The Expanse - How Accurate a Prediction of the Future?

[ctg]

I have to confess, I get very, very emotional with the tune and in general with this series in general. The books themselves carried me over a very difficult part in my life. And I strongly believe we are destined to head out there and colonize the space.

In fact, this series is so close to our own existance and that it is hard to not think anything like this could happen. Maybe even in our lifetime, if the promises keep true. Science still is science, and as Gnrevolution pointed out, Avasarala doesn't take sh*t from anything or anyone.

It is so hard for anyone to turn that woman's mind or even blow smoke on his eyes. She is almost clairvoyant, expect she doesn't have mutant powers, just a brain that is hard to turn off. Still she's human.

Just like the crew of Rosinata. They are either very unfortunate or very lucky to be in the centre of the events in the Expanse universe. Very much like how things are in the Game of Thrones, except there is no thrones in this solar system. There are people and their problems. And ambition.

So allow me to put in a few shouts: For the Belt! For the Freedom! Earth and Mars are old school. Belt is the future!

If we cock up our future, nothing like this will never happen. Another chance for a colonisation efforts is going to be really, really, really hard work and possibly it is going to be done by some other species that will rise from the ashes of humanity.

In the Expanse, you will not see that happen. Everything will continue evolving and not propelling towards a doom. Even if there is an alien protomolecule running around, because technology changes everything.


For those who don't know, the scenes in the Ganymede is the starting point for the book 2 in the Expanse series. And seeing it happening almost as if its written just gave me chills, because it is not everyday you see Jupiter rising at the background of power-armour technology - situated in something we consider at the moment to lie in the realms of science fiction.

 

[Gnrevolution]

I have to confess, I get very, very emotional with the tune and in general with this series in general. The books themselves carried me over a very difficult part in my life. And I strongly believe we are destined to head out there and colonize the space.

In fact, this series is so close to our own existance and that it is hard to not think anything like this could happen. Maybe even in our lifetime, if the promises keep true. Science still is science, and as Gnrevolution pointed out, Avasarala doesn't take sh*t from anything or anyone.

It is so hard for anyone to turn that woman's mind or even blow smoke on his eyes. She is almost clairvoyant, expect she doesn't have mutant powers, just a brain that is hard to turn off. Still she's human.

Just like the crew of Rosinata. They are either very unfortunate or very lucky to be in the centre of the events in the Expanse universe. Very much like how things are in the Game of Thrones, except there is no thrones in this solar system. There are people and their problems. And ambition.

So allow me to put in a few shouts: For the Belt! For the Freedom! Earth and Mars are old school. Belt is the future!

If we cock up our future, nothing like this will never happen. Another chance for a colonisation efforts is going to be really, really, really hard work and possibly it is going to be done by some other species that will rise from the ashes of humanity.

In the Expanse, you will not see that happen. Everything will continue evolving and not propelling towards a doom. Even if there is an alien protomolecule running around, because technology changes everything.


For those who don't know, the scenes in the Ganymede is the starting point for the book 2 in the Expanse series. And seeing it happening almost as if its written just gave me chills, because it is not everyday you see Jupiter rising at the background of power-armour technology - situated in something we consider at the moment to lie in the realms of science fiction.

In reality there are many things that could change how we progress as a species. Artificial intelligence will likely play a much bigger role than is seen in The Expanse, particularly using unmanned craft or even stations to carry out much of the mining / refining. Think more the film Moon. And genetic / nanotechnology would likely be used to enable any persons living outside of a significant gravity well, otherwise the effect on the human body would be too much.

But as you said, there are so many ways we could mess this all up and never get beyond where we are now. I just hope as a species we aren't that dumb.

 

[Dave]

I am impressed with the engineering and political aspects of this world-building but I am less so with other aspects. The "protomolecule" or Phoebe Bug is some vague unexplained thing that would seem to defy biology and physics but maybe will be later explained better as they understand it themselves. However, I really think we have entered a new age of Biology (if previous centuries were ages of Chemistry and then of Physics) and that not many people have yet woken up to this. Advances in genetic engineering and stem cell research will increase rapidly and seemingly impossible things will be possible, things my imagination cannot describe. There are things we find morally repugnant today that may seem acceptable in the future. Some of the ideas in Brave New World, Clockwork Orange and This Perfect Day have partially come true without the associated social problems outlined in those. One main thing I think will happen which would not be okay today would be the creation genetically of human hybrids better suited to working in space. So, I would expect those Belters to have no legs or to have four arms rather than legs. This would lead to actual human sub-species that would divide us along biological as well as political lines.

It is still a much more believable image of the future than other SF TV series give.

 

[Gnrevolution]

I am impressed with the engineering and political aspects of this world-building but I am less so with other aspects. The "protomolecule" or Phoebe Bug is some vague unexplained thing that would seem to defy biology and physics but maybe will be later explained better as they understand it themselves.

That's kinda the point of the whole series is the evolution of the protomolecule and the knowledge that goes with it. As Solomon Epstein himself put it, new technology changes everything, this series is going through that step-change.

However, I really think we have entered a new age of Biology (if previous centuries were ages of Chemistry and then of Physics) and that not many people have yet woken up to this. Advances in genetic engineering and stem cell research will increase rapidly and seemingly impossible things will be possible, things my imagination cannot describe. There are things we find morally repugnant today that may seem acceptable in the future. Some of the ideas in Brave New World, Clockwork Orange and This Perfect Day have partially come true without the associated social problems outlined in those. One main thing I think will happen which would not be okay today would be the creation genetically of human hybrids better suited to working in space. So, I would expect those Belters to have no legs or to have four arms rather than legs. This would lead to actual human sub-species that would divide us along biological as well as political lines.

Indeed things may change in the future but it's all a may. there's still so much resistance to genetic modification and engineering in general it's hard to see that opinion shift any time soon. Hell, the Catholic Church still opposes contraception last time i looked, and that's been around for centuries! From my perspective it still makes more sense to send unmanned robotic craft out into the void rather than people, no amount of genetic engineering can beat machines, but the use of VR / AR could be used to use them as 'Avatars', problem is the time delay involved once you go much further than the moon.

 

[ctg]

Hell, the Catholic Church still opposes contraception last time i looked, and that's been around for centuries!

No it doesn't. It even accepted space aliens as a real thing.

 

[Gnrevolution]

No it doesn't. It even accepted space aliens as a real thing.

Fair enough, I guess my point was some things can take a long time to be generally accepted within society.

 

[Narkalui]

If anyone has said this already then apologies, but I think it's terrific to see I science fiction show that realistically portrays space travel.
"They've started decelerating so they'll be here in about two weeks."

 

[ctg]

I think it's terrific to see I science fiction show that realistically portrays space travel.

Some of that space-travel is still a bit fantastical, especially Rosinante's run around Saturn moons from the last season wasn't that realistic. Everything else, plausible.

 

[Cli-Fi]

Some of that space-travel is still a bit fantastical, especially Rosinante's run around Saturn moons from the last season wasn't that realistic. Everything else, plausible.

It's still better and more technical than warp drive.

 

[psychotick]

Hi,

The Epstein Drive? All we know is that it's a hundred times better than the old rocket drive. Not how it works or even what fuels it. There's no tech in there at all.

Cheers, Greg.