Hard SF recommendations, please

I never have been a real big fan of science fiction, and especially what I understand to be called "hard sf". However, I picked up a short story collection by Gregory Benford this weekend called Worlds Vast and Various, and to my surprise I am enjoying it immensely. The first story predicted something very similar to SARS, for example.

Which of Benford's novels are noteworthy? He won the Nebula for Timescape, and I've heard a couple good things about Cosm and Eater. I've also heard Greg Bear's stuff is great (Eon, Darwin's Radio), but I'm not sure where to start.

Any recommendations (by them or any other authors) would be most appreciated. Thanks!

to be honest, i'm not sure what you mean by "hard" sci-fi, but philip k dick is great, as is kurt vonnegut (though i wouldn't classify vonnegut as distinctly sci-fi.)

Heh, well, I'm still learning what an absolute definition is myself (although I know it is a definite genre, so someone who's more familiar with it will better know how to describe it), but it seems to have less to do with fantasy elements than near-future scientific possibilities, and tends to get a little technical. It's still speculative, but is written & described in such a way so that it could actually happen scientifically - in fact most of the time the authors are astronomers or physicists. The Benford virus story I described earlier talks in detail about how the superflu virus is able to do what it does (in fact it turns out to be bioengineered).

It's kind of like the basic idea behind Carl Sagan's Contact - if aliens really were to get in touch with Earth, they'd do it in that fashion rather than showing up on our doorstep with energy weapons blazing in ID4- or War of the Worlds-fashion. It's as much scientific as it is fictional, I suppose......

darwin's radio is a very good book.

military scifi I like is the author of a book called "legion of the damned" about cyborgs.

cs. friedman's "this alien shore" is very very good.

sheffield, charles pretty much science-y scifi.

most beloved Christopher Stasheff warlock series but thats more of a fantasy is really just scifi deal. nice marriage between the two genres though.

Titan. dont know who wrote it but its very very out there and good. part of a trilliogy.

Julian May the galactic millenu trilliogy. OOoo floating brains. rebellion, good characters, very sciency, good writting. so good in fact that I own this series and read it about every year.

Simon R. Green if you want some laser and swords and mass action scifi that makes root.

this is all off the top of my head. if I went walking with you in a library or bookstore, I would point out alot of stuff.

"titan" and sheffield is what your looking for then.

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Originally Posted by BioMechanic

Heh, well, I'm still learning what an absolute definition is myself (although I know it is a definite genre, so someone who's more familiar with it will better know how to describe it), but it seems to have less to do with fantasy elements than near-future scientific possibilities, and tends to get a little technical. It's still speculative, but is written & described in such a way so that it could actually happen scientifically

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ooo interesting. please disregard my recommendations, then. they aren't anywhere near plausible.

John Varley does great stuff, although he's more interested in the social aspects than getting down to the nitty-gritty of how stuff works. Steel Beach is one of his absolute best, and well worth the tracking down.

Charles Sheffield is a bit hit or miss for me, but I've finished every book of his I've started so that's something. Good hard sci-fi. Try the two-book series Starfire/Aftermath, though Starfire is pretty good, Aftermath is great.

David Brin doesn't write much, but he does write well. I actually liked the book "The Postman", don't let Costner drive you away. I actually need to read more of his stuff, the only other book of his I have is a short-story one that, though I really liked, I also can't remember the name of.

On a tangent, if you're in the mood for a good bit of military sci-fi, I'd recommend David Weber/John Rigo's March Upcountry series. Really entertaining read.

James

I'm a huge fan of Robert Heinlein. I inherited about 150 sci-fi books this spring, and I've been reading through a lot of his works and I love them. They probably aren't the "hard" science fiction that you are looking for, but they are really good and do usually provide a pretty good amount of "facts" and such.

Carl Sagan is awesome. I love all of his writings. I was first introduced to his writing by my high school english teacher.

I know this is not the type of book you are looking for ... But ... If you have the time I encourage you to read The Demon-Haunted World: Science As a Candle in the Dark. Very very interesting book with a new spin on how we think about ourselves in relation to the super-natural / life.

good good stuff.

Robert L. Forward writes (well, wrote) hard SF. Check out "Dragon's Egg" if you haven't already.

When you're done with that, I'll name a bunch of others that will keep you busy for a long, long time.

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Originally Posted by Violently Happy

If you have the time I encourage you to read The Demon-Haunted World: Science As a Candle in the Dark. Very very interesting book with a new spin on how we think about ourselves in relation to the super-natural / life.

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That sounds incredibly interesting. I will certainly make time for it. Many thanks!

Also thanks to everyone for all the ace suggestions! I am definitely going to look into Darwin's Radio, Steel Beach, Dragon's Egg, and I will check out Heinlein (high time I check out Stranger in a Strange Land at the very least) and David Brin.

Heinlein's Starship Troopers is excellent. More social and philosophically oriented than "science-y", though. Very different than the brain dead movie based on it (although there is a lot of blowing stuff up).

The Forever War by Joe Halderman (sp?) is in a similar vein.

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Originally Posted by Violently Happy

Carl Sagan is awesome. I love all of his writings. I was first introduced to his writing by my high school english teacher.

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Carl Sagan writes science fact, not fiction. Unless you count Contact, which was amazing. But he isn't really a science fiction writer.


Philip K. Dick is the only sci fi you'll ever need. At least, in my opinion. Valis, Ubik, Counter-Clock World, The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldrich, Do ANdroids Dream of Electric Sheep, etc....

I have enjoyed everything I have ever read by Ben Bova, and Timothy Zahn.

You probably will too.

Get: "Mars" and "Return to Mars".

GET YOUR ASS TO MARS

http://www.videopremiereawards.com/i...talrecall2.jpg

My name is not Quaid...

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Originally Posted by Satsuki

Carl Sagan writes science fact, not fiction. Unless you count Contact, which was amazing. But he isn't really a science fiction writer.

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I know.


Bio, Glad your taking the time to read this. The book changed my perception about a lot of things.


enjoy. :D

Pick up "The Light of Other Days" by Arthur C. Clarke and Stephen Baxter.

It's a hard sci-fi tale about quantum physics and the use of wormholes to enable a new communications revolution. How would the world change if I could open up a little "Worm Cam" and watch what anyone is doing anywhere in the world?

It's really compelling stuff.

Most Barnes and Nobles are clearing out the hard cover versions for around $6.00.

I was looking for some good hard sci-fi recommendations earlier this year and a friend turned me onto The Year's Best Science Fiction edited by Gardner Dozois. Chances are you'll find a handful of short stories to enjoy and there are a few pages of honorable mentions. With so many authors to pick and choose from it's hard to lose out. I got around a million words of sci-fi to read and I'm about 1/4 of the way done.

Just watch Voltron, everything in it will happen in the future.