks aimed at reducing the extent of Global warming Mitigation of global warming involves taking actions to reduce Greenhouse gas emissions and to enhance sinks aimed at reducing the extent of Global warming
  2. ^ See footnote 23 in E. Teller, L. Wood, and R. Hyde, "Global Warming and Ice Ages: Prospects for Physics-Based Modulation of Global Change".
  3. ^ E. Teller, L. Wood, and R. Hyde, "Global Warming and Ice Ages: Prospects for Physics-Based Modulation of Global Change".
  4. ^ Comments at the 64th World Science Fiction Convention, August 2006. The 64th World Science Fiction Convention ( Worldcon) styled L
  5. ^ a b c "EFF Quotes Collection 19.6", Electronic Frontier Foundation, 9 April 2001
  6. ^ a b "Quotations: Computer Laws", SysProg, retrieved 10 March 2007
  7. ^ Benford, Gregory [1980] (2000). The Electronic Frontier Foundation ( EFF) is an international non-profit advocacy and legal organization based in the United States with the stated purpose of being dedicated Events 193 - Septimius Severus is proclaimed Roman Emperor by the army in Illyricum (in the Balkans) Year 2001 ( MMI) was a Common year starting on Monday according to the Gregorian calendar. Events 241 BC - First Punic War: Battle of the Aegates Islands - The Romans sink the Carthaginian fleet bringing Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Timescape. Gollancz. ISBN 1-8579-8935-X.  
  8. ^ "American Distortion of Dutch Drug Statistics", by MacCoun, Robert J. , Prof. of Public Policy and of Law at the University of California at Berkeley; Society, Vol. 38, No. 3, Pp. 23-26; March 1, 2001; official archival copy requires site registration; a copy of the article is also available at DrugText. The article is a followup to pieces the author already published in Science (1997) and the Annual Review of Psychology (1998)
  9. ^ "Quotations Used in WMail (The 'Working Minds' Philosophy Newsletter)", WorkingMinds. com. Quote appeared in WMail, Nordell, G. E. (ed. ); Vol. IV, No. 36, October 2003.

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