Like, totally!
(Red Orbit) There is a new genre of science fiction called cli-fi, or climate fiction. It falls under the heading of “normal†science fiction, as well as dystopian fiction. According to Conservation Magazine, the term “cli-fi†was coined by Dan Bloom in 2007, and has since reached “marketable status,†with both novels and movies paying homage to the genre.
A new study from the University of Copenhagen reveals how climate fiction can serve as a mental laboratory, allowing us to simulate the consequences of climate change in our minds and imagine living under other, harsher, conditions.
According to Dr. Gregers Andersen, “Global warming is much more than scientific data on changes in the atmosphere; it is also a cultural phenomenon in which meaning is being shaped by the books we read and the films we see. And there are so many of them now that we can speak of a completely new genre, cli-fi.†Andersen has just defended his thesis, “Climate-Changed Existence and its Worlds; Global Warming in Fiction and Philosophy,†at the University of Copenhagen.
Perfect: fictional writing for a fictional issue.
It’s interesting that the article and study mention Michael Crichton’s “State Of Fear” , as the book beats the living hell out of extreme environmentalism and “climate change” alarmism.
Actually, it’s much older than 2007 – it began in the ’70’s with ‘global cooling’.
“Perfect: fictional writing for a fictional issue.”
There is no doubt that the Earth’s surface has rapidly warmed 1.4 Fahrenheit in the past century, and that’s a lot of warming. So that’s factual, not fictional.
That fact in itself is alarming, even if the warming is solely from natural processes. The primary fiction is from the science denier cult (or religion) who, since they insist the Earth is warming from unidentified but natural processes, predict (hope) that there’s at least a 50/50 chance the Earth will stop warming. That is the current state of the denier cult in a nutshell. Let me repeat: Since there are no physical processes responsible for the current rapid warming, it can stop at any time: It is as likely to stop as to continue! ‘Cause magic or something.
So, the denier cult thinks there’s a 50% chance the Earth will continue to warm; climate realists think there’s a 95% chance the Earth will continue to warm. The denier cult hopes it will warm, hoping the entire Earth will be like the south of France. Climate realists suspect there’s a 95% chance that cycles of drought and deluge, melting of ice sheets and glaciers, and regions of less habitability will further destabilize human society.
I hope Mr. Crichton is right about global warming and wrong about cloning dinosaurs that eat people.
Climate apocalypse Sci Fi has been around for decades. True it’s more prevalent and tedious now than then, but it’s an old trope.
Jeffrey evidently doesn’t remember the “we’re all gonna freeze in a new ice age” hysteria that was the Climate Nazi’s theme in the ’70s & ’80s. It’ll be back in a couple decades when it turns out we weren’t all gonna fry.
Sir, I am dan bloom the man who coined cli fi and is boosting its profile in media worldwide, see nytimes.com search there for cli fi ask me why I am doing this and who is sponsoring me. U will be surprised. Let’s chat. Dan bloom tufts 1971 literature grad. Danbloom at gmail
Nate are you one of those who thinks they know more about what us happening to our climate than does the US Navy?
Or perhaps you think the USNavy has joined the giant hoax that only the enlightened can see?
Nikc,
There was no widespread hysteria over global cooling in the 70s and 80s. There were a few mass media articles but little scientific support that we were expecting a new ice age.
No one who is scientifically literate is claiming we are “all gonna fry”. Frying is the process of cooking something quickly in melted fats at very high temperatures, possible since fats have such high boiling points.
The Earth is warming rapidly and it will continue to warm but will most likely NOT reach temperatures needed for frying until the planet is swallowed by the exploding Sun.
In fact, it’s nearly certain that water on Earth will NOT even just boil (212F) from global warming. It’s also unlikely that we’ll be sautéed, fricasseed, baked, roasted, barbequed, steamed, poached, braised or broiled.
What WILL happen is that the ice sheets and glaciers will continue to melt, the oceans will continue to rise, extreme weather events will continue, the oceans’ pH will drop further, growing seasons continue to change, and regions will become less habitable to humans.
The climate denier cult claims the warming is “natural” but offers no evidence to support their claim. Climate scientists have presented overwhelming evidence in support of the theory that added greenhouse gases are causing warming.
[…] at Pirate’s Cove is blogging about “Fiction Prepares Us For Climate Change Or […]