 | |
| Editor | Jeff Prucher |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Subject | Science fiction |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press |
Publication date | 2007 |
| ISBN | 0-19-530567-1 |
Brave New Words: The Oxford Dictionary of Science Fiction is a book published in 2007 by the Oxford University Press. It was edited by Jeff Prucher, with an introduction by Gene Wolfe. [1]
The vocabulary includes words used in science fiction books, TV and film. A second category rises from discussion and criticism of science fiction, and a third category comes from the subculture of fandom. It describes itself as "the first historical dictionary devoted to science fiction", tracing how science fiction terms have developed over time.
The dictionary received positive reviews from science fiction journals, although the critic Rob Latham felt that its digital version (the SF Citations Project) might be preferable to the print format, which could grow out-of-date. [1] [2] [3] In 2008 it won the Hugo Award for Best Related Book and was cited as an Outstanding Reference Source by the American Library Association. [3]
Grok is a neologism coined by American writer Robert A. Heinlein for his 1961 science fiction novel Stranger in a Strange Land. While the Oxford English Dictionary summarizes the meaning of grok as "to understand intuitively or by empathy, to establish rapport with" and "to empathize or communicate sympathetically (with); also, to experience enjoyment", Heinlein's concept is far more nuanced, with critic Istvan Csicsery-Ronay Jr. observing that "the book's major theme can be seen as an extended definition of the term." The concept of grok garnered significant critical scrutiny in the years after the book's initial publication. The term and aspects of the underlying concept have become part of communities such as computer science.
Science fiction fandom or SF fandom is a community or fandom of people interested in science fiction in contact with one another based upon that interest. SF fandom has a life of its own, but not much in the way of formal organization.
The space marine is an archetype of military science fiction describing a kind of soldier who operates in outer space or on alien worlds. Historical marines fulfill multiple roles: ship defence, boarding actions, landing parties, and general-purpose high-mobility land deployments that operate within a fixed distance of shore or ship. By analogy, hypothetical space marines would defend allied spaceships, board enemy ships, land on planets and moons, and satisfy rapid-deployment needs throughout space.
Tom Smith is an American singer-songwriter from Ann Arbor, Michigan, who got his start in the filk music community. He is a fourteen-time winner of the Pegasus Award for excellence in filking, including awards for his "A Boy and His Frog", "307 Ale", and "The Return of the King (Uh-huh)", and was inducted into the Filk Hall of Fame in 2005.
Arthur Wilson "Bob" Tucker was an American author who became well known as a writer of mystery, action adventure, and science fiction under the name Wilson Tucker.
Literary fiction, mainstream fiction, non-genre fiction, serious fiction, high literature, artistic literature, and sometimes just literature, are labels that, in the book trade, refer to market novels that do not fit neatly into an established genre ; or, otherwise, refer to novels that are character-driven rather than plot-driven, examine the human condition, use language in an experimental or poetic fashion, or are simply considered serious art.
GAFIA is a term used by science fiction fans. It began as an acronym for "Getting Away From It All", and referred initially to escaping from mundane activities via fanac.
A sense of wonder is an intellectual and emotional state frequently invoked in discussions of science and biology, higher consciousness, science fiction, and philosophy.
In science fiction, a time viewer, temporal viewer, or chronoscope is a device that allows another point in time to be observed. The concept has appeared since the late 19th century, constituting a significant yet relatively obscure subgenre of time travel fiction and appearing in various media including literature, cinema, and television. Stories usually explain the technology by referencing cutting-edge science, though sometimes invoking the supernatural instead. Most commonly only the past can be observed, though occasionally time viewers capable of showing the future appear; these devices are sometimes limited in terms of what information about the future can be obtained. Other variations on the concept include being able to listen to the past but not view it.
Jesse Sheidlower is a lexicographer, editor, author, and programmer. He is past president of the American Dialect Society, was the project editor of the Random House Dictionary of American Slang, and is the author of The F-Word, a history of the word "fuck"; he is also a former editor-at-large at the Oxford English Dictionary. New York Magazine named him one of the 100 smartest people in New York, and he serves as a judge for the annual "literary-celeb-studded" Council of Literary Magazines and Presses spelling bee. He is currently an adjunct assistant professor at Columbia University.
The 66th World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon), also known as Denvention 3, was held on 6–10 August 2008 at the Colorado Convention Center and the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel in Denver, Colorado, United States.
Le Zombie was an intermittent science fiction fanzine, of which 72 issues were published by science fiction fan and author Bob Tucker from December 1938 to August 2001. The first issue was a single, crudely mimeographed sheet; the last printed issue was published in December 1975 by planography. After a 25-year hiatus, Tucker resumed publishing in 2000; these last 5 issues were electronically published as a webzine. The title refers to the "Tucker death hoaxes" which played such a distinctive role in fan history.
A letterhack is a fan who is regularly published in magazine and American comic book letter columns.
A group mind, group ego, mind coalescence, or gestalt intelligence in science fiction is a plot device in which multiple minds, or consciousnesses, are linked into a single collective consciousness or intelligence.
A raygun is a science-fiction directed-energy weapon usually with destructive effect. They have various names: ray gun, death ray, beam gun, blaster, laser gun, laser pistol, phaser, zap gun, etc. In most stories a raygun emits a ray usually lethal if it hits a human target, often destructive if it hits mechanical objects, with properties and other effects unspecified or varying.
"Burning Chrome" is a science fiction short story by Canadian-American writer William Gibson, first published in Omni in July 1982. Gibson first read the story at a science fiction convention in Denver, Colorado in the autumn of 1981, to an audience of four people, among them Bruce Sterling. It was nominated for a Nebula Award in 1983 and collected with the rest of Gibson's early short fiction in a 1986 volume of the same name.
Soft science fiction, or soft SF, is a category of science fiction with two different definitions, in contrast to hard science fiction. It explores the "soft" sciences, as opposed to the "hard" sciences. It can also refer to science fiction which prioritizes human emotions over scientific accuracy or plausibility.
Widescreen baroque is a style of science fiction writing "characterized by larger-than-life characters, violence, intrigue, extravagant settings or actions, and fast-paced plotting". It is closely aligned with, and an outgrowth of, space opera fiction.
Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction is a website created by lexicographer Jesse Sheidlower that traces the origin of terms in science fiction literature. The website launched in January, 2021.
Science Fact and Science Fiction: An Encyclopedia is a 2006 reference work written by Brian Stableford and published by Routledge. It consists of approximately 300 entries on various topics relating to how scientific advancements have influenced fiction. The book received positive reviews, with critics commending it for filling a previously-unoccupied niche in the literature and praising the contents in terms of depth and breadth, although finding the book to be expensive at a price of $165.
 | This article about a reference book is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This article about a science fiction book is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |